Kazakhstan Business & Economy - The Times Of Central Asia

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Aviation

Michael Daniel Appointed Head of Kazakhstan’s Aviation Administration

Kazakhstan has appointed U.S. aviation veteran Michael Daniel as chief executive officer of the Aviation Administration of Kazakhstan, a step that officials say is linked to plans for direct flights to the United States. Daniel took up the post on May 4. He has more than 40 years of experience in civil aviation and holds a degree in aeronautics from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. He began his career at the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), where he served as a flight operations inspector, aircraft certification specialist, and head of flight safety. He later worked on international programs and policy and held posts in Frankfurt, New York, and Washington. From 2006 to 2009, Daniel led the FAA’s international office in Singapore and Beijing, overseeing foreign repair stations and international safety assessments. During his career, he also took part in international initiatives, including work within Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), and cooperated with the International Civil Aviation Organization on safety oversight and evaluation. Kazakhstan’s Civil Aviation Committee said one of Daniel’s main priorities will be the launch of direct flights to the U.S. Aviation expert Abul Kekilbayev said the appointment appeared to be tied to that objective. “The aircraft have already been bought, you need to pass an audit for compliance,” he said. Before direct flights can begin, airlines from Kazakhstan will need to complete several stages of approval with U.S. regulators. Those steps include obtaining authorization from the U.S. Department of Transportation and then applying to the FAA, which will assess whether Kazakhstan meets international aviation safety standards.

Kazakhstan Wind Power

China Energy Begins Construction of Major Wind Power Plant in Kazakhstan

Construction has begun on a 500 MW wind power plant in Kazakhstan, with the project being developed by a Kazakh–Chinese joint venture, Karaganda Wind Power LLP. The investment agreement was signed in April 2026, and construction of the facility in the Osakarov district was officially launched later last month, according to regional authorities. The project involves the development of a 500 MW wind farm, with total investment estimated at $645 million. Annual electricity generation is expected to reach around 1.6 billion kWh of green energy, with some earlier estimates placing the figure higher. Commissioning is scheduled for 2029, and the project is projected to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by approximately 1.3 million tons per year. “Construction of the station is one of the key strategic initiatives, reflecting the development of green energy, which President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has identified as a priority. This is an important event for the region: new capacity, technologies, and jobs,” said Karaganda region governor Yermaganbet Bulekpayev at the launch ceremony. The project includes the installation of around 60–65 wind turbines near the village of Saryozek, although final technical specifications have not been consistently confirmed. These are expected to be among the largest turbines deployed in Kazakhstan. Around 600 jobs are expected to be created during the construction phase, with permanent positions to follow once the plant becomes operational. “Next-generation wind turbines will be used in this project, and operational processes will be managed using artificial intelligence,” said Kairat Maksutov. The site was selected due to its strong and consistent wind conditions, particularly along the Osakarovka-Saryozek-Telman corridor, where a 150 MW wind project is already in operation. The project forms part of Kazakhstan’s broader push to expand renewable energy capacity, which currently stands at just 7% of its energy mixed. In December last year, China Energy Engineering Group also began construction of a 300 MW solar power plant in the Sauran district of the Turkestan region in southern Kazakhstan. The project, with an investment of about $320 million, is expected to be completed by the end of this year. As previously reported by The Times of Central Asia, China Energy International Group is also active in the Uzbekistan energy market.

Critical Minerals

Opinion: Kazakhstan’s Critical Minerals Promise Is Running Out of Time

Kazakhstan has long been defined by what lies beneath its soil. Oil, uranium, copper, zinc, lead, chromium, gold, and other minerals have shaped the country’s post-Soviet economy and supplied the budget, export revenues, and industrial base that supported three decades of state-building. That model is now entering a more complex phase. In the first quarter of 2026, Kazakhstan’s industrial output slipped as mining and quarrying fell by 11.4%, with crude oil production down 19.8%, natural gas output down 20%, and other mineral extraction down 15.1%, according to figures reported from the Bureau of National Statistics. The oil decline also reflected specific disruptions. Kazakhstan’s energy minister said oil and gas condensate production fell 20% year-on-year in the first quarter, while production at Tengiz had only recently resumed after an outage linked to a fire at a power unit. Reuters reported that the field’s restart was gradual. Those short-term shocks should not be confused with the whole story. They expose a deeper vulnerability: Kazakhstan has been highly successful at extracting known deposits, but far less successful at replacing them. The World Bank’s mining sector diagnostic put the problem plainly. Kazakhstan is underexplored, greenfield exploration has been almost non-existent for about 30 years, and much of the geological data inherited from the Soviet period is incomplete or outdated. This is not a story of geology alone. It is a story of institutions, incentives, and time. Deposits deplete whether governments plan for it or not. The difference between a mature resource economy and a vulnerable one is whether exploration, processing, regulation, and regional diversification keep pace with extraction. The Arithmetic of Depletion Kazakhstan still has one of the strongest mineral endowments in Eurasia. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has described rare and rare-earth metals as having “essentially become new oil,” and told the government to expand geological and geophysical exploration from 1.5 million square kilometers to at least 2.2 million by 2026, according to Akorda. OECD analysis published in 2026 underlines why the stakes are high. Kazakhstan’s metals mining sector accounted for 12.1% of GDP in 2024. The country is the world’s largest uranium producer, can currently export 21 of the 34 critical raw materials on the European Union’s official list, and has some of the world’s largest reserves of chromium, zinc, and lead. Yet reserve strength on paper does not remove the operational pressure at existing mines. In 2022, Kazakhstan’s prime minister warned that reserve growth for many minerals had not been compensated and that major metal deposits in eastern Kazakhstan, including Orlovskoye, Maleyevskoye, Tishinskoye, and Ridder-Sokolnoye, could be mined out within the next decade, according to the government’s own account of its 2023-2027 geology concept. Gold shows a similar tension between headline potential and mine-level pressure. Industry reporting has linked a fall in Kazakhstan’s 2025 mining output targets partly to changes at Vasilkovskoye, one of the country’s largest gold deposits, where operations are shifting from open-pit to underground mining as easily accessible ore becomes harder to extract. MINEX Forum reported that the transition reduced...

Critical Minerals

U.S.-Kazakhstan Tungsten Venture Advances as Critical Minerals Cooperation Deepens

A U.S.-linked critical minerals venture in Kazakhstan is moving forward with plans to develop one of the world’s largest undeveloped tungsten resources, strengthening cooperation between Washington and Astana at a time of growing demand for secure mineral supply chains and greater Western interest in Central Asia’s strategic minerals base. Skyline Builders Group Holding Ltd. and Cove Kaz Capital Group LLC have announced a merger agreement that would create Kaz Resources Inc., a Nasdaq-listed company focused on tungsten, rare earths, and other critical minerals. The combined company is expected to trade under the ticker symbol “KAZR,” subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals and other closing conditions. The transaction builds on cooperation between Cove Kaz Capital and Kazakhstan’s national mining company, Tau-Ken Samruk. Cove Kaz has acquired a majority interest in Severniy Katpar LLP, which holds licenses for the Northern Katpar and Upper Kairakty tungsten projects in Kazakhstan’s Karaganda mining district, while Tau-Ken Samruk retains a minority stake, giving Kazakhstan’s state mining sector continued participation in the project. The Financial Times has reported that Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump held indirect stakes in Skyline Builders, the Nasdaq-listed company that has agreed to combine with Cove Kaz Capital. The reported investments were made through a Dominari-affiliated vehicle before the business combination. The report has drawn scrutiny because of the project’s connection to U.S. critical minerals policy and potential U.S. government-backed financing. The report cites no evidence that the Trump sons influenced the project award or the financing process. A spokesperson for Donald Trump Jr. said he is a passive investor, has no operational role, and does not engage with the federal government on behalf of companies in which he invests or advises. Eric Trump did not respond to requests for comment reported by the Financial Times. The Export-Import Bank of the United States and the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation have issued letters of interest indicating potential financing support for the project. Such letters are preliminary expressions of interest, not final loan approvals, binding commitments, or government contracts, and any financing would remain subject to due diligence, agency approvals, and other conditions. The projects are strategically significant because tungsten is widely used in defense, aerospace, industrial manufacturing, and advanced technologies. The United States has identified tungsten as a critical mineral and has sought to diversify supply chains amid heavy global dependence on China. Kazakhstan’s tungsten deposits hold significant potential, but many remain at an early stage of development, requiring substantial investment and time before production can scale. Even so, the country has begun to emerge as a meaningful producer, with public and industry estimates pointing to Kazakhstan becoming a top-three producer in 2025 after the launch of the Boguty deposit, behind China and Vietnam. The Association of Mining and Metallurgical Enterprises has cited production of around 2,400 tons of tungsten in 2025. The country’s rising role in the global market coincides with a sharp increase in tungsten prices. Following export restrictions imposed by China in February 2025, prices rose sharply through 2025...

SMEs

Kazakhstan’s SMEs Face Severe Labor Shortage

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Kazakhstan have become one of the country’s main sources of employment, but are facing a severe labor shortage, according to a joint report by Mastercard and KPMG. The report identifies workforce shortages as one of the most pressing challenges for SMEs, with nearly half of businesses reporting acute staffing deficits. The main reasons cited are the limited supply of qualified specialists and their high cost. According to the report, SME executives say, “It is difficult to find qualified employees, especially production managers: candidates do not meet requirements, and staff are not motivated to develop, despite high salaries and good working conditions. Scaling up the business requires increasing the number of skilled employees, which is constrained by limited financial resources and labor shortages.” At the same time, 90% of surveyed business leaders say they face high salary expectations from potential employees, which smaller firms struggle to meet. Around 70% of respondents also acknowledge that SMEs are widely perceived as less prestigious places to work. Labor productivity in micro and small businesses remains more than twice as low as in medium and large enterprises. In 2025, a worker in a small business generated an average of about $10,100, compared with $34,300 in medium-sized firms, and the gap continues to widen. Limited access to financing and the high cost of borrowing also remain major constraints for SMEs. Additional factors hindering SME development include an unstable tax and regulatory environment, as well as broader macroeconomic volatility. Despite these challenges, SMEs are a key source of employment in Kazakhstan. Over the past five years, employment in the sector has grown from 40% to 50% of the workforce. Today, around 4.7 million people out of 9.3 million employed nationwide work in SMEs, meaning roughly one in two workers is employed in this segment. According to the report, SME employment has been growing at an average annual rate of 6%, while employment in other sectors has declined by about 3% per year. “The concentration of employment in SMEs makes the labor market vulnerable to tax and regulatory changes: negative shocks in the sector could directly translate into rising unemployment,” the report notes. As previously reported by The Times of Central Asia, SMEs currently account for about 40% of Kazakhstan’s GDP, a figure that remains below benchmark countries such as Turkey (41%), the United States (44%), and Uzbekistan (52%).

Trans-Caspian Route

Kazakhstan to Develop Maritime Component of Trans-Caspian Transport Route

Kazakhstan’s national railway operator, Kazakhstan Temir Zholy (KTZ), is moving to build its own maritime fleet to expand the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR). Also known as the Middle Corridor, the TITR is a multimodal transport corridor linking China and Europe through Central Asia and the South Caucasus, offering an alternative to routes that pass through Russia. KTZ Express Shipping, a subsidiary of KTZ, has signed contracts for the construction of six general-purpose dry cargo container ships. Agreements have been concluded with China’s Jiangsu Haizhongzhou Shipping Industry Co., Ltd. for the construction of four vessels and with Azerbaijan’s Baku Shipyard for the construction of two. The vessels will be river-sea ships with a deadweight of up to 9,900 tons and a capacity of up to 537 TEUs, adapted for operations on both the Caspian and Black Sea routes. This is expected to support the integration of the maritime segment into the TITR’s multimodal logistics chain. The ships will be equipped with modern navigation systems in line with international requirements and environmental standards. Their safety, reliability, and environmental performance are expected to enhance their suitability for international routes and increase confidence among global shippers. The project is intended to give Kazakhstan a larger role in the TITR by establishing a sustainable maritime component of the route. Kazakhstan’s maritime transport sector has recorded steady growth in recent years. In 2025, maritime cargo volumes reached 8 million tons, a 7% increase compared to 2024. Container traffic through Kazakh seaports rose by 29% to 90,637 TEUs, while cargo volumes transported along the TITR increased by 36%. Under the country’s comprehensive maritime infrastructure development plan for 2024-2028, Kazakhstan intends to establish a major transport and logistics cluster based on the ports of Aktau and Kuryk. The plan includes expanding container handling capacity, developing cargo terminals and international shipping logistics, and reducing administrative barriers. By 2028, total cargo throughput at the ports is expected to increase by 50%, while container handling volumes are projected to triple. Plans are also in place to increase container traffic along the TITR, including the transit of 600 container trains from China through Kazakhstan this year. As previously reported by The Times of Central Asia, freight volumes transported along the Middle Corridor through Kazakhstan have grown more than five times over the past seven years, increasing from 0.8 million tonnes to 4.5 million tonnes annually.