O investimento estrangeiro na Ásia Central está a aumentar, com as empresas europeias à procura de alternativas à Rússia. O Cazaquistão lidera a região, ao atrair milhares de milhões, mas de onde vem este dinheiro e que alterações traz à economia?
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00:00Acesse o início da guerra na Ucrânia, Central Asia é often referida como o novo investimento
00:15hub do maior continente.
00:16As empresas, em particular, estão keen a acquirem natural recursos e do business
00:21bypassing Russia.
00:23Como muito investimento está realmente indo para a Ucrânia, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan e
00:27Turkmenistan, e de onde?
00:30Welcome to EastWestConnect.
00:32We're highlighting business and economic developments in Kazakhstan and the wider Central Asian region,
00:38connecting with Europe and beyond.
00:40According to the United Nations, Kazakhstan attracted 15.7 billion in new projects in 2024,
00:47securing its position as the leading destination for investments in the North and Central Asia
00:53region.
00:53The country saw 88% increase in investment compared to 2023, and it now accounts for
00:5963% of all investments in the region.
01:02Here are the figures for some other Central Asian states.
01:06Uzbekistan managed to secure $4 billion, whilst Kyrgyzstan half that amount at $2.1 billion.
01:15And Turkmenistan managed to attract $339 million.
01:21Three quarters of all the investment in Kazakhstan is in oil, gas, and mineral extraction.
01:29Recently, oil giant Chevron announced a new $43 billion investment in further development
01:34of the Tengiz oil field.
01:36But the government is trying to diversify and encourage investors to put money into non-extractive
01:43business.
01:44Joining us now is Mr. Nurlan Zhakupov, chairman of Samru Kazina, the sovereign wealth fund
01:49that serves as a key partner in major FDI projects across Kazakhstan.
01:55Mr. Zhakupov, welcome and thank you for your time today.
01:59Thank you.
01:59I'm very honored.
02:00Samru Kazina is widely seen as Kazakhstan's key investment facilitator.
02:04What, in your view, makes the country such an attractive investment destination?
02:09In other words, why should foreign investors choose to partner with you?
02:12Samru Kazina is a sovereign wealth fund with assets under management which amount to $80
02:17billion.
02:18We manage oil and gas, metals and mining, railway company, electricity grid operating company,
02:25electricity generating company, and we view ourselves as a catalyst of foreign direct investment.
02:30Our modus operandi is to create a JV with a strategic foreign partner where we would take a minority
02:38stake and let the strategic investor to run the operations.
02:44We would commit our capital into the equity and provide full support required for our JV or for our project.
02:53And where needed, we provide a long-term off-take agreements.
02:58A good example of such cooperation is that a global conglomerate which produces electric locomotives,
03:05a company called Alstom, a European conglomerate, more than 15 years ago decided to open a factory here in Kazakhstan,
03:13in Astana.
03:14And it has been a success since then.
03:16Our 100% subsidiary, Kazakh Railways, have provided a firm off-take to Alstom.
03:24And as of today, this factory exports its electric locomotives to nearby countries such as Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Mongolia.
03:36By the way, we recently visited the Alstom facility in Astana.
03:40Let's have a look.
03:41Kazakhstan's logistics network is growing.
03:45According to the Ministry of Transportation, auto freight to Europe is up by 8.5% since 2023,
03:52with railway transit volumes reaching 28 million tons.
03:55Some investors have already seized the opportunity, such as the 170 million euro project
03:59between Alstom and the Kazakh oil fund Samruk Kazana,
04:02which involves modernizing railway signaling and producing low-carbon locomotives for Kazakhstan and beyond.
04:08The company credits Samruk Kazana's strategy as crucial to establishing their business in Kazakhstan.
04:14In fact, they provide two key things.
04:16The first one is that they provide a framework which is stable and clear for a long period of time.
04:21And within this framework, it enables us to localize activity instead of going to the market
04:27because we don't have visibility of where we're going.
04:29The off-take contract of Samruk gives you a view over a certain number of years of where you're going
04:35and what you can do and cannot do in a given country.
04:39Kazakhstan is the only country where Alstom produces full-cycle electric locomotives.
04:43With over 450 units made, Alstom plans to introduce six-wheeled locomotives by 2029
04:49to improve container transport between ports.
04:51We are an investor, so we lack stability.
04:54And these off-take agreements are providing just this stability over a long period of time
05:01for importing and starting to deliver product from Kazakhstan in Kazakhstan.
05:05Samruk Kazana and Alstom are now expanding their railway partnership,
05:08preparing to export wide-gauge locomotives widely used across the CIS market.
05:15Your own analysis suggests that government involvement in the economy can hinder investment.
05:21Yet, as a state-owned fund, Samruk Kazana is key to facilitating investment projects in Kazakhstan.
05:27How do you reconcile that?
05:29All the big names which we bring into the country,
05:32all the strategic investors which we bring into the country
05:34and with whom we do the JVs and with whom we produce products of the added value,
05:40we rely on local contact.
05:41We rely on local, small and medium-sized enterprises.
05:45Therefore, it's a win-win for both for Samruk Kazana,
05:49for foreign strategic partner and for the country in general, for our SME.
05:53Well, Mr. Jakubov, thank you so much for carving out the time out of your busy schedules.
05:57It was my pleasure. Thank you.
06:00So, where do investments into Kazakhstan come from?
06:03By far, the largest investment comes from the European Union, 43%,
06:08followed by Russia, with 22%, then South Korea and China, with 7% and 6%.
06:13Here is how the chief economist at the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development,
06:18Beata Jaworczyk, commented on this topic.
06:22Kazakhstan has enjoyed an increase in FDI flows, particularly in greenfield projects.
06:29What's interesting about these flows is that they have come from a range of countries,
06:35both from Western countries as well as from countries pursuing multi-vector geopolitical policies.
06:45Investment has benefited not only the extractive sector,
06:49but also Kazakhstan registered inflows into food and beverages,
06:53in business services, in financial sector, and in transport.
06:59And that's going to be helpful in terms of promoting diversification of the economy and structural transformation.
07:08What are your projections about Kazakhstan's economy in the near future?
07:11Last year, Kazakhstan experienced a robust growth, driven by non-oil sector.
07:17Unemployment was at a historical low.
07:20Public investment was also helping stimulate growth.
07:24This year, we expect to be even better, with growth above 5%.
07:29Oil sector is going to be helpful.
07:34Next year, there will be a modest slowdown, but still the economy growing at a good clip.
07:40Mind you, on this episode of East-West Connect, we're focused solely on non-oil and gas investments.
07:48Join us in the next episode as we dive into the significance of Central Asian fossil fuels for Europe and the world.