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Kazakhstan, China ink deals

3 September 2015 10:13 (UTC+04:00)
Kazakhstan, China ink deals

By Aynur Karimova

Kazakhstan and China have signed a package of documents in the field of transport, energy, nuclear, metallurgical and chemical industries worth $5.1 billion, reports Kazakh National Welfare Fund “Samruk-Kazyna.”

The documents were signed as part of Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev's visit to China.

One of the agreements was signed between Kazakhstan's national railway company – Kazakhstan Temir Zholy and the People's Government of Jiangsu Province for a strategic partnership in Lyunyungan port city and in Khorgos-Eastern Gate free economic zone.

According to the document, the sides agreed to work together on projects in transport logistics, the transportation of block trains, and the construction of terminal and warehouse infrastructure in the Khorgos-Eastern Gate free economic zone.

Another agreement was signed between Kazakhstan's Masalskoye mining and processing complex and the China National Corporation for Technical Import and Export on the construction of a mining and metallurgical complex, with a capacity of 1 million tons of steel per year using the Masalskoe iron ore deposit in Akmola region.

Samruk-Energo JSC, Development Bank of Kazakhstan and the State Development Bank of China agreed on the basic conditions for financing the construction of a 60 MW wind farm in the Chilik Corridor.

The Chinese Development Bank will allocate a loan totaling $120 million, while the Development Bank of Kazakhstan will provide $35 million to the development of green energy projects in the Almaty region.

Kazatomprom JSC signed an agreement with China Nuclear Energy Industry Corporation on the transit of uranium products through China to the U.S. and Canada, which will allow Kazakhstan's national atomic company to diversify its supplies of uranium products.

Two agreements were signed on the financing and development of glyphosate and phosphorus trichloride in Zhambyl region, as well as the establishment of the Karaganda Sisian joint venture, which will be the construction operator on a coal processing complex in the Karaganda region.

The above-mentioned funds will be injected into the Kazakh economy in the form of direct investments and as loans.

The Kazakh government is confident that all agreements reached with Chinese partners are real, are of concrete and practical importance, and are aimed at the implementation of a large program consisting of 45 projects that are currently being studied jointly by Kazakh and Chinese industrial and investment companies.

It is believed that these business agreements will significantly expand cooperation between Kazakhstan and China in the non-oil sector, and thus, will contribute to the diversification of the Kazakh economy.

Kazakhstan plays significant strategic and diplomatic role for China as it is the first stop on China’s Silk Road Economic Belt.

Kazakhstan, being a large exporter of petroleum, is seeking to improve its industrial capacity to wean the economy off reliance on the energy sector. China, in turn, is helping with this transformation within the development of Silk Road Economic Belt. China also seeks increasing the access to Kazakhstan’s natural resources.

Kazakhstan, which shares a lengthy border with Xinjiang, is seen as first step on Silk Road that will make economic development possible.

China's economic influence in Central Asia has grown fast in the last decade in terms of regional trade. It has made deals worth tens of billions of dollars with Kazakhstan and other regional countries like Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.

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Aynur Karimova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Aynur_Karimova

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz

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