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On December 25, the World Chess Championship started in Almaty’s Palace of Culture and Sports named after Baluan Sholak. According to the Chess Federation of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the tournament’s prize fund is $1 million.

The tournament organized by FIDE and the Chess Federation of Kazakhstan attracted leading chess players from 50 countries. It will last until December 30, 2022.

During the official opening ceremony, Minister of Culture and Sports Dauren Abayev read out the letter from President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. The president praised the recent success of Kazakhstan’s chess players and underscored that «this success aspires the young generation...

President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan and President Shavkat Mirziyoyev of Uzbekistan have agreed to facilitate mutual trade, according to a joint statement the two sides made after negotiations at the top level in Tashkent.

While giving a speech, President Tokayev said that thanks to the joint efforts of the two governments, the turnover between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan is going to reach roughly $5 billion this year.

The main priority for the two sides is the expansion of industrial cooperation. There are already ten joint Kazakhstani-Uzbekistani ventures that operate in the spheres of machine building, pharmaceuticals, construction and textiles. Now, the...

Halyk Bank Kazakhstan has sold its 100% share in Moskommertsbank, according to Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE).

In an official press release, the bank said the decision followed a comprehensive analysis of Moskommertsbank operations and its outlook in the Russian market. The bank accounted for 2% of the entire business of Halyk Group.

«We are going to put our major efforts and resources into projects that have good potential for growth and can generate a high level of profit. We are trying to focus on the most promising directions of the business. This is the strategic principle for Halyk Group,» the...

During the auction for a prospecting license at the Bozoba field in the Aktobe region, the license price skyrocketed to 300 times more expensive than the starting price.

The starting price for a land parcel of 132.14 square kilometers was $123,756. Over the course of the auction, it reached $37.9 million. The prospecting activity at the land can’t exceed six years for some parcels or nine years for parcels where implementing exploration is problematic.

The government has already closed auctions for nine out of 34 fields. In some cases, auctions are still in progress. For instance, the Severo-Pridorozhnoe field (the...

Popeyes, an American fast-food chain, is going to open tens of restaurants in Kazakhstan, according to Eldar Abdrazakov, a Kazakhstani businessman and head of Centras Group, a company that has been granted exclusive rights to represent the chain in Kazakhstan.

«We’re excited to introduce our brand in Kazakhstan with Eldar Abdrazakov, a highly reputable local investor. This is the first deal for Popeyes in Central Asia, representing a gateway for the region and opening-up new expansion opportunities for the brand in the coming years,» said Thiago Santelmo, President of RBI EMEA, parent company of Popeyes, Burger King, Tim Hortons and...

Kazakhstan’s government is going to soften punishment for those health workers indicted for medical errors. The members of Mazhilis have already adopted the draft law.

The new rule suggests decreasing the fine and detention period for unintended infliction of mild or serious harm to someone’s health, according to Minister of Health Azhar Giniyat, who presented the draft law to members of the parliament.

«We are going to replace imprisonment with limitation of freedom for those who were indicted for infliction of serious harm to someone’s health,» she said.

The new law will soften punishments that the current Criminal Code offers...

KazMunayGaz (KMG), a Kazakhstani oil company, has confirmed its plan to start sending oil to Germany’s Schwedt refinery. The refinery used to buy Russian oil but now seeks out new suppliers, according to the KMG press service.

«The president has ordered us to test a new exporting route to Germany. We are going to send the first bunch of oil in January 2023,» said Magzum Mirzagaliyev, CEO of KMG.

Mirzagaliyev has already discussed this issue with Michael Kellner, the Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action via online video call. He also met with...

The economy of Uzbekistan is expected to grow by 5.3% in 2023. This forecast was announced during the country’s cabinet meeting over macroeconomic outlooks for 2022-2023 under the chairmanship of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, according to the president’s press service.

«As we continue to see global uncertainty next year, we are going to focus on macroeconomic stability while avoiding sharp growth in inflation,» the official statement said.

This year Uzbekistan may reach a 5.5% growth of the national GDP and a 13% increase in exports ($19 billion). The country’s government has prioritized reducing unemployment and raising living standards, both of which...

The Ministry of Ecology, Geology and Natural Resources of Kazakhstan has initiated the extension of the saiga cull moratorium in 2023, according to Minister Serikkali Brekeshev.

«Today we have stepped in with the initiative to extend the saiga antelope cull moratorium. If the cabinet supports this idea, the saiga cull will be illegal next year as well,» the minister said.

According to the ministry, over the past decade, the population of saiga increased 60fold thanks to different national programs. Currently, there are 1.3 million saiga specimens in the country.

In June, Brekeshev came up with an idea to launch the...

The Ministry of Energy reviewed all 37 thermal power stations (TPS) in Kazakhstan and has split all of them into three groups. The red zone includes 19 stations, the yellow zone – 11, and the green – seven, according to Minister of Energy Bolat Akchulakov.

The analysis is based on four key factors: equipment deterioration, the number of technical failures, service life and lack of staff.

Kazakhstan’s TPSs are worn-out by 66% on average. However, the rate is higher than 80% in Uralsk, Stepnogorsk, Taraz, Kyzylorda and Kentau. According to Akchulakov, TPSs reported 5% more technical failures in 2021 than...

The government of Kazakhstan hasn’t decided yet what foreign company it will partner with in the construction of a nuclear power plant (NPP). The authorities are going to make this decision in January 2023, according to Aset Makhambetov, senior project manager from Kazakhstan Nuclear Power Plants LLP.

«There is no chance we choose a partner by the end of this year because we are still in negotiations with all of them. For instance, in September we had a big delegation from South Korea. Also, we had two delegations from China in October and November. We have thoroughly reviewed every detail...

According to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) is going to drop the U.S. dollar it is used for the calculation of its trade statistics and switch to another currency, the Izvestiya newspaper reported.

Lavrov also called the EEU one of the fastest-developing organizations in the world.

«There are about 185 million consumers in the EEU with a gross income of $2 trillion. We need to switch to other currencies in calculations of our trade, although we are still doing this in U.S. dollars because of inertia. No doubt this will change,» Lavrov said during a...

Stadler Rail AG, a prominent producer of railway cars from Switzerland, is going to produce passenger wagons in Kazakhstan.

On Wednesday, Peter Spuhler, CEO of Stadler Rail AG, met with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to discuss the future launch of railway car production on Kazakhstan’s soil. According to Spuhler, the company is going to bring its technology to Kazakhstan’s railway car building plant. It is expected that about 35% of the entire production process will be implemented locally.

Stadler has already signed a contract with Kazakhstan Railways. Once the production is started, the Swiss manufacturer will supply cars and maintenance services...

On December 12, the Astana court cleared the detention of Mikhail Zhilin, a 36-year-old Russian citizen, according to the press service of the specialized examined court of Astana.

The agency refused to give any other details of the case.

According to Novaya Gazeta Europe, Zhilin has been serving in the Russian Federal Protective Service (FPS) for 18 years. He left Russia on September 26 when President Vladimir Putin announced so-called partial mobilization. Russian authorities accuse him of illegally crossing the border. If convicted, he might be sent to jail for two years in Russia. Moreover, he may be accused of...

According to the Ministry of Agriculture, residents of villages and small towns will be able to take 2.5% interest microloans starting next spring.

The new loan has a 2.5% interest rate and a maturity of seven years. It also requires collateral. Those who are eligible for the new loan will be able to borrow up to $16,500 or even $53,800 when it comes to the cooperation of a group of people. Currently, authorities in different regions must choose which companies will issue those loans to individuals. It is expected that people will be able to apply and take microloans at...

According to President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, the government has to repair all thermal power stations (TPP) that belong to the state. On the other hand, private TPPs must be repaired at the expense of their owners.

«Private facilities must be updated at the expense of their owners under the tariff in exchange for an investment program. This is an urgent task for the cabinet because both TPPs and heating networks are in a bad shape,» the president said.

He also revealed that 1,500 kilometers of the heating network across the country have been worn out by 75% and need urgent replacement...

Uzbekistani Energy Minister Jurabek Mirzamahmudov stated that the country is going to buy gas from its neighbors directly and doesn’t need any alliances or unions, Gazeta.uz reported.

«We are negotiating direct commercial contracts and won’t lease our power grid system,» the official highlighted.

Uzbekistan has been struggling with a shortage of natural gas and needs to buy an additional amount of this fuel from abroad. The country’s authorities even decided to ban exports of liquefied natural gas.

Moreover, the country is planning to increase its import of gasoline, diesel and relevant oil products. The government has also suspended the import...

The National Bank of Belarus is going to remove the euro from its currency basket. Now, the Russian ruble accounts for 60% of the basket, the U.S. dollar for 30% and the Chinese yuan for 10%.

The bank said that the trade between Belarus, Russia and China has shown steady growth this year.

«On the other hand, our turnover with the European Union has plunged as well as transactions in euro,» the bank noted.

The currency and stock exchange of Belarus also reported sharp growth in trade with the Russian ruble and a decrease in the number of transactions with...

According to Kairbek Uskenbayev, minister of industry and infrastructural development, a commission established by the country’s government to investigate accidents at ArcelorMittal Temirtau is going to take tough measures.

«The government has established several commissions with more than 70 specialists from different agencies to meet the president’s order and find out the truth. The government is going to take tough measures against ArcelorMittal Temirtau including its exile from the country. You will know the details soon,» he told journalists.

He also expressed his condolences to relatives and friends of those workers who died at ArcelorMittal Temirtau.

«It is not hard...

All reports about the alleged launch of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) by the Armed Forces of Ukraine from the territory of Kazakhstan are false, according to Stopfake.kz citing the country’s Ministry of Defense.

«The allegation by the MoskovskiyKomsomolets (MK) edition that a military UAV that hit a Russian airbase was launched from Kazakhstan isn’t true. Moreover, we can officially confirm that Kazakhstan’s Armed Forces do not possess this type of UAV,» the defense ministry said.

On December 5, an unidentified UAV hit military airbase Engels-1 in the Saratov region in Russia. As a result, two Tu-95 aircraft were damaged...

Since August 10, when the European Union banned imports of Russian coal, Kazakhstan has been increasing its coal export to Europe. During this period Kazakhstan not only regained the positions it once had, but also reached a considerable increase in coal exports.

Kazakhstani coal exporters reported difficulties in transporting coal toward Europe this summer due to the Russian railways’ refusal to let it through. However, when the E.U. closed its doors for Russian coal, Kazakhstan managed to get back on the horse and fill the niche.

In October, Lithuania imported 25.4 tons of Kazakhstani coal, almost half of the entire...

Kazakhstan’s authorities are going to make it easier for labor collectives to go on strike. They prepared a set of amendments to the national legislation on regulation for workplace conflicts.

According to MP Ekaterina Smyshlyaeva, the draft law is going to oblige employers to give room for their employees to negotiate with an employer and public officials before going on strike. It is expected that the move will let workers better understand their right of assembly.

«The decision whether a labor collective should go on strike or not must be made by the majority,» said the deputy.

Another novelty of...

According to Almasadam Satkaliyev, head of the National Welfare Fund Samruk Kazyna, Kazakhstanis have sent 128,700 requests for buying more than 8.8 million shares of KazMunayGas (KMG), a national oil company. The value of this set of shares is estimated at $159 million, the official said at the cabinet’s meeting.

In general, the company offered investors to buy about 30.5 million common stocks for $546.7 million. This means that demand from retail investors accounts for 30% of the entire initial offering.

For comparison, when KazTransOil went on IPO in 2012, there were 34,687 requests from individuals for $126.6 million. In...

The Turkish company Omtis Ortadoğu Makina is going to build a new sugar plant in the Aktobe region, Kazakhstan. The project costs about $550 million, according to the regional administration’s press service.

The memorandum on cooperation was signed by Eraly Tugzhanov, the governor of the Aktobe region and Ibrahim Gultekin, founder of Omtis Ortadoğu Makina, a company well-known for its expertise in sophisticated engineering projects.

«The company is ready to invest $550 million in the plant with a capacity of 330,000 tons of sugar per year. It is expected that 180 jobs will be created,» said the regional administration.

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