INVESTOR’S ATLAS 2006 Investor’s ATLAS  Contents

Akmola Region ...... 4

Aktobe Region ...... 8

Almaty Region ...... 12

Atyrau Region ...... 17

Eastern Region...... 20

Karaganda Region ...... 24

Kostanai Region ...... 28

Kyzylorda Region ...... 31

Mangistau Region ...... 34

Northern Kazakhstan Region ...... 38

Pavlodar Region ...... 42

Southern Kazakhstan Region ...... 45

Western Kazakhstan Region ...... 49

Zhambyl Region ...... 52

The city of Astana ...... 56

The city of ...... 59

List of Akimats (Executive Bodies) of Kazakhstan ...... 62 6 55 0 65 70 75 80° 85° 90° National capital ° ° ° ° °

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0 100 200 300 mi Samarkand 50° 55° 65° 5"+*,*45"/ 75° 80° AkmolaInvestor’s ATLAS Region 

Total area: 146,000 sq.km Population: 746,700 Administrative center: Kokshetau

Administrative Divisions Mineral Resources the region; the highest peak is Kokshe mountain (947 metres). The Yerementau Mountains, featur- The administrative centre is Kokshetau, which 19 mineral ore deposits and 155 non-metallic de- ing birch and aspen forests, are located in the east was founded in 1824. At the beginning of 2003, posits are located in the region, including 13 gold of the region (Akdyn, 899 m). 131,400 people lived there. The region contains mines (including the Vasilkovskoye goldmine, ten towns, 14 , 17 rural districts and 712 which is one of the largest in the world), four ura- However, the bulk of the territory is steppes with auls (settlements). The urban and rural popula- nium, one titanium, one antimony, two ornamen- fescue and feather grass spreading over the Sile- tions respectively form 65% and 35% of the total. tal stone, six coal, six limestone, 14 mortar sand tinskaya and Atbasarskaya plains. The Teniz-Ko- Kokshetau is 270 km from Astana. and 16 building stone deposits. rgaldjinskaya depression is situated in the south- There are also 24 groundwater springs, many of west of the region. Climate which can be used for spa therapy. A state reserve has been created near the fresh- Harsh continental climate with hot summers and water Korgalzhyn (330 sq. km) and the sa- cold winters. Average January temperature: -16 to Natural Resources line Lake Teniz (1,162 sq. km), in the fescue and -18 °C, and +19 to +21 °C in July. Annual precipi- The Kokshetau Mountains, covered with birch and feather grass steppe. The boggy shores of these tation: 250-400 mm. coniferous vegetation, are located in the north of  Investor’s ATLAS are the northernmost nesting place of the the Tulpar health and fitness centre. Two national Agriculture pink flamingo. parks, several museums, boating stations and a In 2005, the oblast’s gross agricultural output recreation centre cater for the enjoyment of tour- In addition, many other large saline and freshwater amounted to $617.5m (10.7% of the national to- ists. lakes are located in the region. The Vyacheslavs- tal). Crops accounted for 64.4% and livestock koye and Siletinskoye water reservoirs have been Several firms in Shchuchinsk provide facilities for products 35.6% of the national agricultural out- constructed on the River (1,719 km within mountain tourism. Visitors can hire mountaineer- put. Kazakhstan) and Sileti River (407 km). ing equipment for rock climbing, together with the There are 4,970 farms, 40 production coopera- There are other large rivers in the region such as services of an alpinist instructor. Among the local tives, 27 joint-stock companies, and 654 partner- the (978 km) and Kulanotpes (364 km). challenges are the rocky heights of Okzhetpes and ships in the region. the Devil’s Slide. Tourism All the health farms and sanatoriums, as well Crop Farming The following types of tourism are being actively as the tourism firms based in the area, cooper- Arable land occupies 4,003,800 ha (21.7% of the promoted in the region as a whole: ate closely with local and foreign tour operators. total arable land in the country). They provide a full range of services needed by • ecological; In 2005, the gross crop yield (after additional treat- tourists and guests visiting the region of Akmola ment) amounted to 2,965,500 tonnes (21.6% of the • health; Oblast. national total). The wheat yield averaged 830 kg/ha, • cultural; • business; and • hunting. Prospects for Tourism Development The resort of Shchuchinsk-Borovoye is known for its highly developed facilities for health, sports and cultural tourism. Altogether there are 46 san- atoriums in the area. Children’s health farms and resorts are concentrated in the picturesque vicin- ity of Lake Katarkol. The leader in organising rest and recuperation for children is the Baldauren Republican Centre for Health and Education. More than 20 are current- ly under construction. The major tourism projects completed in 2005, conforming to all modern re- sort standards and requirements, include Hotel Alem, Bereke Burabai Ltd, Kokshetau Park & Hotel, and Kokshetau Resort Ltd. The following resorts are already operational: Zhumbaktas Holiday Hotel, Edem Hotel, and Investor’s ATLAS 

potato 12,530 kg/ha, vegetables 13,900 kg/ha, and and Chemical Plant increased by 3.3 times and • The Makinsk Construction Materials Plant sunflower 350 kg/ha. reached 1,206 tonnes. launched a project to produce foamed concrete 3 The largest farms in terms of crop output are Mechanical engineering is also developing well blocks with an annual capacity of 200,000 m . Stepnoye ($2.2m), Rodniki ($2.1m), and Kum- (35.8% of the oblast’s industrial production). The • In Kokshetau, Astana Nedvizhimost commis- kuduk ($1.7m). largest enterprises are the Bearing sioned a reinforced concrete production plant Plant producing bearings for railway transport with an hourly capacity of 30 m3. Livestock ($79.8m 15.2% of the oblast’s industrial pro- • The Bektas Group and Musa Impex commis- duction), Baiterek-A ($32.8m), the Shchuchinsk The region’s nature makes it possible to develop sioned new road metal plants in Tselinograd Railcar Repair Plant Burabai ($15m), and the new livestock farming intensively, since pastures oc- district (with an annual capacity of 500,000 enterprise Kamaz Engineering ($8.8%), which, cupy about 50% of the farmlands. m3) and Yerementau district (640,000 m3), re- in 2005, produced 70 buses, 144 lorries and 8 ve- In 2005, the Akmola farms had 403,700 head of hicle trailers. The companies providing mainte- spectively. cattle (7.4% of the national total), 276,400 head nance services for Kazakhstan Zholy saw The region is implementing the nationwide In- of sheep and goats (2%), 85,200 head of horses an increase in production by 1.5-2 times. Other dustrial-Innovative Development Programme. (7.3%), and 2,600,000 head poultry (9.7%). Pigs mechanical-engineering companies are involved Work is in the pipeline to complete the recon- numbered 90,500 (6.9%). in production of medical equipment, aviation struction of mechanical engineering enterprises, Farms produced 443,900 tonnes of milk (9.4% of equipment and spares, metering units, etc. improve the range of products and implement the national output) and 600 tonnes of wool (2%). In 2005, some projects to upgrade production new technologies. Thus, in 2005, Tynys started production of polyethylene pipes (10-250 mm in The largest livestock farms in terms of output are were implemented. As a result, the capacities of diameter) for gas and water pipelines. The Ma- Tsesna-Astyk, Agrotsentr Astana and Ardager. processing plants increased and new jobs were created. The Kokshetau Milk Processing Plant kinsk Casting Plant implemented a project to Industry launched production of dry whole milk, with an commission an induction unit to melt high-alloy expected annual output of 960 tonnes. Tolkyn steel, cast iron and non-ferrous metals. This proj- In 2005, the oblast’s gross industrial production Bidai (Yerementau district) commissioned a new ect enhanced the range of mold castings made of totalled $521.7m (1.3% of the national figure). sausage workshop with an annual capacity of 190 cast iron and steel as well as the quality of prod- The key industry was processing (75.0%), with tonnes and Kamenka & Co (Sandyktau district) ucts and significantly improved the company’s electricity, gas and water production and distri- commissioned sausage and potted meat work- output. bution accounting 16.2%, and mining 8.8%. shops with a daily capacity of 0.5 tonnes. There are 391 large and medium-sized enterpris- The food sector accounts for 19.7% of the oblast’s Foreign Trade es in the region. industrial production. The largest enterprise in In 2005, exports and imports totalled $184.8m The mining industry saw an impressive increase this sector is Kokshetauminvody bottling min- (0.7% of the national figure) and $281.2m (1.6%), in 2005. This sector is basically represented by eral water and soft drinks (3.3% of the oblast’s respectively. The trade deficit reached $96.4m. gold mining companies. The largest enterprises industrial production). are Kazakhaltyn ($27.9m or 5.4% of the oblast’s A number of projects to advance the construc- Investment industrial production) and the Vasilkovsky Min- tion sector were implemented. The investment in fixed capital amounted to ing and Processing Plant (2.5%). Kazakhaltyn •  Granit was commissioned, which be- $287.4m (1.6% of the national total). These funds produced 1,910 kg of gold, out of 2,818 kg pro- came the first ammonite-cartridging plant in were invested mainly in the agriculture (22.4%), duced in the . The production of the region. real estate, leasing and service sectors (19.4%), uranium compounds by the Stepnogorsk Mining  Investor’s ATLAS public governance (11.1%), mining (15.4%), and ing and Processing Plant (gold mining), Kamaz Power Engineering the manufacturing industry (9.5%). Engineering (vehicle production), and OKAN- The major power companies in Akmola Oblast lSOT Inc. (construction). The main sources of investment were as follows: are the Akmolinskaya Power Grid Company (the companies’ own funds (70.5%); The following investment projects were accom- average annual load factor 60%) and Kokshetau plished in 2005: Energo (19.2%). loans (13.3%); • projects by the Kazakhaltyn Mining and In 2005, the following rates were set: national and local budgets (12.8% and 2.2%, re- Metallurgical Plant resulted in the produc- spectively); and electricity (for enterprises) $0.026 per kWh tion of Dore alloy, a higher quality product. foreign investment (1.2%). The company completed the construction of water: cold water $0.19 per m3 New Tendencies in Investment Activities two heap-leaching facilities at the and Bestobe mines and two cyanide-processing hot water $0.7 per m3 Three business incubators and eight business plants at the Aksu and Zhalymbet mines, all centres are functioning in Akmola Oblast. at the cost of $27.1m. Having commissioned Banking these plants, the company may now use new Measures to create a building materials cluster Eleven branches of second-tier banks and 13 in- technology to process low-content ores that are in the pipeline, including: surance companies operate in the oblast. • building a brickworks on the basis of the Sim- were worthless earlier; feropol and Yelenov deposits (Ashina-Tas); • the Saga Creek Gold Company has started op- Employment • building a perlite factory on the basis of the erating a gold mine at the Uzboi deposit. The The labour force in Akmola Oblast amounts to Turgai deposit of vitrosit feedstock (Vitrho- company produces crude gold by heap leach- 418,100 people (5.3% of the national total), of phyre); ing. At present, the company is constructing whom 33% have secondary vocational education, a cyanide-processing plant in Stepnogorsk to • building a mineral paints factory on the basis of 14% higher education (including undergradu- improve the quality of the gold produced; and the Farforozavod deposit (Akkerege); and ates), and 53% primary or secondary education. • Kamaz-Engineering has started assembling The number of employed is 380,700 (5.2% of the • building a cement factory on the basis of the motor vehicles. From its start to the present, national total). Most of them work in the agri- Koksorsk chalkstone deposit (Vostochno-En- the company has assembled 169 Nefaz buses, cultural and forestry sector (45.1%), trade and ergeticheskaya Kompaniya). 787 Kamaz trucks and 8 trailers, for a total repair of automobiles (6.7%), education (9.5%), amount of 4.8 billion tenge. industry (9.0%), and transport and communica- Foreign Capital tions (8.8%). The average monthly nominal wage There are 58 enterprises with a foreign share- Communications is $171.1 (67% of the national level). The number holding in the oblast. They employ 7,074 people. of unemployed is 37,400 (5.8% of the total in Ka- The amount of products and services produced Akmola Oblast is a major transport corridor zakhstan). in 2005 was worth $129.5m. between , Central and . The telecommunications sector comprises cellular, Exports and imports by joint ventures and foreign Education trunk, paging and internet providers. The road companies totalled $111.9m and $80.9m, respec- There are eight institutions of higher education and and railway networks are 7,892 km and 1,836 tively. Thus, the trade surplus stood at $31m. 22 colleges in Akmola Oblast. In 2005-2006, local km long, respectively. There is only one airport colleges prepared 1,051 specialists predominantly The largest enterprises with a foreign sharehold- in the oblast (Kokshetau). ing are Kazakhaltyn and the Vasilkovsky Min- specialising in economics, law and the humanities. AktobeInvestor’s ATLAS Region 

Total area: 300,600 sq.km Population: 686,700 Administrative centre: Aktobe

Administrative Divisions Mineral Resources metallic mineral resources, including phosphorites (9), coal (2), asbestos (8), gypsum (2), bituminous The administrative centre is Aktobe, which is situ- The has unique mineral and raw rocks (5), glass-making sand (1), hard clay (2), and ated on the llek River. The city was founded in 1869. material resources. It is the only chrome produc- 91 groundwater springs, three of which are used for It is home to over 41% of the region’s population. er in Kazakhstan and its chrome reserves are the spa therapy. The region contains eight towns, 12 rural districts largest in the world (over 400 million tonnes). The and 441 auls (settlements). The urban and rural region accounts for 40% of the proved titanium re- populations respectively represent 55% and 45% of serves and 55% of the proved nickel reserves in the Natural Resources the total. Aktobe is 1,678 km from Astana. country. So far, 79 mineral ore fields have been ex- The major part of the region’s territory consists of plored there, including gold, silver, cobalt, copper, rolling plains, with just the north being surrounded Climate zinc and nickel deposits, etc. Some 10% of the na- by the southern spurs of the Urals. The main rivers tion’s proved hydrocarbon reserves are situated in are the Torgai (825 km), Oiyl (800 km), Zhem (712 Harsh continental climate. Average January tem- the Aktobe region. 19 hydrocarbon fields are under km), irgyz (593 km), and Or (314 km). There are perature -15 to -16 °C, +22 to +25 °C in July. An- development, Zhanazhol and Kenkiyak being the over 150 small saline lakes, which, when dry, form nual precipitation: 125-350mm largest. There are also 122 fields containing non- alkaline land. Feather-grass and forb steppes are  Investor’s ATLAS situated in the north-west of the region, which is a ing springs all combine to make development of the In 2005, the Aktobe Oblast’s farms had 396,300 semi-desert with has grass and pseudo-steppe veg- following tourism trends highly promising: head of cattle (7.3% of the national total), 872,400 etation in the north-east, and a sagebrush alkaline • extreme; head of sheep and goats (6.1%), 61,900 head of desert with several sand massifs in the south. horses (5.3%), and 15,100 head of camels (11.7%). • sports; and The number of pigs and poultry was 90,500 (6.9%) Tourism • ecological tourism. and 949,700 (3.6%), respectively. The region features unique natural sites that rank There are particularly good prospects for the pro- Farms produced 269,000 tonnes of milk (5.7% of the among the specially protected territories and his- motion of educational and archaeological tourism national output) and 1,700 tonnes of wool (5.8%). toric monuments of Kazakhstan. thanks to the presence of numerous burial mounds, cult monuments and places linked with the lives of The largest livestock farms in terms of output are The Aidarlyash axial section outstanding historical figures such as Kobylandy Ramazan and Stepnoye. This unique geological section is located in Khrom- Batyr, Monke Bi, Assan Kaigy and Abulkhair tau district. As a result of the movement of the Khan. Add to this some exciting archaeological Industry earth’s crust, forty layers dated to 290-350 million findings and a rich background of legends. In 2005, the region’s industrial production totalled years ago have been squeezed out and turned hori- $3,655.3m (9.2% of the national figure). The key zontally on the bank of the Aidarlyash River. Agriculture industry was mining (78.2%), with processing ac- Zhamanshin meteor crater In 2005, the Aktobe Oblast’s gross agricultural counting for 17.2%, and electricity, gas and water The crater formed as a result of the impact of a gi- output amounted to $206.3m (3.6% of the national production and distribution 4.6%. gantic meteorite one million years ago is located in total), of which livestock products accounted for There are 279 large and medium-sized companies Irgiz district. The energy released from the explo- 76.2% and crops 23.8%. in Aktobe Oblast. sion made a crater 700 metres deep and 5.5 km in There are 5,477 farms, 85 production cooperatives, Twenty-six large and medium-sized industrial en- diameter, surrounded by a mound varying in width eight joint-stock companies, 251 partnerships and terprises were launched after rehabilitation in 2005 from 1.5 to 3 km. three state-owned farms in the region. and created 1,510 jobs. The Turgai State Nature Reserve The year 2005 saw an industrial growth thanks to The Turgai Reserve was established in 1967 in Irgiz Crop Farming the development of existing and launching new en- district. It occupies a total area of 348,000 ha. The Arable land occupies 823,000 ha (4.5% of the total terprises. Oil production increased by 10.2% against reserve is home to 29 species of mammals, 11 spe- arable land in the country). the last year and reached 7,990,100 tonnes, gas by 3 cies of fish and 170 species of birds, 30 of which are In 2005, the oblast’s gross crop yield (after addition- 24%, (2,280.3 m ), chromite ore by 8.9% (3,581,200 included in the IUCN Red List of endangered spe- al treatment) amounted to 220,700 tonnes (1.6% of tonnes), and ferroalloys by 3.9% (382,800 tonnes). cies in Kazakhstan. the national total). Mining plays the key role in the region’s economy. Abat Baitak Mausoleum (dated 14th-15th centuries) The wheat yield averaged 470 kg/ha, potato 11,540 In 2005, its output increased by 39.5%. The largest The mausoleum is located in Kobdin district. The kg/ha, vegetables 14,690 kg/ha, and sunflower 150 enterprise in the region is CNPC-Aktobemunaigaz, legend says that Abat Batyr, the son of Assan Kai- kg/ha. an oil and gas producer. In 2005, it shared 46.8% of the oblast’s industrial output having produced gy, was buried here. The monument is included in The largest crop farms are Stepnoye ($2.2m), Rod- the country’s Cultural Heritage Programme and is 5,833,000 tonnes of oil (73% of the region’s oil pro- niki ($2.1m), and Kumkuduk ($1.7m). 3 now undergoing restoration. duction) and 1,783,400 million m of gas (78.3%). Tourism Development Prospects Livestock In processing, the total output amounted to $629.5m, which is $125m more than in 2004. The A climate with distinct seasons, a diversity of land- The region’s nature makes it possible to develop main contributor to this growth was the Aktobe scapes and amazing views of mountains, steppes livestock farming intensively, since pastures occupy Ferroalloy Plant owned by Kazchrome. In 2005, and pine forests together with pure rivers and heal- about 94.3% of the farmlands. Investor’s ATLAS 10 the plant’s production was worth $314m (50% of ly invested in mining (55.4%), processing (14.5%), Foreign Capital the oblast’s processing output) or 382,800 tonnes and transport and communications (15%). There are 219 companies with a foreign sharehold- of ferroalloys. Donskoi GOK is the only company The main sources of investment were as follows: ing in the oblast, of which 34% are involved in trade, which mines chrome ore in Kazakhstan (5.9% of 11% in construction, and 9% in transport and tele- the region’s industrial production). companies’ own funds (65.1%); communications. These businesses employ 32,419 national and local budgets (13.5%); The Aktobe Chromium Compound Plant manufac- people. The amount of products and services pro- tures chromic salts (1.7%) and is one of the largest loans (7.0%); and duced in 2005 was worth $3,051m. enterprises in the country. It produced 21,300 tonnes foreign investment (14.4%). Exports and imports by joint ventures and foreign of chromium oxide or 98.6% of the national total. The following investment projects were construct- companies totalled $2,964.3m and $579.6m, respec- The Aktobe Equipment Plant, a pro- ed in 2005: tively. Thus, the trade surplus stood at $2,384.7m. ducer of equipment for the oil and gas sector, and The largest enterprises with foreign shareholding Aktyubrentgen, a manufacturer of photofluoro- • an oil refinery (Lad); are CNPC-Aktobemunaigaz, Kazakhoil Aktobe, graphic equipment, represent the region’s mechani- • a mini oil refinery (Batys Oil Gas); KKBK Velikaya Stena, Intergas Central Asia, Ka- cal engineering. • a plant to produce sterilised and pasteurised milk zchrome, and the Aktobe Chromium Compound The light industry’s output totalled $1.33m. The and sour milk products packed in plastic bottles Plant. region manufactures garment, knitted goods, and (Ice); and The following investment projects were accom- working clothes. • a non-metallic pipe plant (Aktobe Non-Metallic plished in 2005: The food industry production totalled $124.4m. Pipe Plant). • constructing plants to produce pellets and con- Against 2004, this sector saw an increase almost centrate low-grade chrome ore (Donskoi GOK, in all areas of food production. The production of New tendencies in investment activities meat, by-products, sausages, confectionery, flour, Kazchrome). The Aktobe Regional Industrial Technology Park dairy products and vegetable oil grew. The region is was established in the region with the help of the self-sufficient in flour, bread and bakery, and min- Communications Akimat. eral water. The telecommunications sector in is represented A building materials cluster is being created. The manufacture of building materials is also devel- by cellular, trunk, paging and internet providers. oping successfully. In 2005, the production of build- The following major industrial projects were com- Aktobe Oblast borders Russia, which is a favour- ing materials totalled $38.8m (an increase by 6.6% missioned in 2005: able geographic factor. The length of rail and mo- against 2004). The output of refractory ceramics • a plant to produce pipes and pipe fittings rein- tor roads in the region totals 1,309 and 6,167 km, increased by 52%, custom concrete by 10.5%, silica forced with polyester fibreglass (Hobas Pipes Ka- respectively. Aktobe has an international airport bricks by 3.4%, and lime by 18.6%. zakhstan); hosting regular and charter flights. • a plant to produce small concrete products using A 684-km transcontinental motor road running Foreign Trade the semi-dry vibrocompression process (Mart); from to Shymkent connects with Central Asia. In 2005, the oblast’s exports and imports to- • a concrete plant (Zhiger); talled $3,453m (12.4% of the national figure) and The Bukhara- gas pipeline with a designed ca- • lines to produce welded I-beams and laminated $1,165.8m (6.7%), respectively. The trade surplus pacity of 56 billion m3 per year runs for 1,175.2 km sandwich panels (the Aktobe Metal Structures reached $2,287.2m. within the region and transports gas from Central Plant); Asia to Russia and further on to Europe. Another Investment • a red brick factory (Karamai Service); and gas pipeline, the 232-km Zhanazhol–– Investment in fixed assets amounted to $1,385.5m • a plant to produce cubic crushed aggregate (the Aktobe launched in 1999, supplies petroleum gas (7.6% of the national total). These funds were main- Aktobe Mednaya Company). to region’s population centres. 11 Investor’s ATLAS

The 411-km Zhanazhol–Kenkiyak–Bestamak– Power Industry A pilot project to construct a 100-MW cogenera- Orsk oil pipeline has an annual capacity of 7.7 tion gas-turbine power station in Kandyagash will The region’s energy sector includes the 135-MW million tonnes and transports regionally-pro- be implemented under the strategy of the state- power plant operated by Kazchrome, the 75- duced oil to the Orsk Refinery in Russia. private partnership with the help of pension funds MW Aktobe cogeneration plant, and the 56-MW ($67.7m). The North Kazakhstan–Aktobe interre- The cornerstone of the transportation system is Zhanazhol gas-turbine power plant. A deficit of gional power line will be commissioned in 2006. railways providing freight and passenger servic- electric power amounted to 120-150 MW and was The cost of this project is $116.7m. es in four directions and interstate transit traf- covered by importing power from the Russia’s fic. Unified Energy System. Therefore, by 2010, commissioning of new power generators will allow for energy production en- The air transport is represented by a branch of In 2005, power suppliers set the following rates: Euro-Asia Air, the Aktobe International Air- hancement by more than 300 MW, which will pro- electricity $0.052 per kWh port, a branch of Kazaeronavigatsiya, and Aero vide for the needs of Aktobe Oblast (up to 1,000 (pest control). water: MW) and help the region become fully indepen- dent. Aktobe International Airport’s is capable of ser- cold water $0.19 per m3 vicing 10 aircrafts of any type hourly. The air- hot water $11.25 per m3 Banking port features Boeing 737s, Boeing 767s, A-310s, The following facilities were commissioned: and even Boeing 747-400s, the largest commer- There are 27 branches of commercial banks and cial airliner. The actual number of passengers • a 15.7-km power line from the Zhanazhol field nine insurance companies in Aktobe Oblast. the airport served in 2005 amounted to 57,200 with a capacity of 620 kW (CNPC-Aktobemun- people. aigaz); Employment The following investment projects were accom- • a 75-km Kenkiyak–Alibekmola–Emba overhead The labour force in Aktobe Oblast amounts to plished in 2005: transmission line with a capacity of 110 kW (Ka- 372,900 people (4.7% of the national total), of zakhoil Aktobe); and whom 50% have secondary or primary education, • The 402.8-km Khromtau–Altynsarin railway is 27% secondary vocational education, and 23% • the reconstructed Zharkamys–Oimaut power a direct connection between Astana and Ak- higher education (including undergraduates). The lines. tobe (bypassing the territory of Russia) that re- number of employed is 338,600 (4.7% of the na- duces the railway travel time by ten hours; New power generators are being designed. Among tional figure). Most of the region’s population work • The commissioning of the 80-km Zhem–Zhana- them are: in agricultural, hunting and forestry businesses zhol pipeline enhanced the volumes of oil prod- • a 40-MW gas-turbine power station operating (16.6%), industrial enterprises (6.3%), and in the ucts transported from the Zhanazhol oilfield; on the associated gas of the Alibekmola oilfield field of education (5.2%). The average monthly • A section of the Karabutak–Komsomolskoye– (Kazakhoil Aktobe); nominal wage is $262.2 (102.3% of the national level). The number of unemployed is 34,300 (5.4% Kostanai Oblast’s border road is now at the • a 45-MW gas-turbine power station operating of the national figure). completion stage. This 444-km section con- on the associated gas of the Zhanazhol oilfield nects West Kazakhstan with central and north- (CNPC-Aktobemunaigaz); ern regions of the country; Education • a 40-MW gas-turbine thermoelectric power sta- There are 13 institutions of higher education and • The Kenkiyak–Zhanazhol oil pipeline was com- tion in Aktobe (SK Baizhomart); and missioned by CNPC-Aktobemunaigaz; and 20 colleges in Aktobe Oblast. In 2005-2006 the • a 140-MW thermoelectric power station oper- institutions of higher education prepared 6,596 • The Zhanazhol-KS13 gas pipeline is being con- ating on the brown coal of the Mamyt deposit graduates. The colleges prepared 3,030 graduates structed by CNPC-Aktobemunaigaz. (Kyzylkainmamyt). in various specialities. AlmatyInvestor’s ATLAS Region 12

Balpyk Bi (Kirovsky)

Kapshagai

Total area: 224,000 sq.km Population: 1,603,800 Administrative centre: Taldykorgan

Administrative Divisions Mineral Resources composition to French mineral waters of the Pyre- nean type (Aix les Bains, etc.). The administrative centre is Taldykorgan, which There are 27 metalliferous deposits in the region, is situated on the River and was founded including gold (35), lead and zinc (7), copper (2), Natural Resources in 1944. The region has 10 towns, 16 rural districts silver (12), tungsten (1) and uranium (3). Boguty and 234 auls (settlements). The urban and rural and the Karagaily- are proven tungsten ore Several rivers flow through the region, including populations respectively form 29,6% and 70,4% of deposits. There are also reserves of molybdenum, the (815 km within Kazakhstan), (417 the total. Taldykorgan is 1,480 km from Astana. tin and mercury. The region has 172 deposits of km), Karatal (390 km), Aksu (316 km), Tentek common minerals. Significant reserves of orna- (200 km) and Yrgaity (69 km). The Kapshagai wa- Climate mental stone have been discovered, principally ter storage reservoir (with an area of 1847 sq. km and fresh water reserves totalling 28 billion cu m) Harsh continental climate; a milder climate in the granite (the Zhalpaktas and Kapal-Arasan depos- has been constructed on the Ili River, the Bartogai mountain foothills areas. Average January tem- its), gabbro (the Degeres, Aidarlinsk and Zhola- water storage reservoir (area 14 sq. km, freshwa- perature down to -15 °C in the plain area,-8 °C man deposits), and marble (the Ekpedinskoye, ter reserves 320 million cu m) on the Shilik River, in the foothills; up to+25 °C and +16 °C respec- Aschibulak and Konyrole deposits). and the Kurtinskoye water storage reservoir (area tively in July. Annual precipitation in the plains There are 51 groundwater springs, many of which 8.3 sq. km, freshwater reserves 120 million cu m) up to 300mm, in the foothills and mountains up are used for spa therapy purposes. The Alma- on the Kurty River. There are several large lakes to 1000mm. Arasan hot spring water is similar in its chemical 13 Investor’s ATLAS in the region, including the (18,200 sq. • Altyn Emel; and the Besshatyr mounds. The Singing Dune is a km), the eastern part of which is saline, the Alakol • Ile Alatau; rare phenomenon encountered on the right bank of (2,650 sq. km), Sasykol (736 sq. km) and Zhala- the Ili River: when the sand moves on the surface nashkol (36.6 sq. km). Riparian forests and reed • ; of the dune it emits the sound like organ music. The grass grow on the flood-plains and lakeshores • Almaty State Nature Reserve; and dune is 80 metres high and three kilometres long. with alkaline meadowland soils. The mountains • Alakol State Reserve. The park features many animal species included in have various zones of vegetation determined by the IUCN Red List, such as dziggetai (Mongolian altitude. The Altyn Emel, the largest Kazakhstan natu- horse), Persian gazelle, black stork, golden eagle, ral park, is situated among the southern branches snake eagle, bearded vulture, and so on. The Zailiisky Alatau, Kungei Alatau, and Ket- of the Dzhungar Alatau ridge with a total area of penRanges are situated in the southern part of the 520,000 ha. The park features unique natural sites The Ile Alatau National Park has plenty of natu- region, with the Alatau and Dzungarian and ancient cultural monuments that present great ral sites of unique environmental, scientific and Gate in the south-east. There are a number of con- interest in terms of ecotourism: The Singing Dune, aesthetic value. Among them are the Chin Turgen servation areas and national parks. the moonlight landscape of the Aktau Mountains spruce forest preserved since the Ice Age, the Big Tourism On the whole, there are more than 100 routes and programmes covering the following types of tourism: • educational; • ecological; • ornithological; • health and health improvement; • ethnographic, etc. Mountaineering and climbing tourism is highly popular in the region. The routes to the mountain summits and passes have been developed since the early 1930s and are widely used by numerous foreign travellers from different countries. There is an international alpine camp located under the Khan Tengri peak. The enjoys considerable tourist po- tential and great opportunities for internal and ex- ternal tourism development. The region features numerous health resorts, sanatoriums, camps, guest and hunting lodges. A total of 41 tourist or- ganisations operate in the region. Almaty oblast is the leader in terms of quantity and attractiveness of its showplaces. It includes several state nature parks, notably Investor’s ATLAS 14

Almaty Lake, the fierce and noisy Kairak and Med- Crop Farming Livestock vezhy waterfalls, bizarre and silent stone “glaciers” Arable land occupies 884,300 ha (4.8% of the to- The oblast’s nature and large pastures (89.6% of in the snow-capped valleys of the Archarly and Oz- tal arable land in the country). Most of this land the total farmlands) make it possible to develop ernaya rivers, the majestic and almost inaccessible (496,600 ha) is used to grow crops. However the livestock farming intensively. Tuyuksu, Dmitriyev and Constitution glaciers. oblast’s gross crop yield ranks only forth in the The oblast’s horse stock numbering 180,400 head The Charyn Canyon located in the Charyn Na- country (7% of the national yield) totalling 979,700 (15.6% of the national total) is the largest in the tional Nature Park, is justly referred to as one of tonnes, almost a half of which is wheat. The crop country. Almaty oblast is the second largest pro- the most picturesque valleys in the world. It re- yield averaged 2,040 kg/ha (more than twice the ducer of cattle stock (646,900 head or 11.9%), and minds visitors of the Grand Canyon in Colorado, national average). The oblast is one of the coun- sheep and goats (2,461,500 head or 17.2%). Pigs USA. Thousands of tourists come to see the un- try’s largest producers of soybean (99.4% of the numbered 131,300 head (9.9%). During the five re- believably diverse and bizarre forms of rocks that national output), tobacco (80.4%), white beet cent years cattle livestock has increased by 26.3%, look like towers of different sizes. Another unique (95.6%), corn (62.4%), potato, and vegetables. sheep and goats by 11.6%, horses by 12.7%, and natural monument of the park – the Aspen Grove In 2005, the yield of white beet was 347,100 tonnes poultry by 40.5%. The oblast is the country’s larg- – occupies an area of 5,014 ha and is famous for the from about 16,300 ha. The yield is fully processed est producer of poultry, which reached 6.3 million Sogdian Aspen trees. The Charyn Aspen Grove is by the oblast’s five sugar refineries. head in 2005 (or 24% of the national total). The the only place in Kazakhstan where this kind of In 2005, 65,300 ha of land yielded 269,700 tonnes of production of poultry meat and eggs fully satisfies tree can be found. corn (feed grains) or 26.1% of the national total. The the oblast’s consumer demand. The region is perfectly suited for promoting moun- largest harvests of corn feed grains were gathered taineering and climbing tourism. The Zailiysky in Panfilov (33.2%), Enbekshikazakh (34.9%), and Industry and Dzhungar Alatau ridges, the Central Tjan Uigur (12.7%) districts. The largest farms in terms In 2005, the oblast’s industrial production to- Shan with the highest peak in the country – Khan of output are Khilnichenko & Co. ($1.338m), Mai- talled $1,359.1m (3.4% of the national figure). Tengri (7,010 m) – provide unequalled opportuni- tobe ($0.69m), and Aldabergenova ($0.673m), which The key industries are processing (81.3%), elec- ties in terms of climbing. engage in growing grain, feed corn, potato, etc. tricity, gas and water production and distribu- Growing of apple and other fruits is one of primary tion (15.3%) and mining (3.4%). Agriculture concerns in the oblast. Fruits are produced from There are 599 large and medium-sized enter- In 2005, the oblast’s gross agricultural output 16,700 ha of land in total. During the four recent prises in the oblast. amounted to $793.7m (13.8% of the national to- years more than 865 ha have been allotted for gar- The region has a leading positions in the na- tal). The oblast is the second largest agricultural dens and 500 ha for vineyards. Twenty-four apple tional production of sugar, wine, tobacco, malt, producer in Kazakhstan after Kostanai oblast. sorts are being grown. In the foothills of the Zailisky electric accumulators, and glassware. Almaty oblast’s agriculture is well balanced: crop Alatau the most popular sorts are Aport, Golden production shares 49.4% and livestock produc- Delicious, Zarya Alatau, Zailiskoye, Landsberg The Agricultural products processing accounts tion 50.6% of the gross agricultural output. Rennet, etc. The oblast’s mild climate makes pos- for 74.4% of the region’s industrial output, with sible the production of table and wine grapes from 40.2% being in the tobacco industry. There are near 44,000 farms, 225 production co- 4,600 ha (47% of grape planting area in the coun- The largest enterprises in the region are the to- operatives, 47 joint-stock companies, 349 part- try). Eco Agroproduct is a producer of grapes. The bacco companies Philip Morris Kazakhstan nerships, and 27 state-owned farms in Almaty company makes selection of new European sorts of (14.7% of the region’s industrial output) and Gal- oblast. In addition, above 321,400 households grape to suit them to the local growing conditions. laher Kazakhstan (9.2%). Other large enterprises engage in livestock and poultry production and The company has more than 2,000 ha of vineyards include sugar manufacturers, such as Almatinsky crop farming. located in the Turgen Valley. Sakhar (4.1%) and Almaty Kanty (2.2%). In 2005, 15 Investor’s ATLAS several advanced agricultural processing projects annual capacity of 2,220 tonnes. Urker Cosmetic The following projects were accomplished in and new high-tech processes were implemented, is implementing a project to upgrade and recon- 2005: including the Coca Cola Almaty Bottlers’ proj- struct the production of cosmetics and household • constructing a packaging materials plant de- ect to produce 15 million decalitres of soft drinks chemistry with a design capacity of 272.6 mil- signed to produce 5,000 tonnes of film, 600 per year and the Gold Product’s project to launch lions items per year. tonnes of flexible packages and 2,400 card- a juicy production line with an annual capacity of The pulp and paper industry is represented by board boxes per annum (KAZPACK); 82 millions litres. Kazakhstan Kagasy ($15m) and NovApak, a new • constructing a plant to produce 1 million square The major food producers, such as Food Master enterprise engaged in wastepaper processing and meters of heat-insulated wall panels and roof- ($18m), Gold Product ($17.6m), PlodEx ($1.4m) paper production with a capacity of 17,000 tonnes ing panels per annum (Polymermetal-T) and Hamle ($10.7m) underpin the stable devel- per year. These companies helped decrease the opment of the food sector. Their Piko, Zailiys- paper imports in the oblast and ensure the sus- • constructing a plant to produce 40 million koye, Ainalain, Mu-mu, Luchsheye iz Turgenya tained growth of the sector. tonnes of building and facing bricks per annum (Izoblock Kapshagaistroi) and 6 Sotok brands are well known throughout In 2005, 45 companies were certified to ISO Kazakhstan. 9000, 14000, OHSAS 18000, and HACCP, 35 of • constructing a plant to produce 20 million Hamle constructed two workshops to produce them being industrial enterprises (including 11 tonnes of building and facing bricks per annum stock cubes and bar chocolate, KazBestProduct engaged in agricultural product processing). (Tulpar). started a $3.2m project to produce dry gluten. In 2005, six companies (Urker Cosmetic (cos- New tendencies in investment activities Widespread mineral resources, such as marble, metics), Raimbek Agro (long-life milk), Wimpex The Engineering and Technology Transfer Centre quartz sand, limestone, gypsum, potter’s and (spirit), KazBestProduct (flour), Almaty Kus and Jurong Consultants PTE LTD, a consulting coal clay, and building and facing stone make it (poultry) and Kazzinc (ore production)) were company from Singapore, worked out a project to possible to develop the building material sector certified to ISO 9001:2000. develop a special economic zone – the Information in the oblast. Some new process lines were com- Technology Park – in the settlement of Alatau. missioned: Almatygazservice (ceramic and wall- Foreign Trade Work on creating clusters for Food Industry, ing materials), Mountain Mineral (marble flour), In 2005, oblast’s exports and imports totalled Transport Logistics, Textile Industry, Tourism, Bazalt–D (mineral wool) and also a roofing felt $183.4m (0.7% of the national figure) and $742.6m Building Materials and Horticulture is being car- plant, 13 brick plants and four plants to produce (4.3%), respectively. The foreign trade deficit ried out. metalloplastics. reached $559.2m. The Mechanical engineering is basically repre- On the basis of the Textile Industry Cluster, the sented by the companies involved in the produc- Investment Almaty Regional Textile Trade, a wholesale chain, has been established. It is the leading com- tion of electrical, electronic and transport equip- Investment in the region’s fixed assets amounted pany of the textile cluster. ment. 748.7m (4.1% of the national total). Funds were In 2005, the total output amounted to $72.8m. invested in industry (22%), real estate activities On the basis of the Building Materials Cluster The production of lead-acid batteries, oil filters (23.7%), construction (22.9%), transport and more than 20 priority investment and innovation and switchboards increased. communications (12%). projects for making new kinds of building mate- rials and constructions are being realised. The The oblast is the only national manufacturer of Major sources of project finance were own funds Almaty Regional Technology Park is the main lead-acid batteries used in reciprocating engines. enterprises (56.8%). The central and local bud- chain of the cluster. The chemical industry is represented by Kaz- gets (11.1%), foreign investment (24.5%), loans A cluster for processing agricultural products is PEK, a plant to produce flexible package with an (7.6%). being created. The leaders of the project are Plo- Investor’s ATLAS 16 dEx (conservation of vegetables and fruits), Rai- cellular, trunk, paging and internet providers. The Moynak hydroelectric station with a capacity of ymbek Agro (dairy products), FoodMaster and oblast’s road and railway networks are 9,617 km 300 MW will be financed with the support of the Adal. and 1,303 km long, respectively. Waterways total Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources. 1,800 km. Foreign Capital Four check-points operate on the border: Banking There are 152 companies with a foreign sharehold- • Dostyk (motor and railway transport), There are 30 branches of second-tier banks 5 ing in the oblast, of which 90% are involved in the branches of insurance companies and 6 represen- processing industry. They employ 9,414 people. • Khorgos (motor transport), tatives of insurance companies in the oblast. The amount of products and services produced in • Kolzhat (motor transport), 2005 was worth $545.2m. • and (motor transport). Employment Exports and imports by joint ventures and foreign The labour force in the region amounts to 804,100 companies totalled $57.3m and $245.9m respec- Power Industry people (10.2% of the national total). The edu- tively. Thus, the trade deficit stood at $188.6m. About a half of the country’s water resources are cational level of the population is high enough: The largest enterprises with a foreign shareholding located in the Almaty oblast. The power supply of 56.1% of employees have secondary and primary are Philip Morris Kazakhstan and Gallaher Ka- the region is carried out by the Almaty Regional education, 26.6% have secondary vocational edu- zakhstan (the tobacco companies), Almaty Kanty Power Company (ARPC) APC and Taldykorgan cation, and 17.3% have higher education including (sugar manufacturer), the Almaty branch of the Company for Transportation by Electric Networks undergraduates. Efes Karaganda Brewery (beer), Libella Bottlers (TATEC), which include Almaty Cogeneration The number of employed is 745,100 (10.3% of the Almaty (soft drinks) and Hamle (confectionery). Plant No. 3 with a capacity of 173 MW (loading national total). Half of the population is employed The following projects were accomplished in factor is 52.3%), hydroelectric station in agriculture and the forest sector, 11.7% in trade, 2005: with a capacity of 364 MW (48.5%), the Tekeli auto service and repair of household goods, 8.3% power complex with a capacity of 24 MW (68.3%), in the field of education, 6.4% in communications, • constructing a plant to produce 150 million li- and the Almaty chain of hydroelectric stations 5.4% in construction and other fields. The aver- tres of soft drinks per annum (Coca-Cola Al- with a capacity of 46.9 MW age monthly nominal wage is $183.9 (71.8% of the maty Bottlers) (51.5%). national level). The number of unemployed is 59 • reconstructing a gypsum board plant (Knauf (9.2% of the national total). Gips) In 2005 the following rates were set: • constructing a plant to produce 82 million litres Power $0.04per kWh; Education of juices and soft drinks per annum (Gold Prod- Water: There are four higher educational establishments uct) Cold water from $0.18 per cu m; and 31 colleges in the region. The number of graduates in 2005-2006 was 2,446 of which 63.1% Communikations Hot water from $14 per cu m. specialised in education, 19.2% in economics and The oblast is a major transport corridor between The decreed that management, China, Central Asian countries, Russia, Kyrgyz- a wind power station with a capacity of 5 MW The colleges prepared 4,391 specialists in eco- stan and Tajikistan. Two airports are located in the must be built at the Dzungarian Gates with the nomics (27.8%), the humanities (36.6%), teaching settlement of Burundai and the town of Taldyk- participation and financial support of the UNDP (10.2%), medicine (10.8%) and other fields. organ. The telecommunications sector comprises Global Environment Facility. Construction of the Atyrau17 Region Investor’s ATLAS

Total area: 118,600 sq. km Population: 472,400 Administrative centre: Atyrau

Administrative Divisions fields and the Imashevskoye gas condensate field Climate are the largest. There are 79 deposits of common The administrative centre is Atyrau, which is situ- Harsh and dry continental climate. Dry, long, minerals, including boron ore (18), bitumen (5), ated on the Ural River. The city was founded in hotsummers; cold winters with little snow. Aver- chalk (3), sodium chloride (1), gypsum (6), mortar 1640. Its population is 198,000. The region con- age January temperature -11 °C, +25 °C in July. sand (8), sand and gravel (6), brick loam (23), aqua tains three rural districts, 15 villages and 57 auls Annual precipitation: 100-200mm. gel (1), keramzite clay (1), construction stone (1), (settlements). The urban and rural populations re- etc. spectively form 57% and 43% of the total. Tourism The region has 10 groundwater springs, one of Atyrau is 1,810 km from Astana. Atyrau Oblast has favourable conditions for the which is used for spa therapy. development of tourism and the hospitality indus- Mineral Resources Natural Resources try. The natural resources and historical heritage The region is the largest oil and gas basin in Ka- make it possible to promote the following types of The greater part of the region consists of alkaline zakhstan and the richest in recoverable oil (40% tourism: land and sands with semi-desert flora. The largest of the country’s reserves). 80 hydrocarbon fields • health and health improving tourism; river flowing through the region is the Ural (with have been explored in the region, including oil a total length about 1,000 km within Kazakhstan). • sports; (62), gas and oil (14), oil-gas condensate (3) and The largest lake in the region is the Inder (110.5 • cultural and educational; gas condensate (1). Only 44 fields are under devel- sq. km). Poplar and willow forests grow along the • ecological; and opment. The Tengiz, Korolevskoye and Kenbai oil riversides. • extreme. Investor’s ATLAS 18

Health and health improving tourism Extreme Tourism Atyraubalyk is a major company producing and Atyrau and Kamyskul Sanatoriums Wildlife adventures are on offer in the region, exporting sturgeon and caviar. Its output totalled $13.4m. The sanatoriums are ideal for rest and health im- including a dramatic descent into the mysteri- provement. It ranks with the best health resorts ous caves of the Akkergeshen and Aktolagai pla- There are also machine-building plants, the larg- of the CIS. It offers a wide range of medical ser- teaus. est of which is Atyrauneftemash, a manufacturer vices, including mud treatment, as well as min- of beam pumping units. eral sodium chloride, iodine bromide and pearl Agriculture Under the Industrial-Innovative Development baths. In 2005, the oblast’s gross agricultural output Programme, work is in the pipeline to set up ex- amounted to $70.8m (1.2% of the national total), port-oriented production. Cultural and educational tourism mostly presented by livestock products (81.7%); Fifty kilometres away from Atyrau is one of the crops shared only 18.3%. Foreign Trade most successful tourist routes. It traverses the There are 1,762 farms, 25 partnerships, 13 produc- In 2005, the oblast’s exports totalled $6,207.2m Khan Ordaly Saraishyk memorial complex and tion cooperatives, 7 joint-stock companies, and six (22.3% of the national figure) and imports in so doing illustrates the whole history of the state-owned farms in the oblast. $1,961.1m (11.3%). The foreign trade surplus Kazakh people. The town of Saraishyk, lying on reached $4,246.1m. the northern branch of the Silk Road, was an im- Industry portant trading centre of the Golden Horde. This In 2005, the oblast’s gross industrial production Investment place remains attractive to many tourist travel- totalled $8,070.4m (20.4% of the national figure). Investment in fixed capital totalled $5,370.1m lers and delegations from near and far. One can There were 182 major and medium-sized enter- (29.5% of the national total). Most financial funds reach it either by road or by water. prises operating in . The key indus- (68.2%) were invested in the mining sector, 23.3% The region features a number of cultural and tries were mining (90%) and processing (9.2%). in the real estate and services sectors, and 5.7% in historic places and architectural monuments of The oil and gas industry is the most dynamic sec- the transport and communications. the 19th century, such as the Ak-Mechet memo- tor: in 2005, Atyrau companies produced 17.2 The main sources of investment were companies’ rial complex, the Zhuban-Tam mausoleum in million barrels of oil. The largest oil producer in own funds and foreign investment (40.5% and Zhalyoi district and the Utemissov both the region and the country is Tengizchevroil 52.8%, respectively). Mausoleum in Karaoi Idery district. ($6,358.2m), which also has significant processing The projects accomplished in 2005 were as fol- Sports and adventure tourism capacity. Tengizchevroil therefore accounts for lows: over 80% of the oblast’s gross industrial output. Biotorgservice operates in the field of ecological • commissioning the 5th extrusion line to increase and adventure tourism specialising in sport fish- The Atyrau Refinery is the largest enterprise in the production capacity of the Atyrau polyethyl- ing contests (anglers let the fish go as they catch the country, engaged in high-level oil processing. ene pipe plant up to 15,000 tonnes per annum; them) on the Ural River. The company has hosted Yet, it shared only about 2% of the regional indus- trial output. • constructing a new runway (Atyrau Internation- guests from , Austria, Belgium, Yugosla- al Airport); via, Hungary and the . Because of a boom in housing and industrial con- • implementing new methods of hydrodynamic The Kigash camp is situated in a lovely pictur- struction, the building materials sector has also been growing rapidly in the region. In 2005, its in- well survey, new oil & gas field control equip- esque location that is becoming more and more ment, and new methods to enhance oil produc- popular with foreign tourists. dustrial output grossed $12m; 15 new productions were launched and some 117 jobs were created. tion (Embamunaigaz); 19 Investor’s ATLAS

• launching the ELEMATIK OY AB equipment in, AGIP KCO, a branch of Schlumberger Logelco water: (Finland) and a pile plant with a monthly capac- Inc, and Denholm Zholdas. cold water $0.15 per m3 ity of 1,000 piles (Atyrau Beton); hot water $0.64 per m3 • launching the 2nd paving block line with a Communications 3 work-shift capacity of 100 m2 (Stroitorgservice- Atyrau Oblast borders Russia and is a strategi- natural gas $0.04 per m . Atyrau); and cally important region. Banking • constructing a profile flooring plant with an an- The telecommunications sector comprises cellu- nual capacity of 30,000 m2 (Gimarat). lar, trunk, paging and internet providers. There are 17 branches of Kazakh commercial banks and nine branches of insurance companies New Tendencies in Investment Activities The region’s railway and road networks are 736 operating in the oblast. km and 2,752 km long, respectively. Internal navi- There is a business incubator in the region and it gable waterways total 333 km. The pipelines of the Employment is planned to build a Regional Technology Park in Caspian Pipeline Consortium and KazTransOil Atyrau. are 452 km and 1,878 km long, respectively. The labour force in the oblast is 230,500 people (2.9% of the national total). The educational level Three main competitive branches have been de- Atyrau has an international airport, providing is rather high: 29.3% of employees have secondary fined to develop the cluster initiative in the re- flights to Iran, , , Russia, vocational education, 26% higher education (in- gion: and the Netherlands. Local routes include cluding undergraduates), and almost 50% prima- • petrochemistry: it is planned to open the Na- Bautino and Uralsk. ry or secondary education. The main employment tional Technology Park and set up a special eco- opportunities are offered in industrial production nomic zone; Power Engineering (13%); education (11.1%); construction (17.1%); • fishing: this will be created on the basis of the The energy system of the region is self-sufficient real estate (9.5%); and transport and communica- largest fishing company, Atyraubalyk; and and fully meets the demand for power and ther- tions (11.2%). The number of employed is 209,500 mal energy: Atyrau Oblast has its own fuel re- people (2.9%). The average monthly nominal wage • building industry, which will base on mineral sources (gas and fuel oil) and power-generating amounted to $490.6 and is almost double the na- production (gypsum, chalkstone, chalk, marl, capacities. tional level. The number of unemployed totalled quartz sand, clay and other minerals). The energy system includes the following power- 21,000 (3.3% of the national total). generating facilities: Foreign Capital Education There are 478 enterprises with a foreign share- • a power and heating plant with a capacity of 215 There are six institutions of higher education and holding in the oblast. They employ 28,998 people. MW (load factor 76.8%); 11 colleges in the oblast. In 2005, the institutions The amount of products and services was worth • Tengizchevroil with a capacity of 136 MW of higher education had 4,596 graduates specialis- $7.1bn. (62%); and ing in teaching (28.4%) and economics (25.5%). Exports and imports by joint ventures and for- • the Atyrau Refinery with a capacity of 12 MW A total of 1,461 specialists graduated from local eign companies totalled $6.8bn and $4.7bn, (63.7%). colleges, mainly for industry (25.8%), economics respectively. Thus, the trade surplus stood at In 2005 power suppliers set the following rates for (37.7%) and other fields. $2.1bn. legal entities: The largest enterprises with foreign shareholding electricity $0.05 per kWh are Tengizchevroil, Kazakhoil-Telf, CPC-K, Mat- EasternInvestor’s ATLAS Kazakhstan Region 20

Total area: 283,200 sq.km Population: 1,431,200 Administrative centre: Oskemen

Administrative Divisions Mineral Resources Natural Resources The administrative centre is Oskemen, which is situ- The region produces gold (51.5% of the national re- The Rudny Altai Range is situated in the eastern ated at the foothills of the Rudny . serves), tantalum and niobium ores (65.6%), copper part of the region, with the small Sary-Arka hills in The city was founded in 1720. It is home to 21% of (47.9%), zinc (47.7%), lead (27%), titanium (37.1%) the west. the region’s population. The region contains ten and molybdenum (27.1%). Mixed forests of fir, silver fir and pine grow in the towns, 15 rural districts and 857 auls (settlements). 102 metal ore fields and 328 non-metallic mineral high mountain areas. The steppe areas have feather The urban and rural populations respectively form deposits have been explored in the region, including grass, grass and various kinds of herbal vegetation. 59% and 41% of the total. Oskemen is 1,038 km gold (75), complex ore (26), copper (4), lead (1), zinc from Astana. The navigable River is fed by numerous tribu- (3), tin (8), tantalum-niobium ores (8), molybdenum taries and has a total length of 1,300 km within the (2), titanium (1), barite (1), fluorite (1), sodium chlo- Climate region. Two water reservoirs have been constructed ride (1), feldspar (9), ornamental stone (2), coal (6), on the Irtysh River: the Bukhtarminskoye (5,500 sq. Harsh continental climate. Average January tem- sand and gravel (93), etc. km) and the Ust-Kamenogorskoye (37 sq. km). perature -16 to -20 °C, +20 to +23 °C in July. Annual The region has 62 groundwater springs, four of which There are a number of natural lakes, e.g. the saline precipitation: from 150mm in the plains to 1,500mm are used for spa therapy. Alakol Lake (2,650 sq. km) and the freshwater Zai- in the mountains. 21 Investor’s ATLAS san Lake (2,650 sq. km). The Markakol Reserve is Belukha recreation zone The Blue Bay situated in the south-east, around the picturesque The zone boasts such monuments of nature as The area is formed of granite and covered in pine Markakol Lake (455 sq. km). Mount Belukha (the western summit), the Kok- forests. The width of the water reserve kol waterfall, thermal mineral springs and the Ra- is 6 km in this area. The combination of the warm Tourism khmanov Springs Sanatorium, the upper reaches of “sea” (up to 25ºC in July), lovely scenery with bizarre East Kazakhstan Oblast has great tourism potential. the famous navigable Katun River, virgin cedar and granite rocks, the air filled with the perfume of pines It covers the Kazakhstan’s part of the Altai-Sayan deciduous forests, habitats of snow leopards and Si- and steppe grass, along with easy accessibility (2-2.5 ecoregion, one of the WWF’s Global 200 priority berian goats; as well as such historic monuments as hours by car from the town of Ust-Kamenogorsk) eco-systems and recognised by UNESCO as a spe- the unique Berel excavations, similar to the well- and, very importantly, the complete absence of mos- cial conservation area. known Pazyryk mounds, an abandoned ancient quitoes, make the Blue Bay a very attractive place of Kokkol mine located 3,000 m above sea level and recreation, especially in summer. In terms of tourist attractions, particular mention the Northern Golden Branch of the ancient Great should be made of the Katon-Karagay and Kurchum Silk Road. Ridder Recreation Zone districts, the surroundings of the towns of Ridder and Ust-Kamenogorsk, Lakes Alakol and Zaisan, All these pearls are linked together by numerous The outskirts of the town of Ridder have always as well as the Bukhtarma riverside area. routes suitable for mountaineering, riding, boating, been and remain one of the most popular tour- fishing and educational tours and treks. ist destinations in the CIS. The zone features such The region features many natural, historical and showplaces as The Stone City (similar to the famous cultural monuments, such as Mount Belukha, Lake The following tours are especially popular in the Krasnoyarsk Rock Pillars), Mount Vysheivanovsky Markakol and the Kokkol waterfall, along with the region: Along the Altay Paths (riding or trekking), Belok (Voroshilov Peak), the Lineisky Pillars, Lake Berel burial grounds and Abai museum complex. Novofestival (riding or trekking), Ascending from Kedrovoye and a number of rivers: Gromotukha, the Berel Glacier, Towards the Belukha Foot, Au- The priority types of tourism are as follows: Turgussun, , and . totour, as well as rafting tours. This part of the • ecological and educational; oblast is the most popular with the tourists. The number of tourists has considerably increased recently, including hill climbers, alpinists, hunters • beach holidays; The tourist flow has considerably increased of late. and anglers. • sanatorium and health resorts; and Mostly they are mountain tourists, alpinists, hunt- ers and anglers. Deserving a special mention are It is the extreme sports, particularly paragliding, that • fishing and hunting. the so-called “Rerikhovs” – followers of the teach- are being actively developed in the region, thanks to Fifty-eight tourist organisations are active in the ings of Nikolai Rerikh, a Russian artist and philos- the efforts of the local pilots as well as the ideal natu- oblast. East Kazakhstan offers 14 specially protect- opher. These tourists come every year in expedi- ral conditions. The wildlife of East Kazakhstan is ed natural sites, ten sanatoriums and health farms, tions of up to 250 people to climb Mount Belukha, extremely rich and diverse. and five holiday inns and recreation camps. There which Rerikh and his wife visited in the early 1900s are 11 museums featuring a total of 276,700 exhibits, to study the roots of Buddhism. The the Zhambyl Drama Theatre with a capacity of 297 Places of interest: seats, the Zhanalyk Theatre Service with a capacity Markakol recreation zone - the historic monument, Akbaur; of 500 seats; and four multiplex cinemas. Four com- The main attraction of this zone is the wonderful panies organise concert activities. There are 183 mountain and lake scenery. Popular activities in- - the ruins of the ancient Dzhungar (Oirat-Kalmyt) clubs and an amusement park with 14 leisure areas clude red deer hunting and fishing for grayling and Fort near the Sibinsky Lakes; and a zoo. lenok to the north and east of in the up- - the Kanaika settlements (a monument dated to the Altogether the oblast boasts 670 monuments of per reaches of the Kalzhir River. This area is a great middle Bronze Age); historical, architectural and cultural significance favourite with foreign hunters and anglers. - mineral waters of Lake Dubogalin; and likely to attract visitors. There are also several rec- Westwards of a sports trophy hunt reational areas in the region. - the Sibinsky Nature Park with the Sibinsky Lakes for red deer is organised regularly. and the Sinegorskaya Silver fir grove. Investor’s ATLAS 22

Agriculture remshchanskaya ($4.3m), poultry producers, and Semeycement (1.5% of the oblast’s industrial out- Aksu ($1.5m), the largest farm in breeding red deer. put) and the Bukhtarma Cement Company (1%). In 2005, the oblast’s gross agricultural output amounted to $565.5m (9.8% of the national total), of The mechanical engineering’s share in the regional which livestock products accounted for 59.3% and Industry output amounts to 8.9%. This sector is represented crops 40.7%. In 2005, the industrial output of East Kazakhstan by the Ust-Kamenogorsk Reinforcement Plant (oil pipeline reinforcement), Vostokmashzavod (mineral There are 14,749 farms, 21 production cooperatives, totalled $1,959.6m (5% of the national figure). The processing, special mining and chemical equipment), nine joint-stock companies, 266 partnerships, and 8 key industry was the processing sector (73.6%), with the Capacitor Plant (high-voltage gear, industrial ca- state-owned farms in the oblast. mining accounting for 16.5%, and power, gas and water production and distribution 9.9%. pacitors), and Asia Auto (motor cars). Crop Farming There are 719 large and medium-sized enterprises East Kazakhstan also features manufacturers of fur coats, leather, ready-made garments and yuft shoes. Arable land occupies 1,018,400 ha (5.5% of the total operating in the oblast. There is also a pharmaceutical plant producing pan- arable land in the country). The leading sector of the region’s economy is nonfer- tocrine and other medicines. The region is the largest producer of sunflowers. rous metallurgy, which accounts for more than 38.4% The year 2005 was marked with the growth of pro- In 2005, its farms produced 169,400 tonnes of sun- of the industrial output. The main contributor to this duction in mechanical engineering (17.4%), chemi- flowers (63.4% of the national output) and 367,500 figure is Kazzinc, a producer of nonferrous, noble cal (17.8%) and food industries (8.5%). tonnes of potatoes (14.6%). and rare metals, sharing 37.5% of the total industrial output. To convert sulphur dioxide gases into off- and The wheat yield averaged 1,040 kg/ha, potato 14,500 tail-gases and regenerate spent acid into sulphuric Foreign Trade kg/ha, vegetables 21,880 kg/ha, and sunflower 690 acid, the company installed a Haldor Tonsoe plant, kg/ha. In 2005, exports and imports totalled $905.5m (3.3% which cost $30m. Due to the increased production of of the national figure) and $703.6m (4.1%), respec- The largest farms in terms of crop output are Bel- sulphuric acid, a new gypsum plant was set up in Rid- tively. The foreign trade surplus reached $201.9m. kina, Shemonaihinskoye and Antropovo. der, which is expected to provide wider possibilities for the Kazakh cement industry and help abandon Investment Livestock the usage of scarce and expensive natural gypsum. Investment in fixed assets amounted to $618.5m The region’s unique nature makes it possible to breed Besides, for the first time in its industrial history, the (3.4% of the national total). These funds were mainly red and dappled deer and cattle. country will have an opportunity to develop such an important sector of the construction industry as gyp- invested in transport and communications (31.1%), In 2005, the cattle stock amounted to 734,900 sum plasterboard production. processing industry (18.1%), mining (17.7%), power, head (13.5% of the national total), sheep and goats gas and water production and distribution (5.7%), Large metal producers also include the Ust-Ka- 1,751,900 head (12.3%), and horses 148,400 head and education (2.7%). (12.8%). Pigs numbered 100,100 head (7.6%). Feed menogorsk Titanium and Magnesium Plant (a mod- The main sources of investment were as follows: supplies make possible the production of poultry ern high-tech complex and one of the few integrated (2.8 million head or 10.8%). manufacturers of magnesium, vanadium pentoxide, companies’ own funds (56.6%); and spongy titanium in the world); the Ulba Met- national and local budget (18.7%); The oblast produced 632,100 tonnes of milk (13.4%) allurgical Plant (uranium, beryllium and tantalum and 3,200 tonnes of wool (11.0%). products); and VostokKazmed, a branch of the Ka- loans (6.4%); and East Kazakhstan is the only region in the country zakhmys Corporation (copper-zinc concentrate). foreign investment (18.3%). breeding red deer. Out of a total population of 10,700 The food industry is also developing successfully. The following projects were accomplished in 2005: red and dappled deer, 72% are bred in Katon-Kar- The largest enterprise is May, a sunflower oil pro- agai district. ducer (2% of the oblast’s industrial output). • constructing a palletised gypsum plant at the Ridder Mining Complex. The project automates the pro- The largest farms in terms of output are Ustkameno- The construction materials sector is chiefly repre- gorskaya ($19.7m) and Semei Kus ($5.5m), and Che- duction process and applies computers to control sented by cement-producing companies, such as production. Process equipment, automation and 23 Investor’s ATLAS

control systems were supplied by Russian, Ukrai- The metallurgy cluster is being developed on the ba- station (702 MW; 55%), the Ust-Kamenogorsk hy- nian and German companies. This project helped sis of Kazzinc, the Ust-Kamenogorsk Titanium and droelectric power station (331 MW; 75%), and the the company to resolve the problem of sulphuric Magnesium Plant, the Ulba Metallurgical Plant, Ust-Kamenogorsk power and heating plant (241 acid recycling. The company invested $5.9m to ac- VostokKazmed (a branch of the Kazakhmys Corpo- MW; 67%). complish this project, which created 60 new jobs; ration), and Alel. In 2005, suppliers set the following rates: • constructing lines at a cost of $2.0m to assemble Tourism has also been dynamically developing in electricity $0.03 per kWh VAZ-21214 (injector) and Skoda cars (Asia Auto). recent years. Seventy VAZ-21214 and 345 Skoda cars were water: manufactured in 2005; Foreign Capital cold water $0.11 per m3 • commissioning a Mellers packing line with an There are 322 enterprises with a foreign sharehold- hot water $11.8 per gigacalorie hourly capacity of 1,200 50-kg bags. The project ing in the oblast. These enterprises employ 18,709 liquefied gas $0.8 per kg cost $0.6m and was implemented by the Bukhtar- people. ma Cement Company; In 2005, the output of products and services by enter- Banking • commissioning a polymer concrete tile plant with prises with a foreign shareholding totalled $182.8m. an annual capacity of 2,000 tiles. The project cost There are 38 branches of Kazakh commercial banks Exports and imports by foreign enterprises and $0.2m and was implemented by Shygys Cabel; and seven branches of insurance companies in the joint-ventures amounted to $41.1m and $55.7m, re- oblast. • engineering and constructing a plant at a cost of spectively, resulting in a trade deficit of $14.6m. $9.6m to produce tantalum powder for high capac- The largest companies with a foreign shareholding Employment ity condensers (Ulba Metallurgical Plant); are nonferrous-metallurgy enterprises, namely Ka- The labour force in the oblast amounted to 751,700 • commissioning a dry mixture plant with an an- zzinc, the Ust-Kamenogorsk Titanium and Mag- people (9.5% of the national total), of whom 52.1% nual capacity of 20,400 tonnes of plaster, finishing nesium Plant, VostokKazmed (a branch of the Ka- had secondary or primary education; 27.5% second- filler and tile glue. The project cost $2.8m and was zakhmys Corporation), and the Ulba Metallurgical ary vocational education, and 20.3% higher educa- implemented by the LIK Research and Produc- Plant. tion (including undergraduates). tion Firm. The main feedstock for these products is ground marble (55%); The number of employed was 698,100 (9.6% of the Communications national figure); 23.2% of the employed worked in • commissioning a plant to produce polyester resins The telecommunications sector comprises cellular, the industry, 13.9% in agriculture, forestry and fish- for polymer concrete and fibreglass manufactur- trunk, paging and internet providers. The length ing and 13.3% in the field of education. The number ing. The project cost $0.2m and was implemented of motor and rail roads in the region totals 11,038 of unemployed was 53,600 (8.4% of the national to- by the LIK Research and Production Firm; and km and 1,243 km, respectively. Two airports are lo- tal). The average monthly nominal wage was $208.3 • developing a new check valve type (fibreglass gate cated in Semipalatinsk and Ust-Kamenogorsk. Two (81.2% of the national level). valve) at a cost of $0.03m (LIK Research and Pro- steamship lines provide freight and passenger ser- duction Firm). This design is unique not only in vices. Two cargo ports have been constructed. Inter- Education the CIS but in the whole world. Fibreglass valves nal navigable waterways total 1,084 km. The Omsk- There are 11 institutions of higher education and 43 have high chemical resistance, which exceeds that Maikapchagai motorway is a transit corridor to the colleges in the oblast. In 2005, 9,552 people graduat- of stainless steel, and high levels of durability and Chinese border. ed from the institutions of higher education, special- thermal endurance. Power Engineering ising in the humanities (22.7%), economics (28%), New Tendencies in Investment Activities teaching (23%), and other fields. The colleges pre- Major power producers in the oblast are the pared 6,486 specialists in economics (21.5%), the The Altai Regional Research and Technology Park Bukhtarma hydroelectric power station (675 MW; humanities (18.6%), teaching (16.2), medicine (8%) has set up the International Cooperation Centre load factor 75%), the Shulba hydroelectric power and other spheres. comprising 18 R&D laboratories. KaragandaInvestor’s ATLAS Region 24

Total area: 428,0000 sq.km Population: 1,334,400 Administrative centre: Karaganda

Administrative Divisions molybdenum (64%), lead (54%), zinc (40%), cop- Natural Resources per (36%), coal (32%), wollastonite and rhodusite The administrative centre is Karaganda, which The greater part of the region consists of plains asbestos (100%) and barite (70%). was founded in 1934. It is home to 31.8% of the and small hills with steppe and semi-desert veg- region’s population. The region contains 11 towns, There are 101 ore mineral deposits, including iron etation. (11), manganese (13), copper (30), gold (37), lead nine rural districts and 556 auls (settlements). The The Ulytau Range is situated in the western part (24), zinc (16), molybdenum (16), tungsten (12), urban and rural populations respectively form of the region, with the Karkaraly Range in the etc. 83,3% and 16,7% of the total. Karaganda is 241 east, Aksoran Mountain (1,565 m) is the highest km from Astana. 216 non-metallic mineral deposits have been ex- point in the region. Mixed forests of pine, birch plored in the region, including coal (11), piezo- and alder grow on the Karkaraly, Kent and Kyzy- Climate optical raw materials (16), barite (10), semipre- larai Ranges. The Ulytau Range is mantled with Harsh continental climate with hot summers and cious stones, including kallait and rock crystal (8), mixed forests of birch, aspen and alder. Meadows cold winters. Average January temperature -17° C, rhodusite asbestos (3), fluorite (1), limestone (4), of herbs grow in the valleys between the moun- +26° C in July. Annual precipitation in the north: mortar sand (10), brick-making clay (55), etc. The tains. The southern part of the region consists of 250-300 mm, in the south: 150-200 mm and up to region has two oil and gas basins - the Southern the Betpak Dala Desert, with the Kara Kum, Moi- 400 mm in upland areas. Torgai and the Shu- - containing the Kum- ynkum and Zhetykonyr sand deserts in the south- kol, Southern Kumkol and Maibulak fields and west. the Kirovskaya mining area. Mineral Resources There are a number of saline lakes, the largest The region produces manganese (100% of the There are 115 groundwater springs, six of which of which is (18,200 sq. km). Two national reserves), tungsten trioxide (over 80%), are used for spa therapy. water reservoirs have been constructed on the 25 Investor’s ATLAS

Nura River (978 km): Temirtauskoye (82 sq. km) It comprises the main part of the Sary-Arka his- head of sheep and goats (5.9%) and 1,200 head of and Sherubainurinskoye (39 sq. km). There are toric and geographic area including the Karkara- camels (0.9%). Cattle stock numbered 391,200 also small water reservoirs on the Kengir River linsk mountain and forest resort, the Ulytau no- head (7.1%), pigs 108,600 head (8.3%), and poul- (2) and on the Atasau River (1). The Irtysh- madic culture centre, the mausoleums of Alasha try 1,803,200 head (6.8%). Karaganda-Zhezkazgan Canal passes through Khan and Zhoshi Khan, the famous Koyandy fair, In 2005, the oblast produced 279,000 tonnes of the region. the ancient Silk Road, the Kent, Bakhty, Kyzyla- milk (5.9%) and 1,400 tonnes of wool (4.7%). rai and Ulytau mountains, the Nura, Sarysu rivers Tourism and so on. The largest farms are Zhenis, Volynsky, Kurman, and Maikuduk. Karaganda Oblast is important for the country There are 20 health and recreation organisations, due to its geographic location and contribution to 31 hotels and units of tourist accommodation, 861 Industry the development of the country’s economy, cul- public catering outlets, as well as museums, his- ture, science and education. torical and architectural monuments, and nature In 2005, the oblast’s gross industrial production reserves in the region. Historical and cultural re- totalled $3.9bn (9.8% of the national figure). The sources, beautiful landscapes and architectural key industry is the processing sector (84.2%), and urban planning solutions all combine to create with mining accounting for 9.2%, and power, gas a positive image of tourism in Karaganda Oblast. and water production and distribution 6.6%. There are 750 major and medium-sized enter- Agriculture prises in the region. In 2005, the oblast’s gross agricultural output Karaganda Oblast produces cast iron, metals and amounted to $267.3m (4.6% of the national total), iron (100% of the national output), crude steel of which livestock products accounted for 69.6% (92%), refined silver (78.9%) and refined gold and crops 30.4%. (46.2%). It is also among the national leaders in There are 6,293 farms, 31 production coopera- producing calcium carbide, sulphuric acid mono- tives, 23 joint-stock companies, 169 partnerships, hydrate and nitrogenous fertilisers. and 4 state-owned farms in the oblast. Metallurgy is the most significant sector of the oblast’s economy that accounts for 74.2% of its Crop Farming industrial output. Mittal Steel (iron Arable land occupies 1,108,500 ha (6% of the total rolling, nitrogenous fertilisers) and Kazakhmys arable land in the country), on which crops (main- (copper, gold and other products), which are ly wheat) are grown. The oblast also produces veg- the largest enterprises in the region, account for etables and potato. 30.7% and 43.2% of the oblast’s industrial out- put, respectively. The Kirov Farm is the largest crop producer. The chemical sector is also developing well. The Livestock production of paint, varnish, soap; cement, mor- The oblast is one of the leaders in horse breed- tar and concrete additives; and explosives for the ing in the country. The farms had 115,100 head mining industry has increased. Further develop- of horses (9.9% of the national total). Pastures ment of this sector is one of the priorities of the occupy almost 94.2% of farmlands making pos- industrial-innovative programme in the region. sible the livestock farming. The farms had 836,300 Under this programme, financial and invest- Investor’s ATLAS 26

ment organisations supported the setup of a new The production of rubber and plastics in 2005 to- Key sources for investment were as follows: production of commercial and semi-commercial talled $28m. Saranrezinotekhnika and Karagan- companies’ own funds (48.6%); PVC flooring (linoleum). The design capacity of darezinotekhnika manufacture a wide range of the production line is 4 million m2 a year. Eur- technical rubber goods. The production of rub- national and local budgets (4.5%; 2.9% and 1.6%, asiafloor, a modern enterprise equipped with ber hoses and conveyor belts has increased. respectively); Siemens, Knobel and Bay (Germany) PVC-floor- The largest food enterprises are Konfety Kara- foreign investment (39.4%); and ing technology, is the first manufacturer of floor- gandy ($16.5m), the Karaganda Margarine Fac- loans (7.5%). ing in Kazakhstan, which has become the largest tory ($26.8m) and Karagandy-Nan. The oblast producer of commercial linoleum in the country. The following projects were commissioned in manufactures margarine (88.8% of the national 2005: output), ice cream (19.1%), beer (13.3%), confec- tionery (13.2%), yoghurt (9.4%), and cheese and • a line to produce snack products (Konfety curd (8.5%). Karagandy); The production of mechanical equipment and • a plant to produce fine wheat flour (Khlebo- construction materials is also on the rise. produkty); Karat has launched innovative projects to manu- • a pharmaceutical plant (Pharmacia); facture different types of artificial sports surfac- • manganese ore processing and washing plants es, including a project to produce Zhasyl Alan (Kazmarganets Mine Group); surface for athletic facilities (football fields, ten- • reconstructing a brick factory (Osakarovka nis courts and golf courses). The company is the Brick Factory); only manufacturer of sports surfaces in Kazakh- stan and other CIS countries. Karat supplies its • an ammonium plant (UEE Kazakhstan); products not only to Kazakh but also Russian • internal roads; (Omsk, Novosibirsk and Kemerovo Oblasts) cus- • electric power lines; tomers. • gold and copper mines, and a plant to produce Foreign Trade industrial oxygen (Kazakhmys Corporation); In 2005, the oblast’s exports totalled $2,975.7m • a plant to produce oil-water emulsion (Zhairem (10.7% of the national figure) and imports Mining Complex), a crushing and screening $1,200.7m (6.9%). The foreign trade surplus plant to produce crushed aggregate (Zhezka- reached $1,775m. zgan Zholdary), and a plant to produce asphalt mixtures (Karagandy Zholdary); Investment • a poultry farm (Altyn); Investment in fixed assets amounted to $1,154.5m • reconstructing and commissioning terrestrial (6.3% of the national total), with 39.7% of the satellite stations (Kazakhtelecom Karaganda funds invested in the processing sector, 26.4% Branch); in transport and communications, and 9.5 % in • constructing and reconstructing water pipelines mining. (Severvodstroi Regional State Enterprise); 27 Investor’s ATLAS

• commissioning a plant to produce a matrix of also commissioned a polymer-coated steel strip In 2005, suppliers set the following rates: RIOFLEX water-helium explosive (UEE Ka- line and reconstructed the metallurgical plant. electricity $0.02-0.03 per kWh zakhstan through foreign investments); and The Efes Karaganda Brewery attracted foreign water: • the Atasu-Alashankou oil pipeline (Kazakh- investment to commission a 3,200-kW trans- stan-China Pipeline through foreign invest- former substation and purchase necessary equip- cold water $0.31 per m3 ments). ment. hot water $1.35 per m3 liquefied gas (propane, butane) $0.53 per kg. New Tendencies in Investment Activities Communications UniScienTech, a technology park. operates in the The telecommunications sector comprises cel- Banking region. lular, trunk, paging and internet providers. An There are 38 branches of Kazakh commercial The cluster initiative is being developed in the oil pipeline (600 km) running to Russia connects banks and three insurance companies. following industries: South Kazakhstan oilfields with the Pavlodar processing plants. The oblast motor roads total • metallurgy and metalworking on the basis of Employment 8,861 km, railways 2,000 km, and waterways Mittal Steel Temirtau; 6,500 km. The labour force in the oblast is 737,400 people • building an industrial park in Temirtau; and (9.3% of the national total). Those with basic, There are three airports in Karaganda Oblast: secondary and primary education account for • pharmaceutical industry. • Sary-Arka Airport (Karaganda) meeting inter- 48% of the labour force, 29.7% are specialists Foreign Capital national standards; with secondary vocational education and 24.9% • Zhezkazgan Air (Zhezkazgan); and are specialists with complete or incomplete high- There are 392 enterprises with a foreign share- er education. The number of employed is 685,900 holding in the oblast. These enterprises employ • Balkhash Airport, a branch of Zhezkazgan Air (9.4% of the national total), with 27.1% working 121,357 people. (Balkhash). in industry, 21.5% in agriculture and 9% in the field of education. The average monthly nominal The amount of products and services was worth Power Engineering $3.2bn. wage amounted to $182.1 (87.4% of the national There are five major energy facilities in the level). The number of unemployed was 53.700 Exports and imports by joint ventures and foreign oblast: (8.2% of the national level). companies totalled $2.7bn and $0.3bn, respec- tively. Thus, the trade surplus stood at $2.4bn. • Karaganda power and heating plant No. 2 (374 MW; load factor 85.1%); Education The largest enterprises with foreign shareholding There are 18 institutions of higher education and are Kazakhmys, Mittal Steel Temirtau (iron ore • Karaganda power and heating plant No. 3 (395 43 colleges in the oblast. In 2005, 16,133 people mining and processing), NOVA Tsink (lead-zinc MW; 63.7%); graduated from the institutions of higher educa- ore mining and processing), and Konfety Kara- • Karaganda district power plant No. 2 (560 tion, with about 50% specialising in economics, gandy (confectionery production). MW; 80.1%); law, and the humanities, and 16.7% in teaching. In 2005, Mittal Steel Temirtau attained the max- • Balkhash power and heating plant (125 MW; A total of 6,750 specialists in economics (32.2%), imum increase ($30m more than in 2004) in at- 77.4%); and sciences (19.2%), pedagogy (10%), medicine tracting foreign investment due to commissioning • Zhezkazgan power and heating plant (188 MW; (6.4%) and mining (2.9%) graduated from local a continuous casting machine with an annual ca- 84.5%). colleges. pacity of 5,200,000 tonnes of steel. The company KostanaiInvestor’s ATLAS Region 28

Total area: 196,000 sq. km Population: 903,200 Administrative centre: Kostanai

Administrative Divisions -19 °C in January and rises to +22 °C in July. Annual lovskoye, Sarbaiskoye and Kacharskoye black iron precipitation: 250-300mm. ore deposits are the most famous. The administrative centre is Kostanai, which is situ- ated on the River, and was founded in 1883. 237 non-metallic deposits are available in the region Today it is home to 22% of the region’s population. Mineral Resources including coal (9), fireclay (7), asbestos (1), cement There are five towns, 16 rural districts and 799 auls The region is a unique source of iron ore and baux- ra materials (3), moulding sand (2), halite (1), min- (settlements) in the region. The urban and rural ite in Kazakhstan. It contains 98.2% of the country’s eral dyes and etc. The region has 68 groundwater populations respectively form 54,2% and 45,8% of bauxite reserves, 92.6% of its iron ore reserves, 88% springs, four of which are used for spa therapy. the total. Kostanai is 760 km from Astana. of its cobalt reserves, 53.6% of its nickel reserves, etc. Reserves of 49 mineral ores have been explored in Natural Resources Climate the region, including 21 bauxite deposits, seven gold The larger part of the region is plains, with the Tor- Harsh continental climate with dry, hot summers mines, one silver deposit, two of titanium, one each gai Plateau in the west and the Zhylanshykturme and cold, long winters. Average temperature falls to of nickel and cobalt, and 17 of iron ore. The Soko- uplands in the southeast. 29 Investor’s ATLAS

The north of the region mainly features black soils The main types of tourism being actively developed The largest farms are DEP and KEU Rudnensky with various grass species, stands of birch and aspen, in the region are as follows: GMZ (milk products), Kanat (eggs), and Smak and and fir forests. Chestnut soils covered with sage- • ecological; Irina & Co. (sausages and meat specialities). brush, fescue and feathergrass occur in the centre of • therapeutic; the region. The Naurzui reserve with a unique pine Industry • cultural; forest surrounded with freshwater and saline lakes is In 2005, the Kostanai Oblast’s industrial output to- located in the steppes. • hunting; and talled $1,352.4m (3.4% of the national figure). The The majority of the freshwater lakes are situated in • ethnic. key industry is mining (66.8%), with processing ac- the north of the region in the West Siberian depres- counting for 24.4%, and electricity, gas and water sion, and saline lakes are found in the south of the Agriculture production and distribution 8.8%. region. In 2005, the Kostanai Oblast’s gross agricultural There are 335 large and medium-sized enterprises in The region’s largest water artery is the Tobol River output amounted to $818.5m (14.2% of the national Kostanai Oblast. (800 km within the region) having the Ayet (94 km), total), of which crops accounted for 51.8% and live- Kostanaiskiye Mineraly is the only manufacturer of Obage (376) and Ui (235 km) as tributaries. The stock products 48.2%. asbestos in Kazakhstan. Verkhnetobolskoye (87.4 sq.km), Karatomarskoye There are 7,796 farms, 37 production cooperatives, The largest mining enterprises are the Sokolov-Sar- and Amankeldinskoye water reservoirs have been 11 joint-stock companies, 987 partnerships, and 12 bai Mining Production Association (approximately constructed on the Tobol. state-owned farms in the oblast. 60% of the oblast’s industrial production) and the Crop Farming Torgai and Krasnooktyabrskoye Bauxite Mining Tourism Departments of Aluminium of Kazakhstan (4.5%). Arable land occupies 3,832,300 ha (20.8% of the to- An abundance and variety of wildlife and an attrac- tal arable land in the country) and is mainly under The food industry accounts for 67.6% of the regional tive location bordering on the Russian regions, set in wheat. The region is the second wheat producer in industrial output. The largest enterprises are Bay- a landscape of steppe lakes, salt marshes and ancient the country. In 2005, its wheat yield (after additional an-Sulu, which produces confectionery ($33.9m), forests, combine to promote the successful develop- treatment) amounted to 3 million tonnes (29.1% of Arasan involved in beer and soft drinks manufac- ment of tourism in Kostanai Oblast. the national total). The wheat yield averaged 1,040 turing ($8.6m), Melkombinat involved in processing Naurzum, a unique state nature reserve with an area kg/ha, vegetables 17,620 kg/ha, potato 14,960 kg/ha, crops and producing flour ($9.4m), DEP ($12m), of 87,694 ha, is located in the region. and sunflower 480 kg/ha. and KEU Rudnensky Gormolzavod ($4.3m), dairy plants. The Sosnovy Bor resort is an illustrative example of The largest crop farms are Ivolga Holding and Karasu. Kostanai Oblast’s tourism. The mineral water from The machine-building sector includes Agrotekh- the resort’s springs is unique in Kazakhstan. Livestock mash (spare parts for agricultural equipment) and the Kostanai branch of Agromashholding (motors, The oblast’s location near Russia determined the Lisakovsk has the potential for increasing the num- tractors, combined harvesters and spare parts). ber of tourist due to its museum and its archaeologi- priorities in the livestock production. Kostanai cal sites, where relics of the Bronze Age, the Early Oblast ranks first in Kazakhstan in breeding of pigs, The light industry has a small share in the region’s Iron Age and the Middle Ages have been studied for which numbered 251,100 head (19.1% of the national industrial production. However, there are many en- the past 20 years. An outdoor museum preserving total). terprises which manufacture knitwear, leather and felt footwear, process leather and produce wet blue both natural landscapes and the historical monu- Pastures occupy more than a half of the region’s hides. The Kostanai Spinning and Knitting Factory ments now has to be created to serve needs of do- farmlands. The farms had 502,200 head of cattle is the only enterprise in Kazakhstan that processes mestic and foreign tourism. The planned Tumar (9.2%), 68,000 head of horses (5.9%), and 257,900 merino wool. museum complex aims to offer convenient facilities head of sheep and goats (1.8%). The feed supplies concentrated in one location, together with expert are sufficient for farming 3.6 million head of poultry Enterprises of the food, textile, paper-and-pulp and information on the history and importance of the (13.7%). In 2005, the oblast produced 564,100 tonnes machine-building industries made significant contri- various sites. of milk (12% of the national total). bution to the oblast’s industrial production in 2005. Investor’s ATLAS 30

Several new enterprises were commissioned, including: 16.7% in processing industries, 2.3% in construc- Power Engineering tion, and 4.0% in transport and communications. – BK-Stroi (high quality ceramic bricks); There are three power producers in the oblast: pow- – SP Vita (cheese); and These companies employ 9,248 people. er and thermal cogeneration plants in Rudny (with a – EKOS (food additives); In 2005, they produced products and services for a capacity of 204 MW; load factor 92%), Kostanai (12 MW; 63.5%), and Arkalyk (6.5 MW; 73%). Aigerim, a wallpaper manufacturer, launched a pro- total of $101.7m. duction line to produce vinyl wallpaper. The Aiger- Their exports and imports amounted to $29.1m and In 2005, power suppliers set the following rates: im’s wallpaper is in high demand in Kazakhstan, $33.2m, respectively, resulting in a trade deficit of electricity $0.03–$0.04 per kWh Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan, , $4.1m. water: and Turkmenistan. The largest joint ventures are the Sokolov-Sarbai cold water $0.82 per m3 Foreign Trade Mining Production Association (ore concentrate, hot water $0.09 per m3 pellets and dolomite), the Torgai and Krasnook- natural gas $1.14 per m3 In 2005, the oblast’s exports totalled $826.2m (3.0% tyabrskoye Bauxite Mining Departments of Alu- of the national figure) and imports $627.3m (3.6%), minium of Kazakhstan, the Buskulskoye Mining Banking resulting in a trade surplus of $198.9m. Department (fire clay and fire sand mining), and a branch of the Magnitigorsk Metal Plant. There are 14 branches of Kazakh commercial banks Investment and 13 insurance companies in the oblast. Investment in fixed assets amounted to $421.9m Communications (2.3% of the national total). These funds were main- Employment The telecommunications sector comprises cellular, ly invested in industry (42.2%), transport and com- The labour force in Kostanai Oblast amounted to trunk, paging and internet providers. munications (20.8%), agriculture (16.7%) and real 553,000 people (7.1% of the national total), of whom estate activities (8.4%). The total length of motor roads in the region amounts 45.0% have secondary or primary education, 35.3% The main sources of funding were as follows: to 9,517 km. Transit highways running from north to secondary vocational education, and 19.7% higher south and south-east connect the region with Rus- companies’ own funds (77.2%); education (including undergraduates). The number sian towns. of employed was 511,900 people (7% of the national national and local budgets (17% and 2.2%, respec- figure). The main employers were agriculture, for- tively); and The length of the oblast’s railways is 1,451 km. Fifty- three railway stations (providing freight and passen- estry and fishing (38.9%), industrial enterprises loans (3.6%). ger services) encompass all towns and 11 districts. (12.1%), and trade and repair of cars and household appliances (17.4%). The average monthly nominal New Tendencies in Investment Activities Kostanai international airport hosts regular and wage in 2005 was $183.8 (72% of the national level). The Innovation Consulting Centre and the Kosta- charter flights within Kazakhstan and to the CIS, The number of unemployed was 45,400 (7.1% of the nai Business Incubator have been established in the Germany, the United Arab Emirates, and Turkey. national figure). region. The following major facilities were reconstructed in The Kostanai Technopolis, an innovation enterprise, 2005: Education has been set up on the basis of the Kostanai branch • distribution networks of the Lisakovsk water pipe- There are nine institutions of higher education, 14 of the Animal Breeding and Veterinary Medicine line; branches of institutions and 26 colleges in Kosta- R&D Centre. • Astana–Kostanai–Chelyabinsk highway; nai Oblast. In 2005, 7,317 people graduated from Now it is planned to create a dairy product cluster the institutions of higher education specialising in in the oblast. • Zhelkuar water pipeline; economics and management (27.7%), the humani- • Ishim common water supply system; and ties (25.8%), teaching (27.2%) and other fields. The Foreign Capital • Zhitikar heating systems. colleges prepared 3,928 specialists in economics There are 174 companies with a foreign sharehold- (35.4%), teaching (17.1%), the humanities (10.5%), ing in the oblast, of which 58.6% specialise in trade, and medicine (4.9%). Kyzylorda31 Region Investor’s ATLAS

Total area: 226,000 sq.km Population: 618,200 Administrative centre: Kyzylorda

Administrative Divisions age January temperature down to-13°C, and 57 non-metallic deposits are available in the re- up to+29°C in July. Annual precipitation: 150- gion, including loam (33), sand and gravel (8), The regional centre is Kyzylorda, which is situated 200mm. mortar sand (7), construction stone (3), quartz on the River and was founded in 1820. sand, medicinal salts and so on. There are 11 hy- Today the city is home to some 32% of the region’s drocarbon fields, including two oil, three oil and populace. There are three towns, seven rural dis- Mineral Resources gas, four oil and gas condensate and two gas con- tricts and 269 auls (settlements) in the region. The The region is a unique source of vanadium in the densate fields. urban and rural populations respectively form country, containing 65% of the reserves of the 59,6% and 40,4% of the total. Kyzylorda is 1,930 mineral in Kazakhstan. The region has 25 underground springs, two of which are used for spa therapy. km from Astana. 15 mineral ore deposits have been explored in the region: 12 iron ore, two molybdenum and vana- Natural Resources Climate dium deposits and a titanium-zirconium placer Harsh continental climate with hot summers and accumulation. Most of the territory is located within the Turan mild winters; dry, hot winds are frequent. Aver- depression with the Karatau Range to the east. Investor’s ATLAS 32

The Aral Karakum desert stretches within the – preservation and efficient exploitation of the Industry northwest of the region, and the Kyzylkurn in region’s natural, recreational, cultural and his- In 2005, Kyzylorda Oblast’s industrial production the southwest. The barren soils of the deserts are torical potential. totalled $2,557.8m (6.5% of the national figure). covered with sagebrush, fescue, saksaul bushes, The mining industry accounted for 95% of the tamarisk and terisken. Meadows and riparian Agriculture region’s industrial output, processing 3.4%, and forests grow in the flood plain of the Syr Darya In 2005, the oblast’s gross agricultural output gas, water and power production and distribution River. amounted to $126.5m (2.2% of the national total), 1.6%. The largest river in the region is the Syr Darya of which crops accounted for 61.2% and livestock There are 172 large and medium-sized industrial (1,400 km within the country). Numerous saline products 38.8%. enterprises in Kyzylorda Oblast. lakes are located along its estuary. The Syr Darya There are 2,473 farms, 20 production coopera- Mining plays a key role in the region’s economy. flows into the , which borders the region tives, 14 joint-stock companies, 152 partnerships, In 2005, the oblast accounted for 17.6% of the na- to the northwest. and 3 state-owned farms in the region. tional crude oil production (93.4% of the oblast’s Tourism Crop Farming industrial production). The main enterprises in this sector are Turgai Petroleum (40.5% of the As one of the historical centres located along the Arable land occupies 149,400 ha (0.8% of the total regional industrial production), PetroKazakhstan ancient Silk Road, the oblast is involved in Ka- arable land in the country), a half of which is un- Kumkol Resources (21.6%), Aidan-Munai (5.8%), zakhstan’s State Programme to Restore the His- der rice cultivation. The farms produced 239,200 and KOR (2.6%). torical Centres Located along the Silk Road, Pre- tonnes of rice (84.0% of the national total). The serve and Develop the Turkic Cultural Heritage, rice yield averaged 3,410 kg/ha, vegetables 12,960 Araltuz manufactures 59% of the country’s salt. and Create Tourism Infrastructure. kg/ha, potato 11,800 kg/ha, and sunflower 1,460 The food industry makes up 1.4% of the regional Today, the region’s tourism infrastructure includes kg/ha. industrial output. The range of products includes three health resorts, seven recreation camps for The largest crop farms in terms of output are Sha- iodised salt, eggs, poultry, sausages, baked prod- children and 18 hotels, as well as a number of mu- gan and Turmagambet. ucts, confectionery, pastry, and rice. seums, architectural and historical monuments, The oblast’s mechanical engineering enterprises and nature reserves. Livestock manufacture agricultural, electronic, electric and Three tourist organisations are active in the re- Natural pastures occupy 97% of the farmlands. optical equipment. gion. In 2005, Kyzylorda Oblast had one of the larg- Foreign Trade The Korkyt Ata Memorial Complex is one of the est stock of camels (23,600 head or 18.2% of the most attractive sites in Kyzylorda Oblast. national total) and horses (50,900 head or 4.4%). In 2005, Kyzylorda Oblast’s exports totalled Cattle stock numbered 214,700 head (3.9%), sheep $1,968.2m (7.1% of the national figure) and im- The Syr-Yelim tourist route, connecting Turkestan and goats 678,300 (4.7%), and poultry 416,700 ports $162.3m (0.9%), resulting in a trade surplus and the Aral Sea, has been developed. (1.6%). of $1,805.9m. In order to create a modern tourist complex sat- The region produced 61,800 tonnes of milk (1.3%) isfying the needs of both residents and non-resi- and 900 tonnes of wool (3.1%). The oblast also Investment dents of Kazakhstan, the following activities have produces 37,000 coats of karakul. Investment in fixed assets amounted to $462.5m to be stimulated: The largest livestock farms in terms of output are (2.5% of the national total). These funds were – development of the tourism infrastructure, and Kulandy and Karakum. mainly invested in mining (31.1%), transport and 33 Investor’s ATLAS

communications (13.4%), agriculture (5.5%), and amounted to $1,800.4m and $254.5m, respective- • three new boilers (with a total capacity of 37 the real estate sector (5.2%). ly, resulting in a trade surplus of $1,545.9m. gigacalorie per hour) operating on the associ- The main sources of investment were as follows: The largest joint ventures are oil companies: ated gas have been installed. companies’ own funds (73.6%); PetroKazakhstan Kumkol Resources, Turgai Pe- troleum, KazGerMunai, KuatAmlonMunai, Aid- Banking national and local budgets (14.6% and 7.8%, re- an-Munai, and KOR. Eight branches of Kazakh commercial banks and spectively); five insurance companies are operating in the foreign investment (3.6%); and Communications oblast. loans (0.4%). Kyzylorda Oblast is a major transport corridor be- Employment The following projects were constructed in 2005: tween Central Asia and Russia. There is an inter- national airport, Korkyt-Ata, in Kyzylorda. The The labour force in Kyzylorda Oblast amounts to • a plant to process 240 million cubic metres of telecommunications sector comprises cellular, 301,900 people (3.8% of the national total). Ap- dry gas and 96 million tonnes of liquefied gas in trunk, paging and internet providers. The oblast proximately 55% of them have basic secondary the Akshabulak field; and motor and rail roads total 2,642 km and 755 km, and primary education, 26% secondary vocation- • a plant to produce 1 million tonnes of crushed respectively. al education, and 20% higher education (includ- aggregate per annum based on a dolomite de- ing undergraduates). The number of employed is posit located in (Shalkiya Power Engineering 272,500 (3.8% of the national figure). The main Zinc). The main power generator in Kyzylorda Oblast is employment opportunities are offered in agri- culture (29.5%), trade and repair of cars and ap- New Tendencies in Investment Activities Kyzylordaenergotsentr with a generation capacity of 124 MW (load factor 70%). pliances (18.3%), education (12.2%), and health The Kyzylorda Technology Park has been estab- care (5.8%). The number of unemployed is 29,400 In 2005, power suppliers set the following rates: lished in Kyzylorda. (4.6% of the national figure). The average month- electricity $0.03 per kWh ly nominal wage amounts to $232.9 (90.8% of the The following clusters are being created in the national level). oblast: water: • rice cluster with its potential leaders being cold water $0.41 per m3 Education Shapagat Ltd, Tomiris, and Ris Kazakhstana, a natural gas $0.05 per gigacalorie. There are six institutions of higher education, two joint-stock company that comprises more than To provide heating to the housing estates, which branches of institutions and 18 colleges in Kyzy- 20 enterprises; and are remote from the Kyzylorda Oblast’s State lorda Oblast. • fishing cluster based on Aral Tenizi and Aral- Thermoelectric Power Station, the following steps In 2005-2006, the institutions of higher educa- Plastic-Kaiyk. have been undertaken: tion prepared 4,289 graduates specialising in the Foreign Capital • five independent block-modular boiler plants humanities, engineering, economics, and other with a total capacity of 28 Gcal per hour have fields. The colleges prepared 2,601 specialists in There are 53 companies with a foreign sharehold- been constructed; teaching, medicine, economics, law, and other ing in the oblast, which employ 4,176 people. • boiler shop No. 2 (Kyzylorda Interdistrict Heat- spheres. These companies produced products and services ing Plant) has been reconstructed and its capac- for a total of $2.3bn. Their exports and imports ity upgraded to 60 gigacalorie per hour; and MangistauInvestor’s ATLAS Region 34

Total area: 165,600 sq.km Population: 374,400 Administrative centre: Aktau

Administrative Divisions ture falls to -9 °C in January, and rises to +28 °C in agents for drilling fluids in the region. Further- July. Annual precipitation: 100-150mm. more, the brown coal contains germanium and The administrative centre is Aktau, which is other rare metals. a port on the , founded in 1963. Its Mineral Resources population is 168,300, or about half of the region’s 20 occurrences of celestite (barite) have been dis- population. The region contains three towns The region is one of the largest oil and gas areas in covered in the region, including the Aurtash, Un- (, Fort Shevchenko and Zhenybai), Kazakhstan. It produces 23.4% of the nation’s oil gozinskoye and Uchkuyuskoye deposits. Celestine four rural districts and 26 auls (settlements). The and 8% of its natural gas. Total oil reserves make is widely used for producing high-grade steel and urban and rural populations respectively form up 3,156.2 million tonnes. There are 59 hydrocar- composites in metallurgy and the glass industry. about 76% and 24% of the total. Aktau is 2,413 bons fields, including Uzen, Zhetybai, Karazhan- The region’s mountains are rich in phosphorites (4 km from Astana. bas, Severo-Buzachinskoye, Kalamkas, etc. Two deposits), iron ores (the Beskemir deposit), man- large mineral tar deposits are situated near the ganese and uranium. 100 occurrences of copper Climate town of Zhetybai. This material is widely used in ore have been discovered in the Karatau Range road building. Five brown coal deposits have al- Harsh, exceptionally dry continental climate with area, but many of these have not yet been evalu- lowed the development of production of chemical hot summers and cold winters. Average tempera- ated. The Mangyshlak has vast salt deposits, three 35 Investor’s ATLAS

large deposits of sodium chloride, also reserves of Alexander established in 1857, is a place of both The following activities will be carried out in the mirabilite, thenardite and other minerals. historical and cultural interest. near future: The Mangistau shell limestone in pink, cream and Located on the Caspian Sea coast, Aktau at- - restoration of monuments and pilgrimage sites; white colours is very popular abroad as a facing tracts people who prefer seaside recreation. - development of the coastal infrastructure; and material in building. There are 30 proven shell The Mangyshlak Peninsula is bordered by the stone deposits with reserves of more than 200 Mangyshlak Gulf to the north and the Kazakh - arrangement of the international cruise itinerary million cu rn. There are also reserves of building Gulf to the south. The northern, western and through the Caspian Sea to involve Iran, Russia, stone for producing gravel chippings and rubble (8 southern parts of the peninsula are covered with Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan. deposits), brickmaking clay (3), building lime (1), clay deserts, while the central part is dominated mortar sand (3), chalk (7), etc. by the Mangistau mountains. At first sight, the Agriculture The region has 16 groundwater springs, three of region may seem lifeless, but its wildlife is abun- In 2005, the oblast’s gross agricultural output which are used for spa therapy. A large artesian dant. amounted to $18.1m (0.3% of the national total), of which livestock products accounted for 74.7% basin situated on shore of the Alexandr Cher- Tourism Development Prospects kassky Gulf is known for its vast reserves of water and crops 25.3%. containing sulphate, chloride and sodium, along The region claims the greatest potential for the There are 886 farms, 19 production cooperatives, with thermal energy. Another large thermal water development of tourism in Kazakhstan. There are three joint-stock companies, 48 partnerships, and deposit with high bromine and silicic acid content 19 tourist firms in the region, of which seven serve four state-owned farms in the oblast. as tour operators and twelve as travel agencies. In is situated in the Aktau area. Farmlands occupy 12,698,400 ha. order to promote the region’s tourism potential, Natural Resources business people involved in tourism and represen- Crop Farming tatives from state authorities take part in all in- The region consists of the Caspian Plain, the Zhel- ternational and regional tourism exhibitions and Arable land occupies 300 ha and is mainly under tai (221 m) and Mynsualmas (148 m) mountains, fairs, and topical booklets and other advertising vegetables and melons. sand massif, and vast tracts of alkaline land. The materials are widely distributed. In addition, this Karakiya basin (132 km) is the deepest in the CIS Livestock year, the Mangistau Regional Investment Fund area. The climate is very arid. The rivers run dry has been established to take part in financing Natural pastures occupy almost 100% of farm- in summer, forming a desert in the region. The soil projects to invest in different industries including lands, which makes possible to develop livestock level consists of saline, takyr-like salt earth and tourism. farming intensively. Mangistau Oblast ranks first sands. Vegetation is very sparse. in the country in farming of camels, which num- Private companies also invest big money in de- bered 34,700 head (26.8% of the national total). veloping the region’s tourism infrastructure. In Tourism Sheep and goats numbered 476,800 head (3.3%) recent years, a number of cultural and entertain- Mangistau Oblast boasts many architectural and and horses 31,100 head (2.6%). ment facilities such as bowling centres, roller skat- historical monuments. These range from the wide- ing paths, the Akbota entertainment complex The oblast is one of the largest producers of kar- spread kulpytas tombstones to ancient mosques for children, various cafés, hotels, etc. have been akul in Kazakhstan. In 2005, it produced 600 such as Beket-Ata, Masat-Ata, Karamat-Ata and constructed in the coastal area of the town. Rec- tonnes of wool (2.1%). Shopan-Ata. Remnants of the ancient Silk Road reation centres formerly run by the state admin- (the Sherkala, Ketyk, Sarytash, Kentti-Baba and The largest farms are Senek (sheep and camel istration are now being reconstructed and special other caravan routes) have been well preserved to farming; $0.6m), Taushik (camel farming; $0.44m), camps for children have begun operated. the present day. Fort Shevchenko, the former Fort and Kyzan (sheep and karakul farming; $0.2m). Investor’s ATLAS 36

Industry Foreign Trade Industries B.V., a reputable French company. The technology provides for the protection of In 2005, the industrial output in Mangistau Oblast In 2005, exports totalled $3,228.7m (11.6% of the pipes against sun exposure. The pipes may be totalled $5,781.6m (14.6% of the national figure), national figure) and imports $1,182.9m (6.8%). used aboveground, underground or underwater with the key industry being mining (95.8%). The The trade surplus reached $2,045.8m. processing industry shares 2.1%, and power, water in various industries, but are mostly intended for and gas production and distribution 2.1%. Investment the oil and gas sector to substitute imports. The quality of the products complies with ISO 9001 There are 183 enterprises operating in the oblast. Investment in fixed assets amounted to $1.076.8m (AZST); (5.9% of the national total). These funds were The mining industry dominates the region’s pro- • engineering a high-pressure vessel plant with an duction. In 2005, it accounted for 32.5% of the mainly invested in mining (81.2%), transport and annual capacity of 2,000 tonnes. Foreign invest- national crude oil production. The largest compa- communications (8.7%), the real estate and ser- ments amounted to $10.1m. The plant has a fleet nies are Ozenmunaigaz (30.4% of the oblast’s in- vices sectors (3.5%), public administration (2.1%), of unique machines and equipment oriented to dustrial output) and Karazhanbasmunai (11.6%). and construction (2.2%). manufacture high-pressure vessels for oil and The main sources of investment were as follows: The plants processing agricultural produce in- gas production, petrochemical and other sec- clude Aktau-Sut ($1.5m), the Zhanaozen Dairy companies’ own funds (81.5%); tors with a view to substituting imports (Sewon Plant ($0.5m), and Taushyk (camel milk). The national and local budgets (2.3% and 1.0%, re- Vertex Heavy Industry); Volna Confectionery Plant ($0.5m) and Shkolnik- spectively); Aktau ($0.7m) produce confectionery and sausag- • expanding a non-metallic material production es. The Breeze Company ($0.4m) bottles mineral loans (3.5%); and up to 2 million tonnes per annum. Foreign in- water. There are also workshops processing hides foreign investment (11.7%). vestments amounted to $6.4m. The project was to allow the production of cubic crushed aggre- and astrakhan, the largest of them being Senek. The following projects were accomplished within gate, which is used in the manufacture of high- The demand for construction materials, including the framework of the Regional Investment and strength building materials, and to satisfy the road metal, increased due to the growth of hous- Industrial Development Programme for 2004 and increasing demand on the regional market. Ital- ing estate construction in Aktau and building new 2005: ian Baioni crushing and sorting equipment was artificial islands on the Caspian Sea shelf. To sat- • constructing a fibreglass pipe plant with an an- purchased and installed to complete the project isfy the growing demand for road metal, the Myrz- nual capacity of 300,000 metres. Foreign invest- (Myrzabek Altyn TAS Group); and abek-AltynTas Group decided to expand produc- ments amounted to $25.6m. The plant applies tion and purchase additional process equipment. the high-tech processes and the equipment • constructing a foundry in Aktau with a daily The company has reconstructed the existing pro- manufactured by Intech Composite Machines capacity of 90,000 tonnes of steel rods. Foreign cess lines (with an annual capacity of 300,000 m3) (California). There are no similar plants in investments amounted to $9m. The equipment and relocated them to the places where the im- Kazakhstan. The manufactured products are was supplied by the Ravi Steel Company from mediate feedstock is produced; new crushing and chemically resistant, durable and light, and pre- Pakistan. The main feedstock used is waste met- screening equipment with an hourly capacity of vent corrosion and scale deposits on their inter- al from decommissioned chemical, petrochemi- 200 tonnes (Baioni, Italy) was purchased and in- nal surfaces; cal, oil and gas, construction, gas processing and stalled. The project to expand the production of other equipment, pipes and other metal ware. • constructing a fibreglass pipe plant with an an- road metal in Shetpe-1 field (the village of Shetpe) The second phase of the construction provide nual capacity of 400,000 metres. Foreign invest- cost $6.3m. With $5.8m already spent, it is expect- for the production of metal profiles (the Aktau ed to fully disburse the investment by 2007. ments amounted to $10.2m. The owner of the know-how for fibreglass pipes is Future Pipe Foundry). 37 Investor’s ATLAS

The construction of a plant at a cost of $40m to Communications water producing capacities are 1,342 MW; 1,843 produce offshore metal structures started in 2005. Gcal-h; 195,000 m3 per day and 75,000 m3 per The total length of hard-surfaced motor roads in The originator of the project is Keppel Kazakh- day, respectively. the region amounts to 3,075 km, comprising: stan. The project is aimed at creating 400 new In 2005, power suppliers set the following rates: jobs to serve shipbuilders engaged in oil produc- - the ––Beineu–Sai-Utes–Shetpe– tion, particularly in the Kashagan oil field (North Zhetybai–the Aktau port road (589 km); electricity (for enterprises) $0.05 per kWh Caspian region). - the Zhetybai–Zhanaozen–Fetisovo road (237 water: A number of new projects involving unique tech- km), Turkmenistan border; and cold water $1.4 per m3 nology to reduce a share of the primary industries - the Beineu–Akzhigit road (84 km), Uzbekistan hot water $1.07 per m3 and manufacture high-tech export-oriented and border. 3 import-substituting products continued in 2005. natural gas $0.02 per m The length of the road (property of Kazakhstan In particular, the second phases of construction of Temir Zholy) to Mangyshlak station is 819 km. a fibreglass pipe plant and a fibreglass plastic plant Banking The railways connecting the Mangyshlak station were completed. There are 20 branches of commercial banks and and the Aktau port are operated by KaskorTrans- 13 insurance companies in the oblast. New Tendencies in Investment Activities Service. There are three business incubators and a special Aktau international airport serves both local and Employment international flights. economic zone, the Aktau Seaport, in the oblast. The labour force in Mangistau Oblast amounts It is planned to create a transport logistics cluster. The length of the oil pipeline (property of Ka- to 188,500 people (2.4% of the national total), of zTransOil, Western branch) running through the whom 43% have secondary vocational education, Foreign Capital territory of Mangistau Oblast totals 977.7 km. 30% secondary or primary education, and 27% There are 233 companies with a foreign share- The design capacity of oil pipelines in the oblast higher education (including undergraduates). The holding in Mangistau Oblast, of which 28.3% are is as follows: number of employed is 170,200 (2.3% of the na- tional figure). The main employment opportuni- engaged in trade and repair of cars and household • the Uzen–Atyrau–Samara pipeline, 1,000 mm in ties are offered in industrial production (29.3%), items, 20.5% in industry, 13.2% in transport and diameter (2 lines), 15 million tonnes per year; communications, and 12.7% in real estate. These trade (10.5%), construction (10.2%) and educa- businesses employ 11,871 people. • the Uzen–Zhetybai–Aktau pipeline, 500 mm tion (9.6%). The average monthly nominal wage in diameter (2 lines), 5 million tonnes per year; amounts to $481.3 (188% of the national level). The output of products and services by enterprises and The number of unemployed is 18,300 (2.9% on the with a foreign shareholding totalled $1,539.8m. • the Kalamkas–Karazhanbas–Aktau pipeline, national figure). These enterprises exported goods worth $1,459.9m 700 mm in diameter, 8 million tonnes per year. and imported goods worth $186.2m. Thus, the Education trade surplus stood at $1,273.7m. The Astrakhan–Mangyshlak water conduit (1,041 km long, 1,200 mm in diameter, 1 line, 260,000 There are seven institutions of higher education The largest enterprises with a foreign sharehold- m3 per day) serves to supply water. and 15 specialist training colleges in the oblast. In ing are oil companies (Karazhanbasmunai, Kara- 2005, 1,990 people graduated from the institutions kudukmunai, Tasbulat Oil Corporation, Mangist- Power Engineering of higher education specialising in law, engineer- aumunaigaz, and a branch of Buzachi Operating ing, teaching, the humanities, and economics. The MAEK-Kazatomprom with an annual load factor Ltd) and construction companies (Keppel Ka- colleges prepared 1,936 specialists in medicine, of 62.5% supplies power and water in Mangistau zakhstan, Saybolt-Kazakhstan, Caspiystroygroup- engineering, teaching, law and other fields. 1, and Kazstroi-2005, among others). Oblast. Its power, heating, utility and drinking NorthernInvestor’s ATLAS Kazakhstan Region 38

Total area: 98,000 sq.km Population: 663,100 Administrative centre: Petropavlovsk

Administrative Divisions Mineral Resources Natural Resources The administrative centre is Petropavlovsk, which The region contains 100% of the nation’s com- The north of the region is occupied by the Yesil is situated on the Yesil River. It was founded in mercial diamonds, 65.1% of its tin, 36.6% of its Plain, the south by the Kokshetau highlands. The 1752. Petropavlovsk is home to 28.3% of the re- zirconium and 25.2% of its uranium. mountains covered with birch and coniferous for- gion’s population. The region contains five towns, Reserves of 34 ore minerals have been explored in ests, while the plain abounds in stands of birch five villages, 13 rura! districts and 774 auls (settle- the region, including 19 uranium deposits, seven and aspen forest surrounded by grassy meadows. ments). The urban and rural populations respec- gold mines, three titanium and zirconium depos- The largest water artery in the region is the Yesil tively form 36,6% and 63,4% of the total. Pet- its, two iron ore mines, etc. Tin and tungsten re- River (1,719 km within the region) on which Ser- ropavlovsk is 491 km from Astana. serves also exist in Northern Kazakhstan region. geyevskoye water storage reservoir (117 sq. km) been constructed. Numerous small freshwater and Climate 196 non-metallic deposits are located in the region saline lakes are scattered throughout the region. including, among others, diamonds (1), building Harsh continental climate with long, frosty win- The large water bodies are the saline Lake Silety- stone (21), mortar sand (17), limestone (6), ornamen- teniz (777 sq.km) and Lake Ulkenkaraoi (306 sq. ters and short, moderately hot summers. Average tal stone (2), kaolin clay (2) and quartz sand (2). January temperature down to -19 °C, up to +19 °C km), and the freshwater, Lake Shagalalyteniz (262 in July. Annual precipitation: 300-350mm. The region has 30 groundwater springs, five of sq. km). which are used for spa therapy. 39 Investor’s ATLAS

Tourism Crop Farming Livestock There are many cultural, natural and health re- Arable land occupies 3,646,100 ha (19.2% of the Feed supplies make possible the farming of poul- sources in North Kazakhstan. The region fea- total arable land in the country). North Kazakh- try. In 2005, the poultry stock amounted to 2.2 mil- tures 16 strictly protected nature reserves total- stan is one of three largest crop producers in the lion head (8.4% of the national total). The farms ling 430,100 ha (16% of the area is covered with country. In 2005, the oblast’s crop yield (after addi- had 326,500 head of cattle (6.0%), 182,800 head forests), 3,000 fresh water and salt lakes, as well tional treatment) amounted to 3.5 million tonnes. of sheep and goats (1.3%), 74,800 head of horses as therapeutic mud and mineral springs. Thirteen The wheat yield averaged 1,100 kg/ha, potato (6.4%), and 209,000 head of pigs (15.9%). tourist firms are active in North Kazakhstan. The 16,370 kg/ha, and vegetables 28,370 kg/ha. The region produced 512,900 tonnes of milk main types of tourism being developed are as fol- The largest crop farms are Asylkhan-Agro ($9.9m) (10.9%) and 600 tonnes of wool (2%). lows: and Zher-Ana ($5.8m). • ecological; and • therapeutic. The beautiful natural sites of Lake Shalkar and the Imantau recreation area attract many visitors. The composition of Shalkar’s water is the same as that of the Black Sea. Therapeutic mud is found in the south. The lake is surrounded by pines and mixed forests. An outdoor museum is located on the shore. Lake Imantau and its recreation area are consid- ered the most attractive natural feature of the re- gion set in an oasis formed by mountains, forests and water. Eight tourism and recreation sites located in the Shalkar and Imantau recreation areas cater for at least 10,000 visitors per annum. Agriculture In 2005, North Kazakhstan’s gross agricultural output amounted to $707.8m (12.3% of the na- tional total), of which crops accounted for 69.6% and livestock products 30.4%. There are 5,542 farms, three state-owned farms, 528 partnerships, 7 joint stock companies, and 4 production cooperatives in the region. Investor’s ATLAS 40

The largest farms are Zenchenko & Co and Tai- Leather manufacture dominates the light industry (Sultan), flour (Golden Grain, produced by the ynsha Astyk (cattle breeding), and (poul- in the region. The Petropavlovsk Leather Plant Mamlyut Mill and the Kyzyltu Mill and exported try breeding). produces wet blue hides and exports them to eight to Tajikistan and Uzbekistan), butter and skim countries. Dinamo and Mershair manufacture a cheese (manufactured by Palchik and Rostan and Industry wide range of garments, including special clothing exported to Russia). In 2005, North Kazakhstan’s industrial output to- and outer garments. In 2005, the construction of a primary oil-plant talled $281.2m (0.7% of the national figure). The Furniture production is also developing success- processing factory was commissioned in the vil- key industry was the processing sector (73.8%), fully. In 2005, it contributed 1.5% to the oblast’s lage of Novoishim (Gabit Musrepov district). Un- with electricity, gas and water production and dis- industrial output. Yulis-Mebel is the largest com- refined rapeseed oil is then used to manufacture tribution accounting for 25.9% and mining 0.3%. pany in this sector. export-oriented goods. There are 260 large and medium-sized enterprises Twenty-four new enterprises were commissioned The Petropavlovsk Leather Plant exports wet in the oblast. in 2005, including agriproduct processing work- blue hides. The plant equipped with a high-capac- The food industry accounts for approximately shops and lines, bakery and prepared food plants, ity skiving machine (Italy), has implemented the 40% of the region’s output. Food enterprises construction materials, furniture and plastics skiving technology and produces face and split produce pasta, confectionery, poultry, meat and lines. leather. An automatic area-measuring machine dairy products. The product range comprises over The export-oriented Petropavlovsk branch of Ka- has been installed at the plant. The new technol- 600 items. The largest food company is Sultan- zneftemash (oil-and-gas processing equipment), ogy will increase the leather production up to 65 Elevator, a mill and macaroni complex (4.9% of a Russian-Kazakh joint venture, was also com- million dm2 per year. the oblast’s industrial output). The Petropavlovsk missioned that year. The company manufactures Bakery Plant ($2.5m), the Sultan Confectionary high-pressure and low-pressure valves for the oil Foreign Trade ($3.5m), a branch of Maslo-Del ($5.5), Molochny and gas sector. In 2005, the oblast’s exports totalled $160.3m Soyuz ($3.1m), Molservis AZF ($2.1m) and the The Biokhim Production Complex, a pilot agro- (0.6% of the national figure) and imports $594.1m Mamlyut Mill ($1.1m) manufacture dairy, meat industrialisation project, is under construction (3.4%), resulting in a trade deficit of $433.8m. and milling products, confectionery and pasta. in Taiynshi district. This project is being carried Mechanical engineering accounts for over two out by the Biokhim company in cooperation with Investment thirds of the industrial output. The oblast’s ma- the Development Bank of Kazakhstan and Alfa Investment in fixed capital totalled $280.1m (1.5% chine-building plants manufacture oil-and-gas Bank (Russia). Biokhim will provide advanced of the national total). These funds were invested equipment, specialised vehicles, spare parts for grain processing (native gluten and Bioethanol, a mainly in processing industries (27%), agricul- agriculture and forestry, and pumps. They also of- high-octane petrol bioadditive, to be exported to ture (26%), transport and communications (14%), fer equipment installation and maintenance ser- Russia, Uzbekistan, Europe and China). The de- trade and maintenance of cars and household ap- vices. A significant contribution to the region’s sign production capacity is $63.7m. The plant will pliances (6%), real property operations and ser- output was made by ZIKSTO ($10.9m), Mun- engage 300 employees. vices to enterprises (9%). aimash ($4.6m), the Kirov Plant ($4.6m), and the Sultan EMMK and Molochny Soyuz are the larg- The main sources of funding for the oblast’s in- Agricultural Machinery Plant ($2.1m). est companies in the food sector, which have re- vestment projects were as follows: The largest producer of oil-and-gas, railway and ceived the Russian compliance certificates for companies’ own funds (39.6%); agricultural equipment in North Kazakhstan is their macaroni and cheese products. The Sultan’s the Petropavlovsk Heavy Engineering Plant (4.9% pasta is exported to Russia, Ukraine and Kyrgyz- national budget (13.1%); of the oblast’s industrial output). stan, and is planned to be exported to Belarus. local budget (3.4%); The other exported products are confectionery 41 Investor’s ATLAS loans (42.8); and $165.7m and $260.9m, respectively, resulting in a water: foreign investment (1%). trade deficit of $90.5m. cold water $0.14 per m3 The following projects were accomplished in The largest joint ventures are Access-Energo Pet- hot water $0.77 per m3; 2005: ropavlovsk Heating and Power Plant No. 2 and the Access-Energo North Kazakhstan Oblast Electric heat supply $15.4 per gigacalorie • installing a Tetrapack automated machine at Power Grid Company (power production and dis- liquefied gas (propane, butane) $1.91 per m3 a cost of $200,000 with an hourly capacity of tribution); Sultan-Elevator, a mill and macaroni 1,200 packages (Molservice AZF); Access-Energo has developed and is implement- complex (flour and pasta); Kazvtortsvetmet and ing a programme to upgrade and reconstruct the • commissioning an extra waffle line at a cost of Kazvtorchermet (scrap metal processing); Kaz- power complex in 2004-2008. $545,000 with a daily capacity of 5 tonnes of kond and Sultan (confectionery and pasta). waffles (Sultan Confectionary); Banking Communications • commissioning a cheese plant at a cost of $7,500. There are 14 branches of Kazakh commercial The production of a new sort of cheese (Pet- There is a railway junction in Petropavlovsk con- banks and 10 insurance companies in the oblast. ropavlovsky) was introduced (Maslo-Del); necting the Trans-Siberian and Trans-Asian rail- • commissioning a sausage manufacturing plant ways. This station connects the Far East with Eu- Employment (Kazmyasoproduct); ropean countries, Central Asia and China. The total railway length amounts to 804 km, and the The labour force is 395,600 people (5.0% of the • constructing a oil-plant processing factory at a Irtysh navigable waterways 63 km. national total). Approximately 53% of them have cost of $7.8m (Maslo-Del); secondary and primary education, 33% are spe- International motor roads run through the region. cialists with secondary vocational education, and • constructing a Biokhim production complex at a Among them are Yekaterinburg–Almaty (north- cost of $86.5m (Basco); and 14% are specialists with higher education (includ- south), Chelyabinsk–Novosibirsk (west-east) and ing undergraduates). The number of employed is • reequipping a sausage production unit at a cost Astana–Petropavlovsk. The total length of mo- 364,300 people (5.0% of the national figure), with of $470,000. tor roads is 7,532 km. A 545.4-km oil pipeline was 56.4% engaged in agriculture, 33.7% in services, constructed. New Tendencies in Investment Activities and 7.9% in the industry and construction. There Petropavlovsk has an international airport. are 31,200 unemployed people (4.9% of the na- The North Kazakhstan’s Akimat has set up a The telecommunications sector comprises cellu- tional figure). The average monthly nominal wage Regional Technology Park in the region. lar, trunk, paging and internet providers. amounted to $173.1 (67.5% of the national level). The prospects for the industrial development are deemed to be connected with creating the Power Engineering Education clusters of petrochemical machine building, Access-Energo Petropavlovsk Power and Heating There are four institutions of higher education, agribusiness and agricultural produce process- Plant No. 2, a large power producer, has a total three branches of institutions and 11 colleges in ing. generation capacity of 336 MW (load factor 60- North Kazakhstan. In 2005, 3,461 people gradu- ated from the institutions of higher education, Foreign Capital 65%) and 765 gigacalorie/h of heat power (load factor 25-30%). with 15.5% specialising in the humanities, 20.7% There are 176 companies with a foreign sharehold- in economics and management, and 35.9% in edu- In 2005, power and water suppliers set the follow- ing in North Kazakhstan, which employ 13,454 cation. The colleges prepared 2,779 specialists in ing rates (including VAT): people. They produced goods and services worth education (15.7%), economics (26.6%), the hu- $87.3m. Their exports and imports amounted to electricity $0.04 per kWh manities (17.6%), transport (18.4%), and medicine (4.2%). PavlodarInvestor’s ATLAS Region 42

Total area: 124,800 sq.km Population: 742,900 Administrative centre: Pavlodar

Administrative Divisions Mineral Resources Natural Resources The administrative centre is Pavlodar, which is situ- There are eight coal deposits in the region (35.6% The greater part of the region consists of feather-grass ated on the Irtysh River. The city was founded in of the nation’s coal reserves). The region has the ex- and fescue steppes. There are water meadows in the 1861. More than 40% of the region’s population lives plored reserves of gold (18 deposits), silver (15), cop- valley of the River Irtysh. In the Bayanaul Moun- in Pavlodar. The region contains two industrial cit- per (7), lead and zinc (6), selenium and tellurium (4), tains, where the unique Bayanaul national natural ies ( and Aksu), ten rural districts and 164 indium and cadmium (3), molybdenum and rheni- park has been established, there are pine and birch auls (settlements). The urban and rural populations um (1). There are 97 deposits of common minerals, forests and many picturesque lakes, mainly saline. respectively form 64,8% and 35,2% of the total. Pav- including brick-making clay (42), sodium chloride lodar is 438 km from Astana. (13), sand and gravel (6), cement raw materials (4), mortar sand (4), sodium sulphate (4), keramzite clay Tourism (4), magnesium salts (2), semiprecious stones: kal- Thanks to the unique Bayanaul National Nature Climate lait and green copper (2), fluxing limestone (1) and Park, the internationally known Moiyldy health re- Harsh continental climate. Average temperature glass-making sand (1). sort, various historical monuments and the attrac- falls to -19 °C in January, and rises to +22 °C in July. The region has 11 groundwater springs. tions of Pavlodar town itself, the region has great Annual precipitation: 220-300 mm. potential for the development of tourism. 43 Investor’s ATLAS

Regional facilities include one health resort, five - walking, cycling, skiing, horse riding and hunting dustry was the processing sector (73.6%), with min- preventive medicine centres, 11 museums, 14 restau- routes in the Chaldai pine wood. ing accounting for 10.2%, and power, gas and water rants and 17 hotels. production and distribution 16.3%. Pavlodar, the region’s centre located on the banks of Agriculture There are 436 large and medium-sized enterprises the Irtysh River, is one of the oldest and most beauti- In 2005, the oblast’s gross agricultural output in the region. ful towns of Kazakhstan. amounted to $273.3m (4.8% of the national total), Pavlodar Oblast is the national leader in producing fer- With its rich history and age-old cultural traditions, of which livestock products accounted for 57.6% and rochrome silicon (100% of the national total), alumina Pavlodar is also the arts and culture centre of north- crops 42.4%. (99%), ferrosilicon (99.6%) and ferrochrome (66.9%), ern Kazakhstan. Museums, exhibitions and cultural There are 3,964 private farms, 157 partnerships, six and mining coal (64.9% of the national figure). events are very popular. Altogether the town boasts joint stock companies, four state-owned farms, and Metallurgy is the most significant sector of the re- one entertainment centre, two drama theatres, three seven production cooperatives. gion’s economy that accounts for more than 51.6% parks, four cultural centres, five museums and many of its industrial output. The largest enterprises are historical and architectural monuments, of which Crop Farming Aluminium of Kazakhstan producing aluminium the Mashur-Zhusup mosque, the Russian orthodox Arable land occupies 984,900 ha (5.3% of the total sulphate, barium, electric furnace steel, gallium and cathedral, the Catholic cathedral and the Irtysh Riv- arable land in the country), which mostly is given ferrous-metal structures ($383.9m) and the Aksu er quayside are the most remarkable. over to the cultivation of wheat. Pavlodar Oblast also Ferroalloy Plant, a branch of Kazchrome, produc- Bayanaul is another of the region’s picturesque loca- grows potatoes, vegetables, and sunflowers. ing chrome alloys with manganese, iron and silicon tions surrounded by semi-deserts and steppes. There In 2005, the gross wheat yield (after additional treat- ($698.4m). is an impressive abundance of wildlife in Bayanaul’s ment) amounted to 210,700 tonnes (1.9% of the na- The Pavlodar Refinery ($164.4m) is one of the three mountains and valleys, and spectacular scenery in tional total). The wheat yield averaged 540 kg/ha, largest refineries in Kazakhstan. the Bayanaul National Nature Park, where visitors potato 17,420 kg/ha, vegetables 19,690 kg/ha, and have a choice of more than 30 recreation centres. The coal production is a key sector of the mining sunflower 300 kg/ha. industry; the largest enterprise is Bogatyr Access The region has many health resorts such as Moiyldy, The largest wheat producing farms are the Abai Komyr ($148.1m). an internationally famous health complex, which is Farm and Dauyl. a part of Kazakhstan’s health tourism system. This The Pavlodar Mechanical Engineering Plant pro- year, Moiyldy celebrates its 83-rd anniversary. The Livestock ducing cranes represents the region’s mechanical resort benefits from a unique natural lake with high- engineering. ly mineralised silt mud and salt water providing very The oblast’s nature makes it possible to develop live- In 2005, Kazenergokabel and the Development effective treatment. stock farming intensively. Bank of Kazakhstan completed a project to engi- The region as a whole offers a solid natural basis for In 2005, the cattle stock numbered 348,500 head neer the production of telephone and power cross- providing high quality tourism services to satisfy the (6.4% of the national total), horses 63,100 (5.4%), and linked polyethylene cables for medium voltage ap- needs of all kinds of tourists. sheep and goats 351,500 (2.5%). The oblast’s feed sup- plications in the oil and gas industry. A loan of $5.3m plies make possible the farming of poultry (1.1 million was raised to implement the project. The project was Tourism Development Prospects head or 4.1%) and pigs (109,200 head or 8.3%). carried out in cooperation with Superior Cables Ltd of Israel. The project is designed to produce 14,900 The following local tourist routes and paths are The region’s farms produced 324,600 tonnes of milk (7.1%) and 890 tonnes of wool (3.1%). km of cables. New production lines at a cost of $9.8m planned for the development of tourism in the re- added 50% to the existing facilities. The project cre- gion: The largest farms are Peschansky and Rubikom. ated 150 new jobs. - walking, skiing, rafting and canoeing routes in the Industry In 2005, the highest production surpluses were Irtysh plain; in the chemical (45.9%), mechanical engineering - walking, cycling, skiing and horse riding routes in In 2005, the oblast’s industrial production totalled (32.3%), and pulp and paper industry and publish- the Bayanaul National Nature Park; and $2,320.2m (5.9% of the national figure). The key in- ing (23.7%). Investor’s ATLAS 44

Foreign Trade It is also planned to further develop mechanical en- • Ekibastuz District Power Plant No. 2 with a capac- gineering in the region. ity of 1,000 MW (load factor 62%); In 2005, the oblast’s exports and imports totalled $715.9m (2.6% of the national figure) and $508.2m Foreign Capital • Pavlodarenergo Cogeneration Plants Nos. 2 and 3 (2.9%), respectively. The foreign trade surplus with a capacity of 440 MW (load factor 51%); and There are 83 enterprises with a foreign sharehold- reached $207.7m. • Aluminium of Kazakhstan’s Cogeneration Plant ing in Pavlodar Oblast. They employ 29,944 people. No. 1 with a capacity of 350 MW (load factor 72%). More than a half of these companies operate in the Investment processing sectors. In 2005, power suppliers set the following rates: Investment in fixed assets amounted to $482.1m In 2005, the amount of products and services was electricity $0.03 per kWh (2.6% of the national total). Most financial funds worth $1,463.6m. water: were invested in the processing sector (45.8%), Exports and imports by joint ventures and foreign cold water $0.11 per m3 transport and communications (16.1%), power, gas companies totalled $1,280.8m and $253.8m, respec- and water production and distribution (9.8%), the hot water $8.7 per gigacalorie tively. Thus, the trade surplus stood at $1,027m. real estate, leasing and services sectors (9.3%), and mining (8.6%). The largest enterprises with a foreign shareholding Banking are Aluminium of Kazakhstan (aluminium produc- There are 16 branches of Kazakh commercial The main sources of investment were as follows: tion), Bogatyr Access Komyr and Maikuben West banks. companies’ own funds (69.3%); (coal mining), AES Ekibastuz (production and dis- national and local budgets (10.1%; 7.3% and 2.8%, tribution of energy and water), and Muka Kazakh- Employment respectively); and stana and Unisnack Production (food production). The labour force in the oblast is 402,200 people loans (20.6%). Communications (5.1% of the national total). Approximately 48% of New Tendencies in Investment Activities The telecommunications sector of the oblast, includ- them have basic secondary and primary education, ing its rural areas, comprises cellular, trunk, paging 34.4% secondary vocational education, and 16.3% A research and technology park, the Pavlodar Uni- and internet providers. higher education (including undergraduates). The versity Innovation Centre, and the Ekibastuz Re- The length of the railway totals 735 km. There are number of employed is 371,700 (5.1% the nation- search and Technology Centre have been established international railways running to Russia, as well al total), of which 27.2% are engaged in industry in the oblast. as domestic routes. Motor roads connect Pavlodar and construction, 43.4% in the services sector, It is planned to create three clusters: Oblast with other regions of the country and with and 29.4% in agriculture. There are 30,500 unem- ployed people in the region (4.8% of the national • metallurgy cluster based on the Aksu Ferroalloy the bordering territory of Russia and total 5,416 km. level). The average monthly nominal wage is $233.7 Plant and the Pavlodar branch of Casting Ltd. The There is an airport in Pavlodar. The largest river port oblast has potential for creating and developing a is located on the Irtysh. The waterways amount to (91.1% of the national level). nonferrous metallurgy cluster, particularly an alu- 634 km. An oil pipeline (2,574 km) connects south- minium cluster based on Aluminium of Kazakh- ern regions of the country (Shymkent) with Pavlodar Education stan. The production of aluminium and alumini- Oblast. There are eight institutions of higher education, um products will be a competitive specialisation Power Engineering four branches of institutions and 34 colleges in the of the region; oblast. In 2005/2006, 6,820 people graduated from The largest energy facilities in the oblast are: • petrochemistry cluster on the basis of the Pavlodar the institutions of higher education, including edu- Petrochemical Plant; and • AES Ekibastuz with a capacity of 2,500 MW (load cation specialists, economists, managers, engineers factor 35%); and lawyers. A total of 5,160 specialists in peda- • electric power cluster, which is possible due to the • the Aksu District Power Plant of the Eurasian In- gogy, legal services, economics and other sectors extraction of Ekibastuz coal and the transmission dustrial Corporation with a capacity of 2,125 MW graduated from local colleges. of electricity to Russia. (load factor 55%); Southern45 Kazakhstan Region Investor’s ATLAS

Total area: 117,300 sq.km Population: 2,223,600 Administrative centre: Shymkent

Administrative Divisions nual precipitation in the north is 150mm and up to limestone (7), building stone (14), glass-making sand 800mm in the mountains. (2), gypsum (3), and vermiculite. There are also 30 The administrative centre is Shymkent, which was groundwater springs, of which three are used for spa founded in the 12th century. Today it is home to therapy. 24% of the region’s population. The region has eight Mineral Resources towns, 12 rural districts and 933 auls (settlements). The region is the largest source of uranium in Ka- Three oil and gas condensate fields are situated in The urban and rural populations respectively form zakhstan with 48% of the national uranium re- the region’s territory; Pridorozhnoye, Ortalyk and 38,4% and 61,6% of the total. Shymkent is 1,458 km serves. West Opak. from Astana. Reserves of 27 mineral ores have been explored in the region, including 10 uranium deposits, eight gold Natural Resources Climate mines, four deposits of lead and zinc and three of The greater part of the region consists of plains. Harsh continental climate with short, mild winters iron ore, as well as silver, vanadium and molybde- The Betpak Dala (Hungry Steppe) clay desert ex- (frequentthaws) and hot, long summers. Average num deposits. tends across the north of the region, with the Kyzyl- January temperature down to -12 °C in the north 146 non-metallic deposits are available in the region, kum and Moyinkum sand deserts and the Shardara and -4 °C in the south, up to +29 °C in July. An- including coal (2), phosphate rock (2), barite (2), steppe, which features sagebrush and grass vegeta- Investor’s ATLAS 46 tion, to the southwest and west. Juniper, wild apple branch of Sufism in Central Asia. Three of the eight Crop Farming and apricot trees grow on the slopes of the Karatau hotels located in Turkestan are of deluxe standard. Arable land occupies 758,300 ha (4.1% of the total Range which is located in the region’s centre, whilst The Arystanbab mausoleum, dating back to the 14th arable land in the country). the mountains of the Alatau and Ogem Range century, is another special place of pilgrimage locat- South Kazakhstan leads all other oblasts in growing are covered with alpine meadows. The Aksu-Djaba- ed in the town. All pilgrims travelling to the sacred gly state reserve was set up to protect the environ- of cotton, fruit, melons and grapes. sites of Turkestan and Otrar visit the tomb of - ment of the Talas Alatau and rare animal species tanbab, the teacher of Khoja Ahmed Yasavi. In 2005, the wheat yield (after additional treatment) (including snow leopard). The flood plains of the amounted to 288,800 tonnes (2.6% of the national Aksu River are also included in the specially pro- Other main places of interest in the region include total), melons 294,500 tonnes (39.6%), and vegeta- tected zone. the remains of the ancient city of Otrar mentioned in bles 480,200 tonnes (22%). medieval literature, the mausoleums of Ibragim-Ata Reed marshes and riparian forests can be found in and Karashash-Ana, the starting point for the pil- The wheat yield averaged 1,500 kg/ha, sunflower the flood plains of the Syr Darya (1,400 km within grimage to the sacred shrines of South Kazakhstan, 1,710 kg/ha, vegetables 18,370 kg/ha, potato 15,520 the country) and Shu (1,186 km) – the largest rivers kg/ha, and grape 7,710 kg/ha. in the region. The Chardaryinskoye water reservoir the historical sites of Baidibek-Ata, Domalak-Ana, (400 sq. km) has been built on the Syr Darya River. Zerip Sylandy (Kos-Ana), the Appak-Ishan mosque, The largest crop farms are Turan ($6.6m), Molcha- Similar reservoirs are also present on the , and various historical and architectural monuments nov & Co. ($1.3m) and Mehnat 21 Gasyr ($0.7m). Arys and Bogen Rivers. Numerous lakes are scat- such as Baba Tukti Shahty Aziz, Karabura, Yskak- tered throughout the region. Bab, Zhanys-Ata, Akbikesh, Sangyl-Bi and Bibi Livestock Maryam. The region’s nature makes it possible to develop live- Tourism The following protected areas are located in the re- stock farming intensively. Natural pastures occupy gion: more than 88% of all farmlands. South Kazakhstan There are 802 historical and cultural monuments in ranks first in the country in sheep and goats breed- the region. Twenty-two tourist organisations are ac- • the Ordabasy historical and cultural complex; ing (2,970,900 head or 20.8% of the national total). tive there. • the Aksu-Zhabagaly nature reserve located in the It also has one of largest stock of horses (120,200 The main types of tourism being rapidly developed western part of the Tian Shan mountain range. head or 10.3%). in the region are as follows: The reserve is home to more than 1,400 species of flowering plants and more than 550 animal and Camels numbered 14,400 head (11% of the national • ecological; bird species; and total), cattle 606,900 (11%), and poultry 2 million • cultural; and (7.9%). • the Museum of Wild Fauna and Flora located in • hunting. Zhabagaly village near the Aksu-Zhabagaly na- In 2005, the region produced 65,300 tonnes of meat (by carcass weight) or 8.9% of the national total, Shymkent is one of the oldest towns in Kazakhstan. ture reserve, where the Dom Zheni i Lyudy tourist 485,400 tonnes of milk (10.3%), and 195.8 million In terms of accommodation, it offers the Sapar four- firm is active. eggs (8.5%). star hotel, the Makhambet guesthouse, the hotels of Klara-Centre-Sapar, Kema, SD, Shymkent, Orda- Agriculture The largest livestock farms in terms of output are A. basy, Dostyk, and so on. The entertainment industry In 2005, the oblast’s gross agricultural output Yasavi ($1.0m) and Dos-bi ($0.6m). is widely developed in the town. amounted to $716.9m (12.5% of the national total), A project to expand a rabbit-breeding farm and con- Turkestan holds a special place among the towns of which crops accounted for 62.6% and livestock structing a pelt-processing plant at a cost of $23,000 located along South Kazakhstan’s section of the an- products 37.4%. was accomplished in 2005. cient Silk Road. The Khoja Ahmed Yasavi mauso- There are 70,544 farms, 1,835 production coopera- leum, an international sacred site situated in Turke- Industry tives, 16 joint-stock companies, 1,510 partnerships, stan, attracts thousands of pilgrims every year. They and 9 state-owned farms in the region. In 2005, the industrial output in South Kazakhstan come to show their reverence for the ancient phi- totalled $1,063.5m (2.7% of the national figure), with losopher, mystic, poet and promoter of the Turkic 47 Investor’s ATLAS the key industry being the processing sector (88.1%). Plant, Elektroapparat), and a number of small metal • constructing a laboratory at a cost of $14,000 for The mining industry accounted for 5%, and power, processing enterprises (the Shymkent Mechanical analysing, testing and certifying building materi- gas and water production and distribution 6.9%. Plant, Techosnastka). als produced through innovative projects (Orda- There are 592 large and medium-sized enterprises The machine-building enterprises are the only basy-Agropromtekhnika); in the oblast. manufacturers of road-construction machinery and • expanding a plant to produce inert materials and The oil processing industry is the most significant transformers in the country. The Trans- building materials, and constructing a plant to sector of the region’s economy, which accounts for former Plant produces a wide range of transformer produce foundation blocks and pavement slabs, at 29.4% of the total processing sector output. The equipment and accounts for 37.9% of the mechani- a cost of $38,000; and largest enterprise is PetroKazakhstan Oil Products, cal engineering sector’s output ($13.7m). In 2005, the • expanding mining from a sand and gravel pit, and which shares 31.4 in the oblast’s industrial output. plant started producing seven new types of equip- constructing a plant to produce building materials, The company’s enterprises produce motor fuel, ment. The enterprise implements ISO-9001-2001. items and structures, both at a cost of $240,000. kerosene, gas-oil, and fuel oil. The output of the in- The following investment projects were constructed The clothing and textile industry is represented by dustry totalled $258.8m. The production growth was in 2005: the following enterprises: Voskhod, Mélange, Elas- due to an increase in the production of vacuum gas- • a railway turnout plant in Kentau (Yuzhpolimetall) tic, Utex, Kazakh-Russian Textile Alliance and oil by 95.7%, gas-oil by 16.2%, motor fuel (petrol) by sponsored by the Development Bank of Kazakh- others. The share of this industry in the processing 14.3%, and fuel oil by 5.0%. stan at a cost of $10m; sector output amounted to 16.9% ($156.9m). Utex The production of rubber and plastics was worth • a starter battery plant with a capacity of 1 million produced 2.1 tonnes of yarn worth $3.3m. The pro- $18.6m. The share of this industry in the total out- batteries sponsored by Halyk Bank of Kazakhstan duction output of Mélange totalled 1.1 tonnes of put of the processing sector amounted to 2.3%. In- at a cost of $15m (Yuzhpolimetall); and yarn ($0.7m). Voskhod and its branches (Voskhod comtyre completed an upgrade of its facilities and & Co and Voskhod and Yug) manufactured prod- launched a process line to manufacture automobile • an experimental module for a new continuous ucts worth $5.7m. The company is certified to ISO inner tubes and tyres. The plant manufactures 40 metallurgical process at a cost of $32,000. 9001:2001. standard tyre sizes. In 2005, its production totalled The construction materials industry is also develop- South Kazakhstan is the only cotton-seeding region $13.5m or 241,800 tyres. ing rapidly. In 2005, the output of the leading pro- in the country. In 2005, the region’s enterprises pro- Chemical enterprises produced goods worth $34.8m, ducers of construction materials (Sastobe Cement, duced 143,100 tonnes of cotton fibre, a 3,000 tonnes a significant growth over the last year, which was due Tyulkubass Sand-lime Plant) totalled $49.1m. increase over the previous year. Most cotton pro- to a 25% increase in the production of pharmaceuti- The number of new enterprises is growing – a liquid cessing enterprises are located in Maktaaral district. cals. The share of this industry in the total process- glass plant was put into operation, as well as an M- In 2005, enterprises of the district produced 83.9 ing sector output amounted to 4.3%. Khimpharm 125 brick plant with an annual capacity of 15 million tonnes of cotton fibre. is one of the leading pharmaceutical enterprises in bricks. The State Innovation Fund provided a credit The food industry’s share in the industrial output South Kazakhstan ($2.5m). At present, the enter- facility to establish a new enterprise, Zangar-2003, is 30.2%. Food production is one of the most inten- prise produces more than 200 generic and original to manufacture bricks, coal briquettes, carbon pel- sively developing industries in the processing sector. medicines. The production by mechanical-engineer- lets, and red lead. In 2005, the total food production output amounted ing companies totalled $36.5m. The investment projects in the building sector were $324.5m. There are 44 large and medium-sized en- Mechanical engineering comprises several large as follows: terprises in this sector. heavy-engineering enterprises (the South Kazakh- • constructing a plant at a cost of $87,000 to produce The investment projects in the food sector included: stan Machine-Building Plant, Excavator, Konyr building materials using the semi-dry vibrocom- • modernising a fruit canning factory in Tyulkubass At, Ak Beren, and Arys), medium-sized enter- pression process (AgroYug); prises manufacturing process and electrical equip- at a cost of $18.1m sponsored by the Investment ment (KardanVal, ELMO, the Kentau Transformer • constructing a foam concrete plant at a cost of Fund of Kazakhstan; $110,000 (AgroYug); Investor’s ATLAS 48

• constructing a flour mill and outlets for selling flour, New Tendencies in Investment Activities Power Engineering bran and screenings, both at a cost of $241,000; The Innovation Centre has been established based Major power producers are Energotsentr-3 (load • expanding a fish plant at a cost of $188,100; on the Mukhtar Auezov South Kazakhstan State factor 50%) and the Shardara hydroelectric power • constructing a flour mill and a bakery, both at a University. station (100 MW; 71%). cost of $120,000; and A special economic zone, Ontustik was estab- In 2005, suppliers set the following rates: lished, where it is planned to build fifteen plants, • mining a salt deposit at a cost of $150,000. electricity $0.04 per kWh South Kazakhstan is famous for its huge thermal including cotton-processing, textile and clothing water: mineral water reserves. Mineral and table water factories. produced by Kurort Bars 2030, Asem-Ai, Alex, and cold water $0.2 per m3 Unix (the Tassay brand) are widely known both in Foreign Capital hot water $0.8 per m3 the oblast and throughout Kazakhstan. Mineral wa- There are 189 companies with a foreign sharehold- natural gas $0.1 per m3 ter and soft drinks are bottled by more than ten large ing in South Kazakhstan, of which 46.0% spe- and medium-sized enterprises. The total output of cialise in retailing and repair of automobiles and Banking mineral water in 2005 was 186,495,500 litres and household appliances, 28.0% in processing indus- that of soft drinks 50,445,100 litres. try, 8.5% in food production, and 4.7% in construc- There are 13 branches of Kazakh commercial banks Six large and medium-sized enterprises as well as tion and other industries. These enterprises employ in the oblast. some small-sized enterprises produce refined veg- 12,812 people. etable oil. The largest manufacturers are Shymkent- Employment The output of products and services by enterprises mai, Kainar, SANA (Shymkent), Ak Mai (Makta- The labour force in the oblast amounted to ), Arai and Karmu (Sairam district). with a foreign shareholding totalled $406.8m. 1,013,000 people (12.8% of the national total), of The exports and imports of the enterprises with for- whom 63% had secondary or primary education; eign involvement amounted to $76.5m and $145.6m, Foreign Trade 17.5% secondary vocational education, and 19.3% respectively. Thus, the trade deficit stood at $69.1m. In 2005, exports totalled $476.5m (1.7% of the na- higher education (including undergraduates). The tional figure) and imports $491.9m (2.8%). The The largest enterprises with a foreign shareholding number of employed was 937,600 people (12.9% of trade deficit reached $15.4m. are PetroKazakhstan Oil Products (oil refining), the national figure), most of whom worked in the ShymkentCement (cement production), and Kh- agricultural sector (44.9%) and the services sector Investment impharm (medicine production). (45.3%). The number of unemployed was 75,500 Investment in fixed assets amounted to $488.6m people (11.8% of the national total). The average (2.7% of the national total). These funds where Communications monthly nominal wage amounted to $172.0 (67.1% mainly invested in the real estate, leasing and ser- South Kazakhstan is a major transport corridor be- of the national level). vices sectors (27.2%), processing industry (24.6%), tween Central Asia and Russia. The telecommuni- and mining (14.1%). cations sector comprises cellular, trunk, paging and Education The main sources of investment were as follows: internet providers. Shymkent has an international There are 28 institutions of higher education and airport hosting flights in eight directions, including 58 colleges in South Kazakhstan. 15,630 people companies’ own funds (46.3%); Russia, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, and Ar- graduated from the institutions of higher education, national and local budgets (24%; 18.7% and 5.3%, menia. The oblast’s motor ways total 5,269 km, rail- specialising in law, economics, the humanities, and respectively); ways 491 km, and gas grids 3,316 km. engineering in 2005-2006. The colleges prepared loans (15.1%); and The Uzbekistan–Shymkent–Pavlodar–Omsk oil 9,132 specialists in economics, banking, engineer- ing, medicine and other spheres. foreign investment (14.6%). pipeline was built. Western49 Kazakhstan Region Investor’s ATLAS

Total area: 151,300 sq.km Population: 609,300 Administrative centre: Oral

Administrative Divisions +25 °C in July. Annual precipitation in the south The region has 25 groundwater springs, two of from 250mm and in the north up to 400mm. which are used for spa therapy. The administrative centre is Oral, which is situ- ated on the Zhaiyk River. The city was founded in Mineral Resources Natural Resources 1613. Its population is 222,000 or 37% of the re- gion’s population. The region contains the town of 15 hydrocarbon fields have been explored in the re- Several rivers flow through the region, including the Aksai, four villages, 12 rural districts and 154 auls gion so far. Western Kazakhstan produces 90% of Ural with a total length of 1,082 km within Kazakh- (settlements). The urban and rural populations the nation’s condensate, 7% of its natural gas and stan; the Ozen (638 km), the Karaozen (260 km), total 43% and 57% respectively. The distance be- about 9% of its oil. The largest source of hydrocar- and the Olenty (211 km). Three water reservoirs (the bons is the Karachaganak oil-gas condensate field. Kirovskoye, Bitikskoye and Dongelevskoye irrigation tween Oral and Astana is 1,747 km. There are 97 nonmetallic mineral fields, including system have been constructed on the Koshim a tribu- Climate boron (four deposits, or 84.7% of the country’s re- tary of the Ural River. Narrow forest areas, principal- serves), cement raw materials (four), chalk (three), ly poplars, aspens and elms, as well as various bushes Harsh continental climate. Strong winds all year keramzite clay (two), pottery clay (one), carbonate grow on the flood-plains. There are also a number of round, dry, hot winds are frequent in summer. Av- raw materials (one), brick loam (65), mortar sand small saline lakes: the Shalkar (206 sq. km), the Aral- erage January temperature down to -14 °C, up to (seven), sand and gravel (ten), etc. sol (58 sq. km), and the Botkol among others. Investor’s ATLAS 50

The sandy Narynkum Desert is situated in the west Tourism Development Prospects Industry of the region (within the Caspian Plain). The east- • development of internal tourism (attracting Ka- In 2005, the oblast’s industrial output totalled ern part of the region consists of alkaline Land. The zakh residents to visit Lake Shalkar, promoting $3,777.8m (9.6% of the national figure). The key dominant vegetation is grass, wormwood and wheat- children’s tourism; building new routes along industry was mining (90.3%), with processing ac- grass. the Ural River and other areas). counting for 7.8% and electricity, gas and water Tourism production and distribution 1.9%. Agriculture There are 186 large and medium-sized industrial There are 22 tourist organisations active in West Ka- In 2005, the oblast’s gross agricultural output enterprises in the oblast. zakhstan Oblast, the largest of which are Panorama, amounted to $172.4m (3% of the national total), Mining plays a key role in the region’s economy. Asia Tour, Onur Travel and Natalie Express. of which livestock products accounted for 75.3% The largest companies are the Kazakh branch of The geographical position of the Urals area is re- and crops 24.7%. Karachaganak Petroleum Operating and Zhaik- markable for being situated on the very frontier There are 4,224 farms, 43 production coopera- munai (crude oil and natural gas). Condensate is where two of the world’s continents – Europe and tives, 9 joint-stock companies, 257 partnerships, the main oil condensate processing plant and gas- Asia – join to form one great landmass. and one state-owned farm in the oblast. oil manufacturer. One of the main water arteries of Eurasia – the A wide range of equipment is assembled by Ural River – flows through the territory of the Crop Farming mechanical engineering plants. The machine- oblast, along with two smaller rivers, the Arable land occupies 774,400 ha (4.2% of the total building companies launched the production of and the Derkul, and several smaller tributaries. arable land in the country). tractors, spare parts and assembly units for ag- West Kazakhstan is also amazingly rich in lakes. In 2005, the oblast’s wheat yield (after additional ricultural equipment (together with Uzhmashza- The biggest and most beautiful lake is Shalkar treatment) amounted to 106,900 tonnes (1% of the vod of Ukraine) and the manufacture of spe- (200 m2) that is justly called the “salt pearl of the national total) and barley 34,600 tonnes (2.3%). cial machinery (together with Ural and Kamaz Urals”. It is recognised as a place of great tourism of Russia). The Uralsk mechanical engineering potential due to its special ecological, scientific, The wheat yield averaged 390 kg/ha, potato 8,190 plants produce air heaters and metal structures cultural and aesthetical interest. kg/ha, and vegetables 10,210 kg/ha. (Metallist), motor boats, ships and oil-and-gas The region’s Akzhayik sanatorium provides 300 The largest crop farms are Aksaisky ($1.139m), equipment (Zenit), special vehicles and agricul- beds and operates all year round. It is famous for its Avangard ($0.393m), and Koktobe ($0.393m). tural equipment (Uralskagroremmash). beneficial chloride - magnesium - sodium mineral The largest food enterprises are the Bereke Dairy water both for internal and external application. Livestock plant (sour-milk products, meat, fish and confec- In 2005, the oblast’s cattle stock amounted to There are about ten monuments of history, architec- tionery) and the Zhilayevo Bakery Plant (flour 416,400 head (7.7% of the national total), sheep ture and culture in Uralsk that make up our heri- and cereals). tage for future generations. These include the house and goats 675,400 (4.7%), and horses 50,000 head There are some enterprises, which manufacture of Yemelyan Pugachev, leader of the 18th century (4.3%). Pigs numbered 25,200 head (1.9%) and clothes, felt footwear, headdresses and construc- Cossack insurrection, the Archangel Michael Ca- poultry 931,800 head (3.5%). tion materials. thedral constructed in 1751, the Cathedral of Christ West Kazakhstan produced 212,600 tonnes of the Saviour erected in honour of the 300th anniver- milk (4.5% of the national total) and 1,600 tonnes Foreign Trade sary of the Ural Cossack troops, and the Military of wool (5.4%). In 2005, the oblast’s exports totalled $2,737.9m School building where Khalel and Zhakhansha The largest livestock farms are Birlik ($0.262m) (9.8% of the national figure) and imports $578.8m Dosmukhamedov, the famous leaders of the West- and Chapayevsky ($0.217m). ern branch of the Alash Horde, studied. (3.3%), resulting in a trade surplus of $2,159.1m. 51 Investor’s ATLAS

Investment leum Operating, Zhaikmunai (gas and gas con- In 2005, power suppliers set the following rates: densate), Condensate (oil processing), and Ka- Investment in fixed assets amounted to $691.2m electricity $0.05 per kWh zakh branches of the following companies: SaiPar (3.8% of the national total). These funds were Drilling Company B.V. (oil and gas services), water: mainly invested in mining (41.6%), communica- Bonatti S.p.A., CCC, Renco-Kat and Renco-Ak- cold water $0.69 per m3 tions (29.7%), and the real estate, leasing and ser- sai (construction). vices sectors (13.5). hot water $13.2 per gigacalorie Major sources of investment in fixed assets were Communications natural gas $0.05 per m3 as follows: The telecommunications sector comprises cellu- Banking companies’ own funds (30.4%); lar, trunk, paging and internet providers. Twenty-one second-tier banks and seven branches national and local budgets (18.1% and 3.6%, re- The West-East Railway going via Saratov (Russia) of insurance companies operate in West Kazakh- spectively); and Aktobe (Kazakhstan) constitutes the region’s railway transport. The length of railways totals 431 stan. loans (5.9%); and km. There are both international railways running foreign investment (42%). to Russia and domestic routes. Employment The labour force in West Kazakhstan amounts to New Tendencies in Investment Activities Hard-surfaced roads connect West Kazakhstan with other regions of the country and with the 319,700 people (4.1% of the national total). Fifty- The Algorithm Technology Park operates in the bordering territory of Russia. The length of motor six percent of the employed have secondary or region, with the focus on mechanical engineering, roads totals 5,887 km. primary education, 24.7% secondary vocational instrumentation, petrochemistry and environ- Uralsk has an international airport, Akzhol. education, and 17.9% higher education (includ- ment protection technologies. ing undergraduates). The number of employed is The geographical location of the Ural River is stra- 290,900 (4.0% the national figure). Most of the Plans are in hand to establish a special economic tegically important as it provides an outlet to the zone specialising in petrochemical machine build- region’s population work in agricultural, forest- countries bordering the Caspian Sea. The Repub- ry and fishery businesses (40.4%), at industrial ing. The establishment of new, export-oriented lican State Ural Waterways Enterprise manages and construction enterprises (14.0%), and edu- businesses in the spheres of transportation, me- the water transport on the river. All water routes cation (11.4%). The number of unemployed is chanical engineering, metallurgy, chemistry, and total 623 km. There is transport communication agriculture is also forecast. between the ports of Uralsk and Atyrau. 28,700 (4.5% of the national figure). The average monthly nominal wage is $272.0 (106.2% of the There are two business incubators in the region. The pipeline transportation comprises gas pipe- national level). lines (2,957 km) and oil pipelines (539 km); their Foreign Capital total length amounts to 3,496 km. The Education Gas Processing Plant accounts for the largest part There are 173 companies with a foreign shareholding of pipeline transportation. There are nine institutions of higher education and in the oblast. These companies employ 9,579 people 12 colleges in West Kazakhstan. In 2005-2006, and produced goods and services worth $3,316.1m. Power Engineering the institutions of higher education had 5,632 Their exports and imports amounted to $3,328.1m graduates, of which 40.2% specialised in teaching, The largest energy producers in the region are and $251.5m, respectively, resulting in a trade sur- 19.6% in economics and management, and 11.9% the 160-MW gas-turbine power plant operated by plus of $3,076.6m. in the humanities. The colleges prepared 3,260 Karachaganak Petroleum Operating (load factor specialists in teaching (30.7%), economics (26%), The largest companies with foreign shareholding 62%) and the 30-MW cogeneration plant oper- and services (17.6%). are the Kazakh branch of Karachaganak Petro- ated by Zhaiykteploenergo (50%). ZhambylInvestor’s ATLAS Region 52

Total area: 144,300 sq.km Population: 1,001,100 Administrative centre: Taraz

Administrative Divisions Climate Mineral Resources The administrative centre is Taraz, which was Harsh continental climate. Dry, hot summer The region contains 72% of the country’s phos- founded in 1864. Today Taraz is home to 34% of through out the territory; cold winters with little phate rock reserves, 56.9% of the fluorspar and the region’s population. There are four towns, ten snow in the north and mild, short winters in the 25.4% of the gypsum. rural districts and 367 auls (settlements) in the re- south. Average January temperature down to - Reserves of 33 ore minerals have been explored in gion. The urban and rural populations respective- 13 °C in the north of the region and -8 °C in the the region, including 24 gold mines, four deposits ly form 45% and 55% of the total. Taraz is 1,255 south, up to +27 or + 22 °C in July in the foothills. of uranium, two of copper, one of strontium, one km from Astana. Annual precipitation up to 250mm in the north, of molybdenum, etc. 500mm in the south. 53 Investor’s ATLAS

153 nonmetallic deposits are available in the re- The town of Taraz boasts numerous ancient ar- wards of Moyinkum village occupies an area of gions, including, among others, barite (1), phos- chitectural monuments such as the mausoleums of 1 million ha. The flora is represented by such phate rock (12), fluorspar (2), ornamental stone Aisha Bibi, Babadzga Khatum (10th-11th centu- plants as feather grass, rare ephemeras, black (13), quartz rock (2), gypsum (1), limestone (7), ries A.D.), Karakhan, Dautbek (10th-13th A.D.), saxaul, shrubby willows, sheep’s fescue, etc. The building stone (18), lining brick (12), sand and the mysterious ancient settlement of Akyr-Tas and animals inhabiting the reserve include argali, gravel aggregate (23), mortar sand (11), and loam many other historic monuments. dziggetai (Mongolian horse), Persian gazelle, soil for the fabrication of bricks (34). Two gas con- There are favourable conditions to promote the roedeer, boar, hare, pheasant and partridge. densate fields – Amangeldy and Airakty – are lo- following types of tourism: cated in the region’s territory. Agriculture • sports tourism; There are also 27 underground water deposits in In 2005, the oblast’s gross agricultural output operation. • ecological; and amounted to $344.1m (6% of the national total), • historical. of which crops accounted for 57.3% and livestock Natural Resources The tourist organisations have developed a num- products 42.7%. The grater part of the region consists of plains, ber of unique routes, such as a historic tour From There are 14,674 farms, 90 production coopera- with the Betpak Dala clay desert to the north Ancient to Modern Taraz, ecological tours From tives, 17 joint-stock companies, 211 partnerships, and the Moyinkum sand desert to the south. Mountain Tops to Sand Dunes and Koksai Can- and 4 state-owned farms in the oblast. The southern reaches of the Moyinkum Desert yon, along with interesting tours around the Kok- are fringed with mountains: the Karatau Range sai Berikkara and Makpal gorges. Crop Farming in the southwest (1,610 m), Kyrgyz Alatau in The firms offer five most popular bus and trekking Arable land occupies 551,600 ha (3% of the total the south (3,817 m), Zhanyshol in the southeast routes through the gorges and barchans of the re- arable land in the country). (3,274 m) and Khantau in the east (1,052 m). gion, as well as classified mountaineering routes. In 2005, the gross wheat yield (after additional The deserts of the region feature sagebrush, There are three wildlife reserves in the region: treatment) amounted to 416,200 tonnes (3.7% saltwort, and gramineous vegetation, as well of the national total) and barley 156,000 tonnes • The Berikkara State Nature Reserve (complex as saksaul bushes; the mountainous areas are (10.2%). covered with alpine meadows. Riparian forests reserve) occupies an area of 17,500 ha and fea- The largest crop farms in terms of output are Pod- grow in the flood plains of the Shy River (800 tures over 50 species of most valued wood, shrub and grass plants listed in the IUCN Red List of gornoye and Mais Agro Shu. km lying within Kazakhstan), Talas River (453 endangered species, as well as such animals as km), and River (253 km). Water reservoirs argali, porcupine and the cobweb bird. Livestock have been constructed on the Shu and Asa Riv- The region’s nature makes it possible to develop ers. The freshwater part of Lake Balkhash is • The Karakunuz State Nature Reserve (botani- livestock farming intensively, since pastures oc- located in the northeast of the region. cal reserve) situated in the western branches of the Zailiysky Alatau Range occupies an area cupy more than 88% of farmlands. Tourism of 3,070 ha. In this reserve, apple, cherry and In 2005, the region’s farms had 293,100 head of alycha trees together with grapevines gradually cattle (5.4% of the national total), 1,978,300 head Zhambyl Oblast is located on the ancient Silk give place to a forest of maple, locust (carob), of sheep and goats (13.9%), 73,300 head of horses Road, which passes through the Aksu Dzhaba- mulberry and walnut trees. (6.3%), 42,000 head of pigs (3.2%), 4,300 head gly state reserve with its diversity of exotic flora • The Andasai State Nature Reserve (zoological) of camels (3.3%), and 1,373,700 head of poultry and fauna. The region is rich in historic sites and (5.2%). monuments. situated on the right bank of the Shu river west- Investor’s ATLAS 54

Zhambyl Oblast ranks first in Kazakhstan in pro- soft drinks, canned fruit and vegetables, flour chased French equipment for skin and wool duction of karakul (90,500 coats). and mixed fodder (3.6%), is also one of the most processing; Torebek-Taly commissioned a new In 2005, it produced 242,100 tonnes of milk (5.1%), significant enterprises in the region. hide and wool processing line; the Burnensky 92 million eggs (3.8%), and 4,700 tonnes of wool A large gold and silver mining enterprise is the Cheese Plant is reconstructing its process lines; (16%). Akbakai Mining and Processing Plant (1.3% of and BM completed construction of a new spirits and starch biochemical plant. The largest livestock farms are Akbulyn, Lugov, the oblast’s industrial output). Yunchi, and Sarybulak. Machine-building enterprises manufacture The construction industry was given a great im- household appliances, fire extinguishers, and petus since implementation of the Public Hous- Industry spares for agricultural machinery. ing Programme. New production facilities were put into operation, which increased the produc- In 2005, the industrial output in Zhambyl Oblast The gas industry produced 300.5 million m3 tion of the construction materials, including totalled $560m (1.4% of the national figure), the of natural gas (which is 1.6 times more than non-metallic mineral commodities: the produc- processing sector being the key industry (82.6%). in 2004), and 28,400 tonnes of gas condensate tion of concrete building structures increased by The mining industry accounted for 4.8% of the (1.4 times). A major enterprise in this sector is 2.3 times, and that of bricks by 3.7 times. regional industrial output, and power, gas and Amangeldygaz; in 2005, its total output amount- water production and distribution 12.6%. ed to $7m. There are many enterprises producing construc- tion materials, the largest being the Imstalkon There are 242 large and medium-sized enter- Three new import-substituting enterprises Zhambyl Metalworks Plant (4.4%). prises in the oblast. were put into operation: Bulgarkonservproduct (canned vegetables), Ceramic Invest (ferrocon- Ceramic Invest, operating in Taraz, launched Zhambyl Oblast is the national leader in ex- a new import-substituting enterprise to manu- traction and production of phosphorous and its crete items: floor slabs, foam concrete, etc.), and KSM Kurylys (burnt bricks). facture ferroconcrete items (floor slabs, foam compounds (100%), which represent a good raw concrete, etc.) on the Spanish equipment, Tensi- material for the chemical industry accounting Six investment projects were implemented in land, with a daily capacity of 50-60 slabs. for 29.8% of the region’s industrial output. the agricultural sector using innovative tech- nologies. These projects contributed to the di- New production facilities were put into opera- The largest enterprises in this sector are the tion by KSM Kurylys in Baizak district (30 mil- Zhambyl branch of Kazphosphate (21.9% of the versification and improvement of the quality of produced goods. lion burnt bricks a year) and Shagal in Zhambyl total oblast’s industrial output) and Mineralnye district (10 million silica bricks a year). Zham- Udobreniya, the Taraz branch of Kazphosphate A newly established enterprise, Bulgarkonserv- bylgips, Taraz, started production of gypsum (6.5%). The enterprise invested its own funds to product, and the Investment Fund of Kazakh- polymers, gypsum plasterboards and tile glue; launch a new technology of edible phosphoric stan launched a vegetable processing plant using Firma Mineral purchased and installed new acid production, as well as to implement an in- modern automated equipment and innovative high-tech marble processing equipment with an novation project to utilise phosphorus sludge. technologies. This project created 245 jobs. New annual capacity of 6,000 m2. The food industry is mainly represented by sugar green peas and sweet corn processing equip- production. Kant is the largest enterprise in this ment made in the US was installed. Production Foreign Trade sector (14.9% of the oblast’s industrial output). of pickles, preserved eggplants, sweet corn and ketchup was set up. In 2005, exports and imports totalled $82.0m The largest dairy-producing enterprises are (0.3% of the national figure) and $129.8m (0.7%), FoodMaster-Kordai (about $2m) and the FoodMaster-Kordai purchased French equip- respectively. The foreign trade deficit reached Merken Cheese Plant ($1.7m). BM, producing ment for hard cheese production; Yrys pur- $47.8m. 55 Investor’s ATLAS

Investment Foreign Capital Banking Investment in fixed assets amounted to $132.8m There are 54 enterprises with a foreign sharehold- Ten branches of second-tier banks and 15 insur- (1.1% of the national total). These funds were ing in the oblast. These enterprises employ 2,408 ance companies operate in the oblast. mainly invested in mining (28.6%), public gov- people. ernance (16.5%), transport and communications The output of products and services by enterprises Employment (13.6%), and the processing industry (11.1%). with a foreign shareholding totalled $7.5m. The labour force amounts to 496,700 people (6.3% The main sources of finance were as follows: Exports and imports amounted to $4.2m and $1.4m, of the national total), of whom 62% have primary companies’ own funds (56.9%); respectively. Thus, the trade surplus stood at $2.8m. or secondary education, 21% secondary vocation- al education, and 17% higher education (includ- national and local budgets (30.4%; 20.9% and The largest enterprises with foreign involvement are ing undergraduates). The number of employed is 9.5%, respectively); Khimprom-2030 (inorganic chemicals production), 447,900 (6.2% of the national total). Most of the loans (12.3%); and Vilondis, a joint Kazakh-Austrian venture (leather footwear), and Rysbayeva & Co (publishing). population work in the services sector (53.9%); foreign investment (0.4%). agribusiness, hunting and fishery industries The following investment projects were construct- Communications (34.7%); industrial sectors (8.6%) and education ed in 2005: (10.0%). There are 48,700 unemployed people in The telecommunications sector comprises cel- the oblast (7.6% of the nation’s total). The aver- • a catalytic cracking mini-plant with a daily pro- lular, trunk, paging and internet providers. The age monthly nominal wage is $169.6 (66.2% of the cessing capacity of 7,000 tonnes of gas conden- road and railway networks are 4,776 km and 1,224 national level). sate (Kazchiminvest); and km long, respectively. Auliyeata Airport operates • a biochemical plant with a daily capacity of 29,200 in the oblast. Education tonnes of feed yeast and concentrate (BM). Power Engineering There are five universities, five branches of insti- In addition, companies purchased the following tutions and 28 specialist-training colleges in the The largest power producers in Zhambyl Oblast advanced equipment: oblast. In 2005, there were 8,429 graduates from are the Zhambyl State Regional Power Plant with • a vacuum apparatus to produce sugar (Kant); and a total capacity of 1,100 MW (load factor up to the institutions of higher education, specialising • lines to produce gypsum board sheets (Zhambyl 25%) and the Heat and Power Cogeneration Plant in economics, law and engineering. The colleges Gips). (40 MW; 15%). prepared 3,621 specialists in technical disciplines, the humanities, medicine, agribusiness, econom- New Tendencies in Investment Activities In 2005, the following rates were set: ics, and other fields. electricity $0.03 per kWh The cluster initiative is being implemented in the following spheres: water: cold water $0.07 per m3 • agricultural product processing on the basis of Bulgarkonservproduct; and hot water $29.5 per gigacalorie 3 • tourism. natural gas $0.08 per m TheInvestor’s city ATLAS of Astana 56

Total area: 700 sq.km Population: 550,400

Administrative Divisions Climate Natural Resources Astana has been the capital of Kazakhstan since Harsh continental climate with short snow-less The capital is situated in the hills of the central October 1997. It hosts the embassies of several winters and moderately dry, hot summers. Aver- part of Kazakhstan, on the Yesil Plain. The large countries and the representative offices of major age temperature falls to -16 °C in January, and Yesil River and its draining tributaries Sarybu- companies. Today it is home to some 3% of the rises to +21 °C in July. Annual precipitation is lak and Ashylyozek flow through Astana. Nu- country’s population. 250-400mm. merous saline and freshwater lakes are scattered throughout the steppe surrounding the city. 57 Investor’s ATLAS

Tourism of Astana, boosting the city’s economy and giv- The largest industrial enterprise is Tsesna-As- ing it a leading position in the overall tourism tyk, a grain processing company, which incor- Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan, is situated industry of Kazakhstan. porates bakeries, cereal production, feed-mill- in a very attractive location in terms of tourism. ing plants, and a retail chain. This north-central region features such out- Agriculture standing sites as Borovoye, Zerendy, Sary-Obe Other large enterprises are Zhelezobeton and and Korgaldjino. Sixty-six tourist organisations In 2005, the Astana’s gross agricultural output Artem (manufacturing reinforced-concrete operate in the oblast. amounted to $36.1m (less than 1% of the nation- structures, concrete and plastic pipes), and Is- al total), of which crops accounted for 93.8% mer and Astana-Agropromtekhnika (manufac- The following types of tourism are being active- and livestock products 6.2%. turing agricultural equipment). ly promoted in the city: There are 24 farms, two production coopera- The food industry is also well developed. • business; and tives, five joint-stock companies, 83 partner- The most impressive growth was shown by the • ecological. ships, and five state-owned farms in Astana. food and mechanical-engineering industries. With its expanding infrastructure, new archi- Crop Farming tectural solutions and growing power, Astana Foreign Trade is becoming the centre for business tourism. As Arable land occupies 2,000 ha (0.01% of the In 2005, the city’s exports totalled $2,531.5m (9.1% a new capital, Astana has its own visual lan- total arable land in the country) and is mainly of the national figure) and imports $1,331.5m guage that distinguishes it from the other towns under potatoes and vegetables. (7.7%), resulting in a trade surplus of $1,200m. of Kazakhstan. Astana ranks with the leading Livestock world capital cities in terms of its attractive Investment impact, resulting from the fusion of successful In 2005, the Astana farms had 1,900 head of cat- architecture and design concepts. The image of tle. Livestock companies produced 4,400 tonnes Investment in fixed assets amounted to $2,067.3m Astana is firmly associated with the dynamic of milk and 500 tonnes of eggs. (11.3% of the national total). lifestyle of the new Kazakhstan. The largest farms in Astana are: These funds were mainly invested in public The ecotourism development programme is be- administration (38.3%), construction (29.6%), 1) Kuigenzhar (crop farming and livestock); ing implemented in Astana under the patronage transport and communications (5.1%), real es- of the Eurasia Fund. Closely linked to educa- 2) Kartofel i Ovoschi (potatoes and planting tate, leasing and services sectors (9%). tional objectives, this ecological trend is being stock); and Astana Zelenstroi (growing and Investment projects were mainly financed us- actively developed as a form of internal tourism planting trees and bushes). ing the companies’ own funds (61.1%) and the for schoolchildren from all regions of Kazakh- national and local budgets (31.2% and 4.3%, re- stan and neighbouring countries, enabling them Industry spectively). Foreign investment amounted to a to visit the unique nature reserves found around In 2005, the city’s industrial output totalled mere 2.5 % and loans 0.9%. Astana. $453.5m (1.1% of the national figure). The key New tourist firms also offer photo tours, nation- industry was the processing sector (82.4%), with New Tendencies in Investment Activities al hunting and safari tours, as well as visits to the remaining 17.6% contributed by electricity, In Astana, it is planned to build a new industrial the Baikonur cosmodrome. gas and water production and distribution. zone – the Astana Industrial Park – and to set This increase in the range of tourist services is There were 399 large and medium-sized enter- up a pilot building materials cluster. The par- having a positive impact on the tourism industry prises Astana. ticular projects include construction of the fol- lowing facilities: Investor’s ATLAS 58

• a cellular concrete plant with an annual ca- $482.8m, respectively, resulting in a trade defi- Banking pacity of 138,000 tonnes (Ecoton+); cit of $112.9m. There is a special status bank (the Development • a ready-mixed concrete and mortar plant with The largest enterprises with a foreign share- Bank of Kazakhstan) and 22 branches of sec- an annual capacity of 180,000 tonnes (ABK holding are (air transport services), ond-tier banks in Astana. Beton); UFUK (plastic building materials), and the • a tempered and insulating glass plant (Asia Stolichny Dairy Plant. Employment Akmola); investments amount to $4.9m; Communications The labour force in Astana amounts to 293,000 • a concrete plant to manufacture products us- people (3.7% of the national total). The educa- ing the vibrocompression process with an an- The city has an international airport, a rail ter- tional level of population is rather high: 68.7% minal and a bus terminal. Roads in Astana to- nual capacity of 469,000 m2 of paving slabs of employees have higher education (including tal 630 km. There is one road interchange, and and 6.5 million sand-cement blocks (Concrete undergraduates), 21.3% secondary vocational twenty-three bridges and flyovers. The telecom- Products Astana); investments amount to education, and 10% secondary or primary ed- munications sector comprises cellular, trunk, $3.1m; ucation. The number of employed is 269,000 paging and internet providers. • a dry building mixtures plant (Big Elit); people (3.7% of the national figure). The main employment opportunities are offered in the ser- • a woodwork plant (Sheber SC. KZ); invest- Power Engineering ments amount to $3.1m; vices sector (79.2%), industrial production and The main power generators in Astana are As- construction (19.4%), and agriculture (1.4%). tana-EnergoService with a capacity of 262 MW, • a pre-insulated heating pipes plant with an The average monthly nominal wage amounts which includes cogeneration plants Nos. 1 and 2 annual capacity of 200 km of pipes (Kazakh to $383.8 (149.7% of the national level). The (load factors 40% and 60%, respectively). Pipe Insulation Plant); number of unemployed is 24,000 (3.7% of the • a fiberglass water-pipe plant with an annual In 2005, power suppliers set the following rates: national total). capacity of 300 km of pipes (Amitekh Karasai electricity (including VAT) $0.03 per kWh Pipe); and water: Education • a Spanish-Russian line to produce hollow floor cold water $0.19 per m3 There are 15 institutions of higher education slabs and concrete rings (AllianceStroiInvest and 22 colleges in Astana. In 2005-2006, the 3 and Stroikonstruktsia). hot water $13.6 per m institutions of higher education had 6,823 grad- liquefied gas (propane, butane) $667.7 per uates specialising in economics and manage- Foreign Capital tonne ment (28.7%), the humanities (13.0%), teach- There are 526 companies with a foreign share- The following industrial projects were imple- ing (17.7%), medicine (6.0%) and other fields. holding in Astana, of which 30.0% specialise in mented in Astana: The colleges prepared 4,232 specialists in eco- retailing and repair of automobiles and house- • reconstruction of cogeneration plant No. 1; nomics, law, medicine, transport and com- hold appliances and 19.5% in construction. • expansion and reconstruction of a boiler plant munications operations, teaching and other These companies employ 16,912 people. In spheres. 2005, they produced goods and services worth and cogeneration plant No. 2, including equip- $150.5m. ping plants Nos. 7 and 8 with boiler units, and plant No. 5 with a turbine-generator unit. The The exports and imports of joint ventures and project has been approved by the State Exam- foreign companies amounted to $369.9m and ination Board. The59 city of Almaty Investor’s ATLAS

Total area: 300 sq.km Population: 1,247,900

Administrative Divisions Climate Natural Resources The largest city in the country was founded in 1854. The city is located in the foothills of the Zailiisky Climate is mild in the mountain areas of the city. Alatau at a height of 970 metres above sea level (at Almaty was the capital of Kazakhstan from 1929 to Average temperature falls to -8 °C in January, and 1997. The city comprises eight districts and one vil- its highest point). Parks, gardens, boulevards and or- rises to +25 °C in July. Annual precipitation in the chards occupy over 8,000 hectares of the city’s area. lage. Today it is home to some 8% of the country’s foothills and mountains is 1000mm. population. Since the north-western part of Almaty is located in the steppe, but with a larger area in the mountains, Almaty is 1,480 km from Astana. both northern plants such as Siberian birch and Tien Investor’s ATLAS 60

Shan spruce and southern ones such as grapes and Tourism Development Prospects The food industry dominates Almaty’s production peaches grow within the city. Almaty stands for the Experts are predicting that excavations of an ancient accounting for 35.8% of the city’s industrial output. ‘place abounding with apple trees’ in Turkic. In late nectropolis, Boraldai’s Mound, north of Almaty will The largest food companies in the region are Rakhat 19th century, the Almaty aport, a species of apple yield exciting results in terms of artefacts that can be producing confectionery (4.5% of the region’s total), resulting from crossing local apple trees with the exhibited, as well as opening up avenues for further the Coca-Cola Almaty Bottlers (2.6%) and Raim- Kherson aport, was grown for the first time. This va- research. bek Bottlers (2.4%) both bottling soft drinks, and riety is now world famous. The Greater and Lesser the Almaty Margarine Factory (1.9%) producing Almatinka Rivers flow through the city. Ethnographic and historical excursions to the Zaili- margarine and sausages. ysky Alatau gorges within the National Park and Mechanical engineering accounted for 14.4% of Alma- Reserve, as well as sports activities, are attracting Tourism ty’s industrial production. The largest companies are Almaty is the tourism capital of Kazakhstan. More tourists all-year-round. LG Electronics Almaty Kazakhstan, which produces than 40% of all the tourism potential is concentrat- household appliances (3.4%) and the Almaty Heavy ed in the city and its surroundings. The majority of Agriculture Engineering Plant (0.8%) manufacturing roll mills. tourist firms, tour agencies and hotels are located in In 2005, the Almaty’s gross agricultural output The construction industry is also well developed. Almaty as well as the communication and personnel amounted to $15.1m (less than 1% of the national The largest enterprises are Asfaltobeton (asphalt resources that support a high-grade tourism service. total), of which crops accounted for 82.6% and live- and concrete pavements), Building Materials and One of the favourite places with city residents is the stock products 17.4%. Structures Plant No.1 and the Almaty Bridge Plant Central Park – the oldest amusement park in the There are 65 farms, one production cooperative, (concrete and concrete structures). city with the biggest zoo in the country. The Almaty 4 joint-stock companies, 95 partnerships, and one More than 10.1% of the city’s industrial production Zoo features 6,000 animals and birds of 510 species. state-owned farm in Almaty. is made up by the pulp and paper enterprises, the Unique scientific work for preserving the rare spe- largest being Poligrafkombinat and Dauir. cies is being currently conducted at the zoo. Crop Farming Outside the city, visitors flock to the famous skating There are also enterprises that produce textiles, car- Arable land occupies 2,000 ha (0.01% of the total rink and dam in the Medeo Gorge. Here the gentle pets and other goods. arable land in the country). climate, long hours of sunshine, shelter from the wind In 2005, some projects to upgrade production were form an unequalled location for winter sports. With The yield of vegetables averaged 43,300 kg/ha and implemented that made it possible to increase the ice made from the purest glacier water, the Medeo potatoes 19,780 kg/ha. design capacities of processing plants and create skating rink is one of the best rinks in the world – Livestock new jobs. and one of the most beautiful, into the bargain. The • Alprof launched the aluminium colouring equip- dam was built using a special technique of controlled In 2005, the Almaty farms had 4,200 head of cat- ment produced by the Italian Cisart SRL – Via explosions. Above the crest dam of the dam is the tle (0.1% of the national figure), 1,400 head of pigs Lungo Serio, with a monthly capacity of 600 highway to the Kokashik valley and the Shymbu- (0.1%), and 23,600 head of poultry (0.09%). tonnes of painted products. The cost of the project lak ski lodge, featuring pistes and slalom routes that The largest livestock farm in Almaty is Plemzavod is $1.9m. A profile bending machine with a month- rank in the world’s top ten most difficult downhill Aksai. ly capacity of 18 tonnes was installed . courses. The Shymbulak ski pistes have been certi- • Karina Paper commissioned paper recycling equip- fied by the International Ski Federation. Medeo was Industry ment manufactured by PAPCEL a.s., a Czech- proposed as the speed skating venue in Almaty’s bid Italian firm. The design capacity is 600 tonnes per to host the 2014 Winter Olympic Games. In 2005 Almaty’s industrial production totalled $1,780.1m (4.5% of the national figure). The key in- month. The cost of the project is $0.6m, with more Fifteen kilometers away from the city is the high than a half invested by the company itself. mountain ice complex widely known as the “records dustries were processing (93.6%), electricity, gas and • Saiman commissioned an automated PCB com- factory”. More than 120 world records have been set water production and distribution (6.1%) and min- ponent placement line manufactured by Yamaha up here. The ice field with a total area of 10,500 m3 ing (0.2%). (Japan) with a monthly capacity 50,000 pieces. is an ideal venue for open international speed and There are 1,728 large and medium-sized companies The company’s investment totalled $0.1m. figure skating contests and for hockey matches. in the city. 61 Investor’s ATLAS

Twelve new enterprises to produce corrugated box- Foreign Capital In 2005 power suppliers set the following rates: es, metal and plastic goods, flour, confectionery and There are 5,388 enterprises with a foreign share- electricity $0.02per kWh baked products were set up. holding in the city. These enterprises employ 73,220 water More than 20 enterprises launched new production people. 3 lines and technologies, including four hi-tech lines. cold water $0.08 per m The output of products and services by companies hot water $0.12-1.3 per m3 Seventy-two companies were certified to ISO 9000, with a foreign shareholding totalled $632.7m. 20 companies are training to the ISO certificate. natural gas $0.08–0.09 per m3 Exports and imports by foreign enterprises and The Coca-Cola Almaty Bottlers was certified to joint-ventures amounted to $1,021.1m and $1,926m, ISO 14001:1996. Banking respectively, resulting in a trade deficit of $904.9m. 28 branches of second-tier banks, 29 insurance com- The largest joint ventures and foreign entities are Foreign Trade panies and National Bank of Kazakhstan operate LG Electronics Almaty Kazakhstan (TV, video and in in Almaty. In 2005 exports and imports totalled $1,212.3m radio equipment), the Coca-Cola Almaty Bottlers (4.4% of the national figure) and $5,690.6m (32.8%) (soft drinks) and Becker & Co (sausages and pas- Employment respectively, hence a trade deficit of $4,478.3m. try). The labour force in Almaty amounts to 619,100 peo- Investment Communications ple (7.8% of the national total), of whom 53.5% have higher education (including undergraduates), 29.9% Investment in fixed assets amounted to $2,514.4m Almaty is a major hub of road, rail and air routes. secondary vocational education, and 16.6% second- (13.8% of the national total). These funds were Roads in Almaty total 1,526 km. ary or primary education. mainly invested in transport and communications The city has two rail terminals, an international air- (18.5%); the real estate, leasing and services sectors The number of employed is 566,900 people (7.8% of port and two large bus terminals. Almaty accounts (19.5%); construction (22.5%); trade and repair cars, the national figure). for a fifth of the national road and a third of the na- appliances and personal items (12.2%); and process- tional air traffic. The main employment opportunities are offered in ing industries (10.9%). trade and repair of cars, appliances and personal The telecommunications sector comprises cellular, Investment projects were mainly financed using items (16.9%); industrial production (13.5%); educa- trunk, paging and internet providers. companies’ own funds (72.4%), loans (18.8%) tion (11.1%); construction (11.0%); real estate services and the central and local budgets (7.2% and 1.5% Power Industry (9.5%); and transport and communications (9.2%). respectively). Foreign investment amounted to The average monthly nominal wage is $370.2 (144.4% The main power generators in Almaty are as follows: mere 0.2%. of the national level). The number of unemployed is - Almaty Power Consolidated that operates cogen- 52,200 people (8% of the national total). New tendencies in investment activities eration plants No.1 (145 MW with a load factor of In the city there is the Almaty Business Incuba- 47%), No.2 (510 MW; 45.2%) and No.3 (37%); Education tor and the Almaty Technology Park, in which it is - Almatyteplokommunenergo that operates a 47- There are 70 institutions of higher education and 58 planned to produce and develop IT outputs on the MW cascade of hydroelectric plants with a load fac- colleges in Almaty. basis of the Information Technology Park. tor of 51.2%; In 2005-2006 the institutions of higher education It is planned to realise pilot projects on creating oth- - North-East Power Complex with an hourly capac- had 39,429 graduates specialising in economics and er clusters: ity of 123 Gcal and a load factor of 51.7%; management (17.8), the humanities (10.7), teach- • Food Industry Cluster - Vodokanal with a capacity of 1,309,450 cubic me- ing(16.2), medicine (2.7) and other fields. • Tourism Cluster tres (54.0%); and The colleges prepared 8,617 specialists in teach- ing(16.2), economics(22.1), medicine(11.0), transport • Transport and Logistic Services Cluster - Almatygaz with a capacity of 320,000 cubic metres (50.0%). operations(12.4), the humanities and other spheres. Investor’s ATLAS 62

List of Akimats (Executive Bodies) of Kazakhstan

Oblast Address Tel/fax E-mail. Website

Tel.: +7 (3162) 25-79-22, [email protected], [email protected] Almaty 38 Tauelisizdyk St., Taldykorgan, 480080 Fax: 25-55-11 www.akmo.kz Tel.: +7 (3132) 54-36-30, [email protected], [email protected] Akmola 83 Abay St., Kokshetau, 476000 Fax: 56-47-58 www.akto.kz Tel.: +7 (3282) 27-17-47, [email protected], [email protected] Aktobe 40 Abylkhair Khan St., Aktobe 463010 Fax: 27-07-02 www.almaty-reg.kz Tel.: +7 (3122) 35-45-01, [email protected] Atyrau 77 Aiteke bi St., Atyrau, 465010 Fax: 35-35-24 www.atyrauobl.kz Eastern Tel.: +7 (3232) 26-33-10, [email protected], [email protected] 40 Gorkii St., Ust-Kamenogorsk, 492000 Kazakhstan Fax: 26-13-63 www.akimvko.gov.kz Tel.: +7 (3212) 42-10-45, [email protected] Karaganda 39 Mira Ave., Karaganda, 470061 Fax: 42-10-67 www.karaganda-region.kz Tel.: +7 (3142) 53-31-36, [email protected] Pavlodar 49 Satbaev St., Pavlodar, 140009 Fax: 57-50-85 www..kz Western Tel.: +7 (3242) 26-21-44, [email protected] 179 Dostyk Ave., Uralsk, 417000 Kazakhstan Fax: 26-10-46 www.kyzylorda.kz Tel.: +7 (3292) 33-42-15, [email protected] Kyzylorda 76 Zhahayev St., Kyzylorda, 467003, Fax: 43-45-52 www.mangystau.kz

Tel.: +7 (3152) 46-41-25, [email protected] Kostanai 66 Al-Farabi St., Kostanai, 110000 Fax: 46-36-35 www.akimat-sko.kz

Tel.: +7 (3182) 32-34-22, [email protected], [email protected] Mangystau 1 building, 14 District, Aktau, 466200 Fax: 32-32-06 www.pavlodar.kz Southern Tel.: +7 (3252) 54-74-43, [email protected], [email protected] 6 Tauke-Khan St., Shymkent, 160007 Kazakhstan Fax: 53-05-27 www.uko.kz Tel.: +7 (3112) 51-08-82, [email protected], [email protected] Zhambyl 125 Abai St., Taraz, 484032 Fax: 51-06-26 www.western.kz Northern Tel.: +7 (3262) 43-18-22, [email protected] 58 Constitutsii St., Petropavlovsk, 642030 Kazakhstan Fax: 43-16-35 www.zhambyl.kz Tel.: +7 (3172) 32-30-12, [email protected] The city of Astana 60 Omarova St., Astana, 473000 Fax: 32-12-23 www.capital.kz Tel.: +7 (3272) 71-66-88, [email protected] The city of Almaty 4 Republic Square, Almaty, 050001 Fax: 64-41-10 www.almaty.kz