On June 20, Kazakhstan and Germany solidified their economic ties with the signing of 23 commercial agreements worth over $1.7bn at the Kazakh-German Business Forum held in Astana, Astana Times reported.
The event, attended by President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, marks a significant milestone in the bilateral relations between the two nations.
The agreements encompass a wide range of sectors, including the processing of rare earth metals, the production of machine tools, agricultural machinery, textiles, fisheries, and green energy. Among the notable deals is a $22mn agreement between Kazenergopower and Siemens, focusing on the production of medium-voltage distribution devices for Kazakhstan's energy sector using Siemens technology.
Another significant agreement worth $200mn was signed between Creada Corporation and HMS Bergbau. This partnership aims to explore, extract, and process complex rare metal ores in eastern Kazakhstan, strengthening the country's mining industry.
To facilitate investment projects and promote economic cooperation, the Development Bank of Kazakhstan and Landesbank Baden-Württemberg agreed to provide financing and export credit guarantees to German companies and Kazakh companies working with German partners in Kazakhstan.
President Tokayev highlighted the importance of Germany as Kazakhstan's leading economic partner in Central Asia. He noted that German companies have invested $6bn in Kazakhstan, with the majority of these investments directed toward the non-resource sector. Currently, there are approximately 1,000 companies with German capital operating in Kazakhstan.
“Kazakhstan warmly welcomes all German companies, large or small. We value the German approach to business based on determination, precision, and responsibility,” Tokayev said.
Tokayev expressed Kazakhstan's interest in collaborating with Germany in the development of natural resources.
“This morning, during my meeting with Mr. Steinmeier, we agreed to strengthen our cooperation in the joint exploration and development of natural resources. This includes realizing the intergovernmental partnership agreement on raw materials, industry, and technology,” said Tokayev.
Additionally, Tokayev highlighted Kazakhstan's potential as a leading producer of green hydrogen, which could pave the way for the production of environmentally friendly metals like steel and aluminum. He emphasized a recently signed $50bn green hydrogen deal with the Svevind Group, positioning Kazakhstan as a significant player in the global green energy market.
The president of Kazakhstan also underlined the importance of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR) in the changing geopolitical landscape. He noted that freight traffic along the TITR to the European Union has doubled since 2022, necessitating infrastructure modernization and the expansion of Kazakh ports' capacity to accommodate the growing trade volume.
“To support the growing volume of trade between East and West, we are working to modernize our infrastructure and eliminate bottlenecks. We intend to increase the capacity of Kazakh ports to 30mn tons,” the president noted.
In addition to economic cooperation, the forum explored opportunities for collaboration in innovation, digitalization, and human capital development. President Tokayev acknowledged Germany's reputation as a leading innovation hub and expressed Kazakhstan's aspirations to become a regional innovation and digital center in Eurasia. He expressed the desire to engage German partners in technological and digital research, as well as startup development.
As part of efforts to enhance human capital development, a Forum of Rectors of Kazakh and German Universities was held in Astana. Tokayev, along with Steinmeier and representatives from 11 German and 25 Kazakh technical universities, discussed ways to foster academic collaboration. Tokayev expressed his vision of transforming Kazakhstan into a research hub in Eurasia, emphasizing the crucial role that German universities can play in realizing this ambition.
President Steinmeier continued his visit to Kazakhstan on June 21 by attending the launch ceremony of test drilling at the green hydrogen production plant operated by Svevind in the Mangystau Region.
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