ASTANA: As Kazakhstan positions itself to be a major player in the logistical, technological, and energy sectors, the Middle East could be a key partner for riding that train forward.
The Astana International Forum took place in May, hosting dialogue on critical global issues.
On the sidelines of the forum, Arab News spoke to several high-level Kazakh officials to discuss the country’s collaboration with Middle Eastern countries in finance, energy and foreign policy.
The largest economy in Central Asia, Kazakhstan’s geopolitical profile provides immense global transit potential.
With abundant natural and agricultural resources and a growing middle class, the nation has all the fundamentals for further growth and diversification, according to Nurlan Zhakupov, chief executive officer of sovereign wealth fund Samruk-Kazyna.
Kazakhstan has attracted over $24 billion in foreign direct investment from strategic partnerships around the world, including Qatar and the UAE.
In addition to being key partners in the oil and gas sectors, Middle Eastern countries provide opportunities in a range of other areas.
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Alibek Kuantyrov said: “In general, GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) countries are very important to (us).
“We have a lot of productive talks about mutual projects, from Kazakhstan to Saudi Arabia and Saudi Arabian investors to Kazakhstan.”
Earlier this year, Mobile Telecom-Service LLP, one of two mobile communications subsidiaries of Kazakhstan’s largest telecom company Kazakhtelecom, was acquired by Qatar’s Power International Holding for $1.1 billion.
Samruk-Kazyna is also in close talks with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, “and we hope that soon these discussions will materialize into concrete projects,” Zhakupov said.
The Kazakh fund’s next big focus is logistics and transportation, aiming to double its cargo volume.
Kazakhstan is additionally expanding its international transit capacity by building more ports across parts of Asia and Europe, including one in Abu Dhabi.
Together with Abu Dhabi Ports, Samruk-Kazyna’s subsidiary oil and gas company, KazMunayGas, operates a fleet of vessels in the Caspian Sea.
This partnership is part of a bigger goal to expand China-Europe trade capacity through the Trans-Caspian Trade Route that connects Central Asia to the Caspian Sea; a path similar to the ancient Silk Road and through which 90 percent of Chinese cargo passes Kazakhstan.
The Central Asian nation also has a strong focus on digitalization and renewable energy.
Zhaslan Madiyev, the minister of digital development, innovation, and aerospace industry, said that a new artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency committee has been established.
Kazakhstan is also one of the world’s top 10 countries in crypto mining, with 60 operating mining firms and several mining pools.
By amending laws and adding crypto ATMs, exchange shops and cards, “the president’s idea is to define a crypto city that will be completely crypto friendly,” the minister said.
One of the major projects the ministry is working on is an International AI Center, a location for excellence focused on talent development, innovation, and economic growth in AI.
The 20,000 sq. meters sphere-shaped center will be a regional hub for attracting international technological collaboration.
The project will be part of a bigger ecosystem hoping to replicate the success of Astana Hub, an international technology park with 1,500 startups under its belt and an outreach across 20 cities worldwide, including a joint innovation hub in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Riyadh’s Al-Farabi Innovation Hub opened in March 2024 with the intention of bridging startups from Kazakhstan, Central Asia and the Caucasus with the Middle East and North Africa markets.
That same month, Kazakhstan’s ed-tech startup CodiPlay partnered with Saudi Arabia’s Artificially Intelligent Learning Assistant to bring digital education solutions to 200 Saudi schools, an initiative that aims to enhance IT literacy among students.
Madiyev said: “I believe there is a huge potential for bringing Saudi investments here and expanding Kazakhstan innovative startups and technologies to Saudi as well.
“With their startups and technologies, Saudi can access the whole Central Asia region through Kazakhstan, and we will be glad to access the Saudi market and the broader Middle Eastern region.”
He also noted that another hub and acceleration program is set to open in Dubai in the fall of this year.
When asked about plans to balance the environmental effects of AI and technology, the president’s special representative on the environment told Arab News that nuclear power was a potential solution.
“It’s really a big question of where your energy comes from. If it comes from coal, then there will definitely be a huge impact on the environment,” said Zulfiya Suleimenova, special representative of the president on international environmental cooperation.
The country aims to have its share of nuclear in the national generation mix hit 5 percent by 2035. The first plant, expected to be completed in eight years, will be built in the Almaty region and is one of three planned nuclear power plants.
One of the largest projects Kazakhstan has in the Middle East is an agreement with Masdar, the Emirati state-owned renewable energy company, signed between Samruk-Kazyna and the UAE’s Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan in May this year.
The agreement is two-fold. It will include the development of a 1 gigawatt wind farm in the Jambyl Region with a 600 megawatt-hour battery energy storage system, positioned to be one of the largest wind initiatives in Central Asia.
Additionally, a 24/7 renewable energy project plans to provide up to 500 megawatts of baseload renewable energy with a capacity of up to 2 gigawatts.
Kazakhstan aims to generate 15 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2030 and 50 percent by 2035.
Other opportunities for joint environmental efforts in the Middle East are in water cooperation, Suleimenova said.
The idea of the One Water Summit which took place in Riyadh last year was to drive more political momentum around water-related issues that otherwise do not get the same attention as other climate concerns.
At the summit, nine international development banks committed to increase financing into water infrastructure and water-related projects — particularly in vulnerable regions — including the European Investment Bank.
“Back in 2023 when I was minister of ecology, I had the pleasure of meeting the Saudi minister of water, environment and agriculture, and am very (much) looking forward to continuing these discussions and cooperation and hopefully joint efforts,” said Suleimenova.
The president’s special representative noted that falcon and eagle diplomacy and the protection of these species was another key focus of collaboration between Kazakhstan and Saudi Arabia, and added: “We hope to further our efforts and cooperation in biodiversity … including the preservation of eagles. They are the pride of our country and our people but also of your countries, of Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and others.”
Discussions with Saudi Arabia’s ACWA Power over the possibility of developing a 1GW wind energy and battery storage plant in Kazakhstan are also ongoing.
