Kazakhstan, U.S. sign major $1.1bn deal on critical minerals

The Ambassador of Kazakhstan to Austria, Mukhtar Tileuberdi, took part in a business lunch organized by Austrian business circles. The event focused on developing cooperation in the transport and logistics sector and the launch of the Austrian-Kazakh Connectivity Platform, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan reports.

In his remarks, Ambassador Tileuberdi emphasized that Kazakhstan places special importance on the development of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route, as well as on the introduction of modern solutions in multimodal transport and green logistics. Participants were briefed on Kazakhstan’s initiatives aimed at improving the efficiency of the Middle Corridor and strengthening its transit role in the Eurasian region.

The Ambassador also informed participants about the outcomes of the national referendum and the adoption of the new Constitution of the Republic of Kazakhstan. He highlighted that the institutional reforms carried out by President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev are aimed at increasing the accountability of state institutions and creating a more transparent investment climate in the country.

The Guest of Honor at the event was the Second President of the National Council of the Austrian Parliament, Peter Haubner, who shared the results of his visit to Astana in November 2025 with a representative business delegation. He confirmed Austria’s interest in expanding cooperation, particularly in sustainable infrastructure, logistics, digitalization, and energy.

During the event, the Honorary Consul of Kazakhstan in Lower Austria, Alexander Schierchuber, presented a detailed overview of the current state and prospects of Kazakhstan’s transport sector. He noted the country’s strong transit potential and its role as a key link in Eurasian transport corridors connecting Europe and Asia. According to him, the launch of the AKCP is intended to serve as a practical mechanism for developing and implementing joint infrastructure and logistics projects.

 

Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan Olzhas Bektenov took part in the International Geological Forum Geoscience & Exploration of Central Asia, primeminister.kz reports.

The GECA 2026 Forum brought together representatives of international organizations, the diplomatic corps, as well as national and foreign companies.

Speaking at the plenary session of the geological forum, Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov congratulated industry specialists on the upcoming professional holiday and emphasized the strategic importance of geological exploration for the sustainable development of the country’s economy and industry.

On the instruction of the Head of State Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, systemic reforms are being implemented in Kazakhstan in the field of geology and subsoil use, aimed at increasing the investment attractiveness of the industry, modernizing infrastructure, and expanding the use of modern technologies.

An important step was the launch of the Unified Subsoil Use Portal, which ensures transparent access to services. Based on the world’s best practice of "first come, first served", the processes for granting subsoil use rights have been significantly simplified. This has made it possible to attract about 280 billion tenge of private investment in geological exploration over the past three years.

International standards for reserve reporting have been introduced. For a more sustainable approach to geological research, a transition is being made to the formation of geophysical maps at a scale of 1:50,000. A modern and technological model for the development of the geological industry is being formed. Among the long-term priorities are the involvement of technogenic mineral formations in economic turnover, systematic work on the inventory of groundwater deposits, and the training of specialists of a new formation - geologists, engineers, and analysts capable of working in the conditions of digital transformation of the industry. A geological cluster is being created in Astana, which will include an analytical laboratory, a core storage facility, and a geological information storage facility. The center will unite personnel and technical resources and will contribute to the acceleration of specialized research.

Kazakhstan possesses significant mineral resource potential and is considered by investors as one of the priority regions for exploration, extraction, and processing of minerals. The country has about 10,000 deposits, with total reserves of key raw materials amounting to over 2.3 thousand tons of gold, 4.3 billion tons of oil, 3.8 trillion cubic meters of gas, 33.5 billion tons of coal, and 26.7 billion tons of iron. A significant part of the resource base is formed by rare earth metals, including the Kuiryqtykol deposit discovered in 2025 with reserves of about 800 thousand tons of cerium, neodymium, yttrium, and other elements.

As part of the execution of the instruction of the Head of State, work continues to increase the geological and geophysical study of the country’s territory to 2.2 million square kilometers. To date, the indicator has reached almost 2.04 million square kilometers. It was emphasized that funding for geological study of subsoil has been increased tenfold and will amount to about $500 million in the next 3 years.

During the forum, attention was paid to the development of international cooperation and the exchange of experience in the field of geological exploration and subsoil use with the introduction of digital technologies and AI. Comments and proposals on expanding interaction were made by the Minister of Industry and Construction of the Republic of Kazakhstan Yersaiyn Nagaspayev, Deputy Minister of Mining Industry and Geology of the Republic of Uzbekistan Rustam Yusupov, Head of the Main Department of Geology under the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan Ilkhomjon Oymukhammadzoda, and others.

As part of his participation in the forum, the Prime Minister inspected the "Zhas Geolog" stand, the mineral exposition, and the model of the geological cluster.

 

Ambassador of the Republic of Kazakhstan to Serbia Madi Atamkulov held meetings with the management of Mambikom Agrar and Korali companies, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan reports.

During the meeting with Mambikom Agrar CEO Vladimir Tesla, the parties discussed the current status and next steps for implementing the project to build a frozen fruits and berries processing plant in Kazakhstan. The Serbian businessman confirmed his intention to invest in the project and expressed readiness to continue working in close cooperation with Kazakh partners. In this context, key stages of further cooperation were agreed.

The Ambassador and Mambikom Agrar leadership expressed confidence in the project’s potential to develop Kazakhstan’s agro-industrial sector, create new jobs, and strengthen economic cooperation between Kazakhstan and Serbia.

In the meeting with Korali’s management, the Serbian side presented solutions for urban improvement.

Korali expressed readiness to cooperate with Kazakh partners to localize production of its products for expansion into regional markets.

 

The Kazakh President, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, today met with the Chairman of the Management Board at Sberbank, German Gref, Qazinform News Agency cites Akorda.

During Thursday’s meeting, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and German Gref discussed the key challenges in the banking sector development, the impact of the current geopolitical situation on the economies of the region’s countries, as well as prospects for the application of digital solutions and artificial intelligence in the financial sector.

 

The Ambassador of Kazakhstan to the Hellenic Republic, Timur Sultangozhin, paid a visit to the Region of Central Macedonia, where he held a series of meetings with business leaders and visited key industrial enterprises across the region, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan reports.

During the visit, the Ambassador was briefed on the operations of companies active in a range of sectors, including elevator manufacturing, paints and coatings, food production, cosmetics, medical equipment, and retail. Particular focus was placed on identifying opportunities to develop partnerships with Kazakh counterparts.

He also held substantive discussions with the leadership of the Thessaloniki Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Business Association of the Industrial Zone of Thessaloniki on ways to strengthen business ties between Kazakhstan and Greece. The discussions highlighted a number of promising areas for cooperation, including manufacturing, agribusiness, logistics, and investment.

In his meetings, the Ambassador outlined Kazakhstan’s ongoing economic reforms and the range of government support measures available to foreign investors, including tax incentives, investment agreements, and project facilitation tools. Both sides expressed strong interest in expanding business contacts and agreed to support the development of concrete joint projects involving Greek companies in Kazakhstan.

As part of the program, the Ambassador also visited the International Hellenic University, where he met with the university’s leadership. The two sides agreed to advance academic cooperation through partnerships between universities, as well as student and faculty exchanges and joint educational and research initiatives.

Overall, the visit underscored the growing interest of the Greek business community in the Kazakh market and highlighted the strong potential to further expand bilateral trade, economic, and investment cooperation.

 

The Ambassador of the Kazakhstan to the Singapore, Askar Kuttykadam, held a meeting with Jasmine Quah Zubair, Director of the Americas, Europe and Central Asia Division at the Ministry of Trade and Industry of Singapore.During the meeting, the parties discussed the current state and prospects of bilateral trade and economic cooperation, and exchanged views on key issues of the global economic agenda, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan reports.

The Ambassador of Kazakhstan informed the Singaporean side about the adoption of the new Constitution of the Republic of Kazakhstan, marking the beginning of a qualitatively new stage in the development of a Just and Progressive Kazakhstan.

It was noted that the establishment of a transparent and sustainable system of public administration, along with other important reforms, contributes to strengthening long-term partnerships between the state and business. The parties also discussed the current state of the global economy, including the fragmentation of global markets, increasing competition for investment, as well as the impact of geopolitical tensions and logistical risks. Ambassador Kuttykadam briefed his counterpart on Kazakhstan’s current economic performance.

It was noted that GDP growth reached 6.5% in 2025, driven by manufacturing, construction, transport, and services. Kazakhstan entered the top 50 largest economies in the world for the first time, reflecting the effectiveness of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s strategy aimed at ensuring sustainable growth and economic diversification. The interlocutors discussed priority areas of bilateral cooperation, including energy, digitalization and artificial intelligence, water technologies, the green economy, as well as critical minerals and innovation. In the context of investment cooperation, the Kazakh side presented the Alatau City multifunctional urban cluster project as a promising platform for Singaporean companies to access the markets of Kazakhstan, Central Asia, and neighboring regions.

The parties also emphasized the importance of the full implementation of the Agreement on Trade in Services and Investment between Kazakhstan and Singapore and expressed their readiness to convene the first meeting of the Joint Committee on its implementation in the near future. During the meeting, the Singaporean side was also informed about Kazakhstan’s key international initiatives with a strong economic dimension, including the Regional Environmental Summit to be held in Astana on 22-24 April 2026 and President Tokayev’s initiative to establish an International Water Organization.

Following the meeting, the parties reaffirmed their mutual interest in further strengthening Kazakhstan-Singapore cooperation and expanding practical engagement across a wide range of areas, including in the context of preparations for upcoming high-level and top-level visits.

 

Ambassador of Kazakhstan to Finland Azamat Abdraimov met with Minister of Economic Affairs of Finland Sakari Puisto, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan reports.

Azamat Abdraimov informed the Minister about the results of the recent national Referendum on the adoption of the new Constitution of Kazakhstan. Sakari Puisto congratulated Kazakhstan on the successful conduct of the Referendum and the adoption of the new Constitution, emphasizing the importance of this step for the country’s further political and economic development.

The Kazakh diplomat noted that Kazakhstan attaches great importance to strengthening cooperation with Finland and stands ready to actively support the implementation of joint projects in both the tourism and economic sectors. He underlined that the potential of bilateral cooperation significantly exceeds the current level and expressed confidence that new initiatives will provide additional momentum to the partnership’s development.

The main focus of the talks was the discussion of prospects for cooperation in the field of tourism. The parties noted the growing interest of Finnish citizens in Kazakhstan’s cultural and natural heritage, as well as the potential for increasing tourist flows in both directions. The discussions covered opportunities for expanding direct routes, promoting joint tourism products and exchanging experience in developing modern tourism infrastructure. Minister S.Puisto highlighted Finland’s interest in deepening partnership in sustainable tourism and introducing innovative solutions.

In addition to tourism, the parties reviewed the current state and prospects of economic cooperation. Issues of investment collaboration, innovation development, support for small and medium-sized businesses, as well as technology exchange in the fields of the "green" economy and high-tech industries were addressed.

The parties agreed to continue an active dialogue and develop concrete steps to advance joint projects aimed at strengthening ties between Kazakhstan and Finland.

 

As part of the international energy conference CERAWeek, a delegation from Kazakhstan took part in the session "Global Oil Market Outlook: Fundamental Factors and Geopolitical Turbulence", Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan reports.

During his remarks, the Minister of Energy of the Kazakhstan Yerlan Akkenzhenov presented the current state of Kazakhstan’s oil industry, emphasizing that the country continues to uphold its position as a reliable supplier of energy resources to the global market.

The Minister outlined the key challenges facing the sector, including energy security issues, in particular the need to ensure the stable operation of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC), which handles the majority of Kazakhstan’s oil exports. He stressed the importance of maintaining uninterrupted operations along this route, given its critical role in the national economy.

Particular attention was also given to improving the investment climate in the oil and gas sector. The Minister highlighted the implementation of the Enhanced Model Contract, which provides tax incentives and is designed to attract new investments into geological exploration and hydrocarbon production.

Strategic plans for the development of the petrochemical industry were also presented. Kazakhstan intends to double its oil refining capacity, which will not only meet domestic demand but also strengthen the country’s position as a supplier of petroleum products in the Central Asian region.

In addition, on the sidelines of CERAWeek, Minister Akkenzhenov held meetings with U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright and senior executives of major American oil and gas companies.