ASTANA – The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will invest €913 million (US$942.8 million) in 25 projects in Kazakhstan in 2024, marking a more than three-fold increase in annual investments. This was reported by the bank’s press office.
In 2024, the EBRD invested a record €16.6 billion (US$17.1 billion) across its member countries, registering a year-on-year growth of 26%. Photo credit: ebrd.com
Of this, 61% of the investment went to green economy projects.
“Overall, the main factor is that Kazakhstan’s economy is growing. We are a demand-driven institution. Where there is demand, there will be projects. The more demand, the more investments. This is why we are seeing an increase in demand for projects across Central Asia, especially in the private sector,” said Hussein Ojan, EBRD Managing Director for Central Asia. told Astana Times in a comment.
A milestone year in Central Asia
Last year was a record year for the EBRD’s investments in Central Asia, with investments totaling approximately 2.26 billion euros ($2.3 billion) in six countries. These numbers exceeded Ozan’s expectations. shared The Astana Times reported in October.
The bank supported 121 projects. Over 60% of the funding was allocated to sustainable infrastructure projects and over 58% to green economy projects.
“Frankly, all the stars aligned and we managed to get there,” he said. “Additionally, approximately 800 million euros ($829.4 million) in funding has been mobilized.”
In 2024, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan will secure the largest amount of funding from the EBRD in the entire region, amounting to €938 million ($968.6 million) and €913 million ($942.8 million) respectively. Ta. This makes the bank the fifth and sixth largest investment destination in the world.
Elsewhere in Central Asia, the EBRD invested €264 million ($272.6 million) in Mongolia, €88 million ($90.9 million) in Tajikistan, and €52 million ($53.7 million) in the Kyrgyz Republic. .
Major projects
Some of the projects were the first of their kind in Kazakhstan and the Central Asia region.
construction of New wastewater treatment facility The project in the city of Aktobe in western Kazakhstan, for which the EBRD provided a €96.4 million ($99.5 million) loan, became the EBRD’s largest municipal project in Central Asia.
The construction and operation of the 630-bed general care hospital in Kokshetau, in the north of the country, will receive €365 million ($376.8 million) from six financial institutions, including €105 million ($108.4 million) from the EBRD. ) secured a financing package.
Ozan emphasized that the project had been in the works for “many years.”
The loan will be provided to the Kazakhstan-based subsidiary of Turkiye’s Ronesance Holding, which is active in the construction, real estate, infrastructure, healthcare and energy sectors in 30 countries. According to the EBRD, this is an innovative public-private partnership (PPP), the first of its kind in the health sector in Kazakhstan and Central Asia.
Another milestone for the EBRD was in August when the bank First direct stock investment In the important raw material sector of Central Asia. The company has acquired a 17.36% stake in Saritgan Graphite Limited, an Australian Stock Exchange listed company exploring graphite deposits in the Karagundy region.
The bank also invested $42 million in shares of Kazakhstan’s Air Astana through an initial public offering.
“We have been discussing the introduction of renewable energy in Kazakhstan. A lot of projects have been carried out. We have been involved in almost a third of the financing for the installed capacity of renewable energy projects in Kazakhstan. ” Ozan said.
In December, EBRD also organized A €262 million ($270.5 million) loan to Kazakhstan Electricity Grid Operating Company (KEGOC), the national power grid operator that manages over 27,800 kilometers of power lines throughout Kazakhstan. The financing includes €252 million ($260.2 million) from the EBRD and a €15 million ($15.5 million) concessional loan from the Government of Canada under the High Impact Partnership on Climate Change. configured.
The funding will support KEGOC’s efforts to construct approximately 600 kilometers of 500 kilovolt high-voltage transmission lines. The project will also help connect the West Kazakhstan power system to the country’s integrated power system.
In 2024, the EBRD also financed a renewable hydrogen project in Uzbekistan, the first in Central Asia. The project will include a 20-megawatt electrolyzer and a new 52-megawatt wind farm.
The EBRD will provide a $65 million financing package to ACWA Power UKS Green H2, a joint venture between ACWA Power and Uzkimi Osanoat (UKS), the state-owned chemical industry holding company of Uzbekistan.
“We are also involved in the Temir Zhori refinancing project in Kazakhstan, which also supports one of the themes of the Trans-Caspian Corridor (Trans-Caspian International Transport Route). This is a refinancing project, but in essence “The aim is to restructure the balance sheet and utilize the funds so that KTZ can invest in other priority projects, including, as you know, the Trans-Caspian Corridor,” he said. .
private sector
Supporting the private sector is a priority for the EBRD, as envisaged in the bank’s country strategies.
In 2024, the Bank launched 188 advice projects in Kazakhstan through its SME Advice Program. More than half of these projects targeted women entrepreneurs, and 60% were located in rural areas.
The program reached more than 450 small businesses across the region.
“On the Kazakh side, we are seeing an intensification of efforts towards the modernization of the entire infrastructure sector. We see that a big national infrastructure plan is being developed. (…) We as the EBRD We will continue to support them,” Ozan said.
Globally, the EBRD invested a record €16.6 billion ($17.2 billion) in 2024, an increase of 26% year-on-year.
EBRD President Odile Renaud-Basso said the impact is both quantitative and qualitative.
“In fact, we not only broke the record, we far exceeded it,” she said. “Demand for our unique business model of lending combined with policy advice is increasing year on year. Our ability to respond to the evolving needs of our clients needs to keep pace with these changes. there is.”
