NOV. 21 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) — The authorities in Uzbekistan have ordered residents of Tashkent to use wood as fuel to combat energy shortages, Uzbek media reported. According to one website, the order has sent wood prices in Tashkent rocketing. People in Uzbekistan have been experiencing shortages of gas and electricity for months.
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Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 162, published on Nov. 27 2013)
NOV. 21 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) — At first glance the visit of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko to Baku on Nov. 20/21 was unremarkable.
Mr Lukashenko met with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, exchanged pleasantries, pledged to bolster economic cooperation and, finally, opened a Belarusian embassy in Baku. All standard enough for presidents in the former Soviet area.
But the two countries relationship is, actually, becoming more significant on a global scale. Their shared problem is Russia which, prior to the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, was their colonial overlord.
Belarus has had to deal with a number of economic rows with Russia over the years, most recently over potash, a mineral used to produce fertiliser.
It is a member of the Russia-led Customs Union but it still clashes with its larger neighbour over gas and other trade issues.
Relations between Azerbaijan and Russia are even more strained. They have argued over gas supplies and Russia’s military support for Azerbaijan’s arch enemy Armenia.
If a relationship between two countries can be measured in terms of trade, the Belarus-Azerbaijan relationship would be booming. Media reported that trade between the two countries had increased six-fold since 2006.
Azerbaijan assembles various Belarusian trucks and tractors for the local market, key exports from Belarus, but the relationship has prospered recently mainly due to weapons and energy.
And at the core of these issues is Russia.
To reduce its dependency on Russian energy, Belarus imports gas from Azerbaijan. To counter Russia’s support for Armenia, Azerbaijan imports weapons from Belarus.
ENDS
Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 162, published on Nov. 27 2013)
NOV. 22 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) — British energy company BP plans to commission a new oil platform at the $6b Chirag Oil Project by the end of this year, media reported. The Chirag Oil Project is part of BP’s efforts to boost production at the ACG oil field in the Caspian Sea.
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(News report from Issue No. 162, published on Nov. 27 2013)
NOV. 21 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) — Kazakhstan’s upper house of parliament passed a so-called luxury tax that will increase excise duty on cigarettes and alcohol. The increase in excise duty is designed to bring prices of hard alcohol and cigarettes in Kazakhstan in line with Russia and Belarus, its Customs Unions partners.
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(News report from Issue No. 162, published on Nov. 27 2013)
NOV. 23 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) — Igor Shkolnik, son of the head of Kazakhstan’s nuclear agency Kazatomprom, has bought a 14.9% stake in Russia’s Exillon Energy for about $115m, media reported. In 2011 Mr Shkolnik bought a stake in the Orsk refinery, Russia, from Rosneft. Analysts say he holds these investments for powerful members of the Kazakh elite.
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(News report from Issue No. 162, published on Nov. 27 2013)
NOV. 25 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) — Kazakhstan-based metals and mining company ENRC completed its de-listing from the London stock exchange. The British financial authorities had started investigating ENRC earlier this year after concerns about its corporate governance. This triggered a move by the three Kazakh founders of ENRC to de-list it.
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(News report from Issue No. 162, published on Nov. 27 2013)
NOV. 15 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) — Perhaps reflecting a Russian economic slowdown, sales of cars to Russia at the GM Uzbekistan factory have fallen by a third so far this year compared to 2012, media reported quoting data from the Association of European Business. Russia is the factory’s biggest market. Russia’s economy is vital for Central Asia.
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(News report from Issue No. 161, published on Nov. 20 2013)
NOV. 18 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) — Halyk Bank, owned by Timur Kulibayev and his wife Dinara Nazarbayeva, turned down the option of exchanging its pension fund for the government’s shares in BTA Bank. By declining the swap, Mr Kulibayev potentially pit himself against Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, his father-in-law.
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(News report from Issue No. 161, published on Nov. 20 2013)
NOV. 18 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) — Halyk Bank, Kazakhstan’s second largest bank, reported that profits for the first nine months of the year grew by 4.1% compared to a year earlier, partly buoyed by an increase in consumer lending. The 8.3% increase in loans is more evidence, if it was needed, that consumer confidence in Kazakhstan has bounced back.
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(News report from Issue No. 161, published on Nov. 20 2013)
NOV. 15 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) — Navoi, in the centre of Uzbekistan, is becoming increasingly significant to the Uzbek government.
It has designated the area around the Soviet-built town a special economic zone, granting companies tax breaks and other incentives to invest there. It has also developed the airport speedily and aggressively.
Since 2007, Navoi airport has steadily increased in size and scope. On its website, the Navoi airport mission statement is simple and clear: “To become the respected major multi-modal logistics centre at the heart of Eurasia, by connecting international air, rail and overland routes into a single Hub based on Navoi International Airport.”
Uzbekistan has already spent millions on improving facilities at the Navoi airport — it hosts cooling and storage facilities and is able to process 300 tonnes of cargo every day — and now local media have reported that it plans another $35 million investment to improve fuelling facilities.
This is important for Uzbekistan and Central Asia because it puts it in direct competition with Manas airport near Bishkek and Almaty.
There is still a long way to go, of course. Manas is still the US military’s main transport base, although it will withdraw by the middle of next year, and Almaty, in Kazakhstan, is the region’s main commercial centre.
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Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 161, published on Nov. 20 2013)