MARCH 3 2011 (The Conway Bulletin) – London-listed Oxus Gold said it doubted auditors would give a fair valuation to the 50% share of a gold mine it had agreed to sell to the Uzbek government. Oxus said it was prepared to trigger a legal battle with the Uzbek government over the value of the stake. Its shares fell 50%.
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(News report from Issue No. 30, published on March 7 2011)
FEB. 3 2011 (The Conway Bulletin) – Oxus Gold, the only publicly listed mining company operating primarily in Uzbekistan, said it had agreed to sell its 50% stake in its mines to its Uzbek partners. Oxus Gold is listed on London’s AIM. It did not say how much it had agreed to sell its stake in the Amantaytau Goldfields for.
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(News report from Issue No. 26, published on Feb. 7 2011)
FEB. 7 2011 (The Conway Bulletin) – Toronto-based Centerra Gold increased proven and probable gold estimates at its Kumtor gold mine in Kyrgyzstan by 24%. It also said the lifespan of the mine, vital for Kyrgyzstan’s economy, had lengthened by two years to 2021. In 2009, Kumtor accounted for a quarter of Kyrgyzstan’s total industrial output.
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(News report from Issue No. 26, published on Feb. 7 2011)
NOV. 22 2010 (The Conway Bulletin) – Kyrgyzstan cancelled a contract to develop its second largest gold deposit signed in 2006 between the state gold mining company and an Austrian company, Reuters reported. Kyrgyzstan said the consortium had failed to develop infrastructure as part of an agreed $200m deal. It plans to re-auction the tender.
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(News report from Issue No. 16, published on Nov. 22 2010)
OCT. 28 2010 (The Conway Bulletin) — Underdeveloped banking systems, a high rate of non-performing loans and inflexible exchange rates are potential brakes on economic recovery in Central Asia and the south Caucasus, the IMF said.
With their reliance on neighbouring Russia and global commodity prices, the global financial downturn in 2009 was tough for the economies of Central Asia and the south Caucasus. This year, with Russia and commodity prices recovering and the impact of domestic fiscal stimulus taking hold, the IMF predicts steady economic growth throughout the regions, other than for Kyrgyzstan.
Remittances from workers in Russia, so important for the poorer Central Asian and Caucasus countries, grew by 26% in the first half of 2010 compared to the same period in 2009.
The IMF said that inflation was generally under control at around 8%, although in Uzbekistan it was nearer 11%. For the IMF, the regions’ banking sectors are a concern. In Kazakhstan, the IMF pointed out, non-performing loans total nearly 26% of all loans.
IMF’s GDP % growth figures (2010 and 2011 are predictions):
Armenia +13.7 (2007); +6.9 (2008); -14.2 (2009); +4.0 (2010); +4.6 (2011)
Azerbaijan +25.0 (2007); +10.8 (2008); +9.3 (2009); +4.3 (2010); +1.8 (2011)
Georgia +12.3 (2007); +2.3 (2008); -3.9 (2009); +5.5 (2010); +4.0 (2011)
Kazakhstan +8.9 (2007); +3.2 (2008); +1.2 (2009); +5.4 (2010); +5.1 (2011)
Kyrgyzstan +8.5 (2007); +8.4 (2008); +2.3 (2009); -3.5 (2010); +7.1 (2011)
Tajikistan +7.8 (2007); +7.9 (2008); +3.4 (2009); +5.5 (2010); +5.0 (2011)
Turkmenistan +11.6 (2007); +10.5 (2008); +6.1 (2009); +9.4 (2010); +11.5 (2011)
Uzbekistan +9.5 (2007); +9.0 (2008); +8.1 (2009); +8.0 (2010); +7.0 (2011)
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(News report from Issue No. 13, published on Nov. 1 2010)