Tag Archives: Kazakhstan

France to extradite Kazakhstan’s BTA bank ex-xhairman

OCT. 24 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – A court in France agreed to extradite the ex-chairman of Kazakhstan’s BTA Bank Mukhtar Ablyazov to either Russia or Ukraine to face charges he stole billions of dollars.

Prosecutors in Russia have accused Ablyazov of a $5b fraud and Ukraine wants to try him for stealing $400m.

Human rights advocates had argued that Ablyazov wouldn’t face a fair trial if he was extradited and that he may also be sent on to Kazakhstan where he is wanted on various charges including trying to incite a revolution.

The court in Lyon effectively overturned a previous decision by the Supreme Court in Paris that rejected Ablyazov’s extradition. It did, though, specify that neither Ukraine nor Russia were allowed to send him on to Kazakhstan.

Even so, for Kazakh president Nursultan Nazarbayev, Ablyazov’s extradition to either Ukraine or Russia is a major success and partially underlines his personal clout.

Relations between Kazakhstan and France have developed markedly over the past few years. Some have said that under former French President Nikolas Sarkozy the relationship became too cosy and a court in France is currently investigating allegations of bribes paid by French executives to secure a major helicopter deal.

Ablyazov had been a minister under Nazarbayev but increasingly positioned himself as an opposition leader. He fled to London in 2009 and fought the Kazakh government in a major legal case over funds. He was found guilty of contempt of court in London but absconded to the French Riviera where he was captured in 2013.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 206, published on Oct. 29 2014)

Kazakh police arrested Border Guards chief

OCT. 29 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Police arrested the head of the Kazakh Border Guards Services, a powerful military unit, General Nurlan Dzhulamamnov for abuse of power. It’s unclear exactly what the charges are although the arrest will come as a blow to the Border Guards Service already suffering from an image problem linked to bullying and corruption.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 206, published on Oct. 29 2014)

Kazakhstan likely to issue Islamic debt

OCT. 28 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Kazakhstan will probably issue another sovereign or quasi- sovereign bond next year following its $2.5b Eurobond issue in October, the head of the Kazakh Central Bank Kairat Kelimbetov told Reuters in an interview. Mr Kelimbetov said another debt issue would likely be made as a sukuk, a bond linked to Islamic banking principles.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 206, published on Oct. 29 2014)

Kazakhstan aims to increase oil production

OCT. 22 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – By 2020 Kazakhstan aims to be producing 100m tonnes of oil a year, up from 82m tonnes currently, media quoted a senior official as saying. The jump in production is mainly attributed to Kashagan, the giant Caspian Sea oil field, finally starting production. It has been delayed by several years.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 206, published on Oct. 29 2014)

Kazakh President appoints new minister of defence, again

OCT. 22 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Kazakh president Nursultan Nazarbayev sacked his defence minister Serik Akhmetov after only six months in the job and replaced him with the powerful mayor of Astana Imangali Tasmagambetov.

No official explanation was given for the sacking, although analysts were quick to come up with two theories.

The first is that Mr Akhmetov was linked to the former governor of the central Karaganda region, Baurzhan Abdishev, who has been tarnished by a corruption scandal. With Mr Nazarbayev pursuing an anti-corruption agenda, he may have wanted to purge his cabinet of potential problems.

The second theory is that with the Ukraine civil war rumbling on, Mr Nazarbayev wanted to ensure that his military was up to scratch. Mr Tasmagambetov is one of his most loyal lieutenants and appointing him as minister of defence will ensure that his orders are carried through effectively. Mr Tasmagambetov has previously been head of the presidential administration, prime minister and mayor of Almaty.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 206, published on Oct. 29 2014)

House price bubbles in Kazakhstan

OCT. 28 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Houses prices in Kazakhstan rose by nearly 10% last year, media quoted the IMF as saying, one of the biggest rises in the world. The spike was far higher in Almaty. Economists have warned of a bubble in Kazakhstan’s housing market.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 206, published on Oct. 29 2014)

Domestic departure blisses at Kazakh city’s Airport

ALMATY/Kazakhstan, OCT. 29 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) — It’s early, 6.30am. Almaty is quiet and wet on a late September morning.

A taxi for the airport, booked the previous night, doesn’t arrive as scheduled at the tidy mid-range hotel near the city’s wooden Russian Orthodox Cathedral.

The concierge calls and then calls again. He gets up to wait outside nervously. Finally he suggests his guests stop a car on the street and negotiate a ride to the airport, 20 minutes away. In the rain, the visitors troop out to a busy intersection and wait.

One car arrives and rejects their offer. Two minutes later, another small car pulls up. A friendly fellow with a square jaw and thick hands negotiates a fare to mutual satisfaction and the visitors hop in. “You’ll make your flight,” he reassures his new passengers. “Don’t worry.”

Despite his confidence, arrival at the airport is rushed and hectic. The visitors bound through, up an escalator, towards the domestic check-in area. Two efficient young women — one Kazakh; one Russian — check passports and issue boarding passes.

Check-in complete. Security to go. The visitors turn around to see two security stations, both well-staffed and as efficient as the check-in counter. The visitors pass through in three minutes. Suddenly they have a half hour to kill.

Almaty Airport’s domestic departures area calls to mind successful small airports like London City and Toronto’s Billy Bishop, airports that do so well because they balance passenger volume, adequate staffing, and methodical organisation carefully.

This is a plus for oil workers and executives hoping to get to Atyrau, in west Kazakhstan, with minimum fuss, as well as everybody else flying domestically from Almaty.

If there’s room for improvement — and there always is — the waiting area café would benefit from an upgrade. Lacklustre pastries and mediocre coffee stand in the way of a good passenger experience.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 206, published on Oct. 29 2014)

Kazakhstan announces budget cuts

OCT. 28 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Kazakhstan’s finance minister Bakhyt Sultanov announced cuts of $1.5b to the national budget over the next two years, a sign of tough economic times driven by sanctions on Russia and lower oil prices. The main cuts will focus on procurement and debt servicing.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 206, published on Oct. 29 2014)

Kazakhstan aims to diversify energy routes

OCT. 22 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Kazakhstan is considering diversifying its energy transit routes because of Western sanctions imposed on Russia, media reported. One option being considered is the Baku-Supsa oil pipeline that runs from the Azerbaijani capital to Supsa on the Georgian Black Sea coast.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 205, published on Oct. 22 2014)

Kazakh budget to be reviewed

OCT. 17 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – With the price of a barrel of oil falling to a four-year low, the Kazakh government has said it will review its national budget. Kazakhstan’s economy is propped up mainly by oil revenues. With oil revenues falling and with sanctions hitting Russia, Kazakhstan’s disposable income has shrunk.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 205, published on Oct. 22 2014)