Kazakhstan and France on Wednesday signed a raft of cooperation agreements, particularly in the energy and industrial sectors, following talks between Presidents Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and Emmanuel Macron.
The French energy giant TotalEnergies, Kazakhstan’s sovereign wealth fund Samruk-Kazyna, and the national oil company KazMunayGaz have established a joint venture, “Aktas Energy LLP,” responsible for the development of a 1.2 GW wind farm known as the “Mirnyi” project.
The Kazakh government also secured a strategic investment agreement with the French group Alstom, focusing on electricity generation and the manufacturing of trains and ships. Under this agreement, Alstom will enjoy privileged status, including tax preferences and investment incentives, facilitating long-term planning for its electric locomotive production activities in Kazakhstan.
Additionally, a declaration of intent regarding cooperation in strategic raw materials and the execution of Franco-Kazakh mining and industrial projects was signed.
The French pharmaceutical firm Boehringer-Ingelheim and Kazakhstan’s Qazbiopharm agreed on a letter of intent outlining the “general terms” of a commercial contract set to start joint vaccine production against foot-and-mouth disease before the last quarter of 2024.
Two intergovernmental agreements were also finalized: one permitting the French Development Agency to establish offices in Kazakhstan, and the other concerning the opening of two French schools in Astana and Almaty and the promotion of French language instruction in the local school system.
Kazakhstan’s Energy Minister, Almasadam Satkaliyev, stated Wednesday that Kazakhstan was ready to enter negotiations with France’s EDF regarding the potential construction of a nuclear power plant in the country.
There are about 170 companies with French participation operating in Kazakhstan, including Total, Orano, Alstom, Danone, Vicat, Saint Gobain, and others engaged in high-tech projects.
Macron, who traveled to Astana with a substantial delegation of business leaders, is to join Tokayev on Wednesday in opening a business forum.
The Kazakh investment fund Samruk-Kazyna reported Wednesday that Orano, a multinational nuclear fuel cycle company, has proposed to Kazakhstan the execution of joint strategic projects abroad.
Orano collaborates with the Kazakh firm Kazatomprom, part of Samruk-Kazyna, in the joint venture KATCO, which extracts uranium in the Turkistan region of Kazakhstan and is one of the world’s largest uranium enterprises.
The Kazakh president highlighted that France has invested nearly $18.7 billion in the country. EFE