In a Facebook post, Aida Balayeva, the minister of culture, said that unlawful content posted on social media could lead the government to block access to the platform. Balayeva said on January 31 that the government “very rarely resorts to prohibitive measures,” although websites and social platforms are often subject to blockages or throttling. On January 28, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev had ordered the government to enforce the responsibility of social media platforms on the content they publish.
Kazakhstan’s government announced on January 28 a range of measures that will increase the tax and tariffs burden. Under the guise of a “tax optimization,” officials said that gasoline prices, VAT, and corporate tax will gradually increase. Tokayev asked his fellow citizens to “tighten their belts” once again. [Read more here.]
Deputy Prime Minister Serik Zhumangarin said at the meeting that the government is still mulling increasing the value-added tax rate. The government plans to earn trillions of tenge from the tax increase, although putting up VAT from the current rate of 12% will mostly affect consumer prices and the price of imported goods.
On January 28, Nurlan Zhakupov, the head of Samruk-Kazyna, said the national holding transferred 1.3 trillion tenge ($2.5 billion) to the state budget in 2024. Around 877 billion ($1.7 billion) were dividends from state-owned companies (up from 238 billion in 2023), while the rest were allocated to finance social projects.
The ministry of finance said on January 31 that it would consider easing the limit on monitoring mobile person-to-person transfers. In an effort to uncover the gray economy, the government had previously pledged to monitor accounts receiving more than 100 transfers or transfers worth more than 255,000 tenge ($490) each month. Now, it plans to increase the minimum threshold to one million tenge ($1,900) for three consecutive months.
On January 28, Tokayev ordered the government to kick-start negotiations with the international partners in the production sharing agreements that regulate some of the largest oil fields. “The extension of PSA contracts [should include] updated terms that are beneficial for the country,” Tokayev said. Two of the largest PSAs operate the Kashagan and Karachaganak oil and gas fields.
Energy minister Almasadam Satkaliyev said on January 29 that the government plans to increase its share in Tengizchevroil, one of the country’s largest oil and gas projects. State-owned Kazmunaigas holds a 20% stake in the joint venture (down from the 50:50 original 1993 agreement with US giant Chevron). Satkaliyev did not mention which of the partners (including Exxon with 25% and Lukoil with 5%) would sell all or part of their shares.
Satkaliyev also spoke about Kazakhstan’s nuclear future, saying the government expects the country’s first nuclear power plant to be built within the next eight years. Neither the location nor the contractor have yet been selected. Satkaliyev added that the country could soon decide to build more nuclear power plants. In October last year, Kazakhstan’s population said ‘yes’ to nuclear power in a controversial referendum. Activists who protested against the decision are still being kept in pre-trial detention. [Read more here.]
Bolat Zhamishev left on January 31 the post of head of the Kazakhstan Khalkyna social fund, as his term ended. Former deputy chief Lyazzat Chinkisbayeva replaced Zhamishev. The fund has received criticism since its establishment in January 2022, in the aftermath of Qandy Qantar, the violent repression of public protests during which at least 238 people were killed.
A court in Almaty handed down sentences to 44 defendants on January 27 for their participation in Qandy Qantar, the protests that shook Kazakhstan in January 2022. Arman Dzhumageldiyev (known as ‘Wild Arman’), Kairat Kudaibergen, and Ruslan Iskakov were among the high-profile characters charged with the organization of violent riots. [Read more here.]
The ministry of interior said on January 31 that only about 40% of the military weapons seized during Qandy Qantar has been recovered. Of the 2,960 units that were stolen during the 2022 turmoil, officials have regained possession of just 1,226 units, the ministry told Vlast.
Fuel prices are due to increase starting in February, Satkaliyev said on January 28 at a government meeting. The government scrapped price regulations, but will retain control over price increases.
Azerbaijan’s state-owned energy company SOCAR said on January 30 that it started pumping oil from Kashagan through the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline for the first time. The Kashagan offshore field, operated by Italy’s Eni and Dutch-British Shell and produced around 16 million tons of oil last year, will allocate annually 240,000 tons of oil to be exported via BTC. Kashagan oil is transported via tanker from the field to the port of Baku.
Fortebank, a mid-sized lender, placed Eurobonds worth $400 million at the Vienna Stock Exchange and at the Astana International Financial Center (AIX) on January 28. This marks the first Eurobond issue by a Kazakhstani lender in 12 years.
David O'Sullivan, the European Union’s special envoy for sanctions, traveled to Kazakhstan on January 30 and said that a new sanctions package could include companies from Kazakhstan. O’Sullivan hinted that Kazakhstani companies could be included for their role in aiding the Russian military. [Read more here.]
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