BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 23. Among the projects in Kazakhstan that the Eurasian Development Bank (EDB) is truly proud of is the construction of the "Saryarka" gas pipeline, for the implementation of which the bank allocated more than $250 million, and the financing was provided in the national currency, the Kazakh tenge, the bank told Trend.
As the bank explained, the first stage of gas pipeline construction made it possible to carry out one of the stages of gasification in the Astana region. These are 211 settlements with a population of over 2 million people.
"Literally in June of this year, traffic began on the Big Almaty Ring Road (BARR). This is the first international public-private project (PPP) in Central Asia. BARR is a 66-kilometer-long road, including 4-lane (9-kilometer-long) and 6-lane (57-kilometer) traffic sections, as well as bridges, transport interchanges, and the necessary infrastructure. BARR plays an important role in expanding transport routes on the territory of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the entire Eurasian region. The new facility will connect international road routes in the east-west direction and will help improve transport connectivity and expand opportunities for cargo transportation. The predicted volume of cargo transported in the BARR zone will increase by 87 percent in the next 15 years and reach 35.9 million tons. At the same time, BARR will bring social and environmental benefits," the bank said.
As the bank noted, EDB fully financed the construction of an international airport in the Turkestan region.
"The terminal was built in a record 11 months. The airport's capacity is 450 passengers per hour. One of the promising areas for the development of the economy of the Turkestan region is the tourism industry. The opening of the international airport has given additional impetus to the development of this sector," the bank said.
The bank noted that currently, the EDB, as part of a syndicate of lenders, is financing the expansion and modernization of Almaty Airport. The implementation of the project will double the harbor's capacity to 14 million passengers per year.
Speaking about the field of renewable energy sources, the bank said that EDB took part in financing 12 renewable energy projects in Akmola, Almaty, Zhambyl, Kyzylorda, and Turkestan regions with a total capacity of 395 MW, allocating $202 million for this.
"In the Atyrau region, financing is being carried out for a gas chemical complex for the production of polypropylene with export potential to the CIS countries and the European Union, Türkiye and China. A project for street lighting in the city of Atyrau has been implemented. Thanks to financing for the construction of a gas turbine unit, the capacity of the thermal power plant in Aktobe has increased. Funds have been allocated to modernize part of the traction stock of the national railway operator," the bank said.
As the bank added, this is only part of the EDB projects in Kazakhstan.
In total, over the 17 years of existence of the EDB, 104 projects were implemented in Kazakhstan for a total of $5.6 billion. Since the beginning of the year, investments in the Republic of Kazakhstan have exceeded $900 million. This year, among others, projects were launched in transport, energy, and the chemical industry. Kazakhstan ranks first in terms of the investment volumes of the Eurasian Development Bank.