New horizons are opening up for economic cooperation between Kazakhstan and Germany

BERLIN, February 15, 2024. – A Kazakh government delegation headed by the Minister of Industry and Construction of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Co-chairman of the Kazakh-German Intergovernmental Working Group on Trade and Economic Cooperation Kanat Sharlapaev arrived in Berlin on a working visit.

The main purpose of the visit is the practical implementation of the agreements reached during the state visit of Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier to Kazakhstan in June and President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to Germany in September 2023.

During the visit, the second meeting of the Working Group on Financing Joint Projects and Risk Hedging was held, as well as a Round Table with member companies of the Eastern Committee of the German Economy.

More attention was paid to the further expansion of trade and economic cooperation in such priority areas for the two countries as industry, energy, trade, transport and logistics.

Germany is interested in raw materials, and Kazakhstan, in turn, is interested in German technologies. In this regards, the parties expressed interest in creating a Consortium of Kazakh and German companies to implement joint projects in the raw materials, technology and industrial sectors, especially in accordance with ESG standards.

The Kazakh side invited German partners to actively cooperate, offering profitable investment opportunities.

The participants of the events highlighted a significant interest in Kazakhstan in the way of the "green" transformation. This is due not only to cheaper energy sources in the republic, but also to the attractiveness of participation in large-scale "green" projects being implemented, as well as the country's huge prospects in the production of "green" hydrogen, steel and other energy-intensive products.

"Germany is a strategic partner of Kazakhstan in the European Union. The current geopolitical realities open up new opportunities for Kazakhstan and Germany to expand business ties in the energy, transport and agro-industrial sectors. Svevind company’s largest project for the production of green hydrogen in the West of Kazakhstan is a good example towards the development of low-carbon technologies and renewable energy sources," commented Kanat Sharlapaev.

Special attention was paid to the issues of transport and logistics, the prospects for the development of international transport corridors passing through Kazakhstan.

"Today, relations between Kazakhstan and Germany are at the highest level. Due to its advantageous geographical location at the crossroads of intercontinental transport routes, including energy supply routes, Kazakhstan can be confidently called a regional economic hub," highlighted Michael Harms, Executive Director of the Eastern Committee of the German Economy, Co-Chairman of the Kazakh-German Business Council.

In addition, the head of the delegation held constructive talks with a number of leading German companies in the fields of mining, machine tool construction and industrial equipment, medical and food industries.