CLAAS to Launch Production in Kazakhstan
BERLIN, 28 August 2020 – CLAAS, one of the world’s largest producers of agricultural equipment, and Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Industry and Infrastructure Development have signed an Agreement for the Industrial Assembly of its products. The project was developed with the support of the Embassy of Kazakhstan in Germany.
Industrial cooperation between Kazakhstan and Germany was the subject of a December 2019 working meeting between the President of Kazakhstan, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, and Dr. Catharina Claas-Mühlhäuser, Chair of the CLAAS Supervisory Board, during the Kazakh Head of State’s visit to Germany. After the visit the Kazakh Government instituted a special working group to manage German business interaction under the leadership of the Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan, Mr. Roman Sklyar.
The project to organize the development of agricultural machinery on Kazakhstan’s territory was supervised by the Foreign Ministry’s Committee on Investments, the Embassy of Kazakhstan in Germany, Kazakh Invest, and the Kazakh Ministry of Agriculture.
CLAAS is a world-class leading producer of agricultural machinery and the largest among European manufactures. The entry of a renowned German company into Kazakhstan is a landmark event for all domestic farmers who have long been in need of affordable high-performance equipment.
Taking into account the COVID-19 pandemic, the signing ceremony took place via video link with the participation of representatives of the Ministry of Industry and Infrastructure Development, Kazakhstan’s Embassy in Germany and the CLAAS Group. Vice-Minister Amaniyaz Yerzhanov signed the document on behalf of the Ministry of Industry and Infrastructure Development, while CLAAS’ Regional Director for Eastern Europe and the CIS, Mr. Nils Roitsch, signed on behalf of the German side.
During the signing, Kazakhstan’s Ambassador to Germany, Dauren Karipov, emphasized that the Agreement marks the start of long-term mutually beneficial cooperation and will serve as the basis for high-tech production in Kazakhstan. He also expressed the wish that in the near future products manufactured under the Agreement will bear the “Made in Kazakhstan” mark.
The new assembly plant will be located in the North Kazakhstan region. The first stage of the assembly will see the production of the TUCANO harvester, and will comprise the installation of specialized equipment and the training of technical personnel.
The project will be implemented jointly with CLAAS’ official representative in Kazakhstan, the CT-Agro company. The Governor’s Office of the North Kazakhstan region produced a land plot and corresponding infrastructure for the project. As a result, the regional economy will see about 3.4 billion tenge of investments, and CLAAS will use its own funds for financing. About 200 new jobs will be created at the initial stage.
Under the agreement, the company will gradually increase the localization of components, and will also train personnel in order to advance production.
Upon reaching its designed capacity, the enterprise will produce up to 200 unites of agricultural machinery (harvesters, tractors, and seeding complexes) per year, which will be used to improve the quality of Kazakhstan’s machine and tractor fleet.