Over 60 large Dutch companies operate in Kazakhstan
The Netherlands is number one investor by the amount of direct investment in Kazakhstan. Bilateral trade turnover between the two countries for only 9 months of last year amounted to more than $4 billion, a correspondent of Khabar 24 reports.
And over the past 15 years of economic partnership, the inflow of direct investment from the Netherlands to our country has exceeded $90 billion. In September, the Netherlands-Kazakhstan Business Association resumed its work in The Hague. At the first meeting of the bilateral economic association this year, entrepreneurs and diplomats reached a common understanding on the cooperation plans for this year.
Kazakhstan exports to the Netherlands crude oil and petroleum products, ferroalloys, titanium and its products and imports medicines, machinery and equipment, high-tech devices, and agricultural products. Today, over 800 joint ventures operate in Kazakhstan. Last fall, during the visit of the Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Askar Mamin to the Netherlands, new horizons of trade and economic cooperation were discussed.
Magzhan Ilyasov, the Ambassador of the Republic of Kazakhstan in the Netherlands:
- The emphasis was placed on the development of trade in non-primary fields - agriculture, transport, logistics, information technology. Today's event aims at inviting to cooperation in precisely these areas. Therefore, Dutch businessmen came here who are interested in working in the areas which are new to them, there is a lively interest, many questions were asked.
Andre Carstens, the Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Kazakhstan:
- There is already close co-operation between us, and we already have a significant position, but this, in my opinion, is only the beginning. It is very important in the field of agriculture, for example, and simultaneously in the development of energy types - solar, wind.
The Netherlands is the largest investor in the economy of Kazakhstan. Dutch companies have been operating in our country since the first years of independence. Today's investors are increasingly interested in working with local partners.
Dirk Aleven, CEO of Green Capital Kazakhstan:
- We started investing in Aktobe in 2017, invested 30 million euros in the economy of this region. We intend to invest the same amount over the next two years. We want to stay in this region for the next 10-20 years, and we have no reason to leave Kazakhstan. In Aktobe there is a sufficient amount of natural gas, good business opportunities, proximity to the Russian market and a favorable climate for greenhouse business: it is cold, but there are many sunny days per year.
The Netherlands is the logistic port of Europe. Kazakhstan is becoming the transport hub of Central Asia. This provides great opportunities for close cooperation”, says the Co-Chair of the Netherlands-Kazakhstan Business Association. Today, there are more than 60 large Dutch companies in Kazakhstan. Most of them are joint ventures, since cooperation with local partners always gives the best results.
Henk Niebuhr, the Co-Chair of the Netherlands-Kazakhstan Business Association:
- Today in Kazakhstan there are five priorities for the development of the economy, one of which is the development of the agricultural sector. The Netherlands is the second exporter of agricultural products in the world, we have very productive agriculture, and there are many investors in this field who want to expand and work abroad. Using their technologies, Kazakhstan can become a global producer of agricultural products.
In February, a conference will take place in Rotterdam presenting the energy opportunities of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, where representatives of line ministries and businesses of the two Central Asian republics and the Netherlands will discuss prospects for further investment cooperation.
Authors: Zhanat Ernst, Zhomart Akhmetov