Business news

GRODNO, 19 October (BelTA) – There are plans to set up a facility in Kazakhstan’s Jambyl Oblast in 2016 to assemble Grodno Oblast agricultural machines. The relevant agreement was reached by Grodno Oblast Governor Vladimir Kravtsov and Jambyl Oblast Governor Karim Kokrekbayev on 19 October, BelTA has learned.

Karim Kokrekbayev said: “We have visited enterprises of the holding company Lidselmash. We liked very much the agricultural machines made in Grodno Oblast. I am convinced that for the sake of long-term mutually beneficial cooperation we have to set up a joint venture. The product choice is ideal for us as far as prices and quality are concerned, particularly with regard to individual farmers as well as small and medium agricultural businesses. We are interested in harvesters and other machines as well as accompanying products (hot-water radiators). We will select the site to place the assembly factory soon.” Lidselmash Director General Yuri Vashkevich specified that the sides intend to implement the new Belarusian-Kazakh project in 2016. A branch of the Belarusian agricultural mechanical engineering holding company will be created in Kazakhstan to make a broad range of Belarusian agricultural machines.

During the first meeting on 19 October the heads of the regions outlined economic, industrial, historical and cultural peculiarities of the regions to each other. It turned out that the two oblasts can productively work together in many branches of the economy as well as education, tourism, healthcare, and culture. Agribusiness is also viewed as an appealing area of mutually beneficial cooperation, in particular, technologies and innovations in the sphere of crop production, animal husbandry and processing, chemical industry, woodworking and furniture production, power engineering.

Grodno Oblast of Belarus and Jambyl Oblast of Kazakhstan intend to develop direct business contacts. Visits of delegations of the business circles will be arranged soon for the sake of working on avenues of mutually beneficial cooperation in detail and working out specific ideas for implementing joint projects. In the future it will become the foundation for creating and signing an agreement on cooperation between the regions.

Apart from agricultural machines the Kazakh side suggested setting up a joint venture to make footwear for the military, security agencies, and agriculture. As far as furniture production is concerned, the delegation was interested in direct shipments of merchandise made by relevant Grodno Oblast enterprises. Some of the Belarusian companies already export furniture to Jambyl Oblast of Kazakhstan.

A major delegation from Kazakhstan’s Jambyl Oblast led by the oblast’s Governor Karim Kokrekbayev arrived in Grodno Oblast on 19 October. Belarus welcomed several heads of administrations of the oblast’s districts, a university rector, and heads of farming and trade enterprises. The guests visited the agricultural machinery manufacturers Lidselmash and Lidagroprommash and the agricultural company Progress-Vertelishki.