“Dear Marat Karimzhanovich, I carefully listened to your optimistic report: ‘We propose, we will do, we will launch.’ However, the further the implementation deadlines stretch, the more appealing the figures sound. Unfortunately, I do not share your optimism.
Issues with railway infrastructure. The state of the railway infrastructure leaves much to be desired: 61% of locomotives are outdated.
Problems in road construction. Over the past 10 years, only one road has been completed ahead of schedule and without a cost increase – the BAKAD. And that was thanks to foreign contractors. Meanwhile, domestic companies face bureaucratic obstacles created by ‘KazAvtoZhol’: inflated costs and endless extensions of deadlines.
Questions. First – in July, the Development Bank of Kazakhstan allocated 450 billion tenge to ‘KazAvtoZhol’. What is the overall debt burden of the company? Under what conditions was this loan provided, and how does the company plan to repay it?
Second – why do foreign companies build roads faster, with higher quality, and without cost revisions, while Kazakhstani companies encounter constant delays?
The critical situation with the road to the Big Almaty Lake (BAL). This strategically important high-altitude road, stretching 15 kilometers and linking Almaty with BAL, collapsed into a ravine three years ago. This road supplies the largest city in the country with drinking water.
The project for its major repairs was developed back in 2021 and received a positive conclusion from the state expertise. However, repairs have yet to start.Question – when will the road be repaired? Perhaps it should be transferred to the balance of the city of Almaty if the ministry cannot ensure timely repairs?” asked the member of parliament.
The Minister of Transport responded:
“Debt burden of ‘KazAvtoZhol’. In July, the Development Bank of Kazakhstan allocated 435 billion tenge to the company at a base rate plus 0.75%. The amount was provided in various currencies.
The funds are directed towards conducting medium repairs, which are 10 times cheaper than major repairs and twice as fast in terms of implementation, as they do not require design and estimate documentation, only departmental expertise.
Why are foreign contractors faster? Foreign companies participate in projects funded by international financial institutions, where turnover requirements exceed 100 million dollars. Kazakhstani companies do not have such resources.
To address this issue, we are breaking down sections into smaller parts and negotiating with foreign banks so that Kazakhstani companies can be included in the consortium and receive conditional discounts.
The main goal is to maximize the involvement of Kazakhstani companies,” noted Marat Karabaev.
The Chairman of the Committee for Road Transport, Toligen Abdullin, responded to the question about BAL, stating that the Almaty – space station road (the section to BAL) is indeed federal. The project for major repairs was developed in 2021, but its implementation has been delayed due to a budget deficit.
“We plan to start repairing this road next year. After the repair work is completed, the road will be handed over to the Almaty city akimat for further maintenance,” he added.