Round Table with the Atameken National Chamber of Entrepreneurs

28 February, Astana
The Atameken National Chamber of Entrepreneurs of Kazakhstan, together with the BeNeLux Chamber of Commerce Association, successfully held a round table on "Implementing the Head of State's Address to the People of Kazakhstan of 1 September 2023, 'The Economic Course of a Just Kazakhstan', with Regard to Granting Priority Subsoil-Use Rights to Investors Conducting Geological Exploration at Their Own Expense."

The event was attended by Presidential Adviser Bolat Akchulakov, members of the Senate of the Parliament of Kazakhstan, heads of the Ministry of Energy, the Committee of Geology, and the Kazakhstan Council of Foreign Investors Association, veterans of the geological sector, public figures, independent experts and entrepreneurs.

Participants expressed concern over the absence of concrete steps in implementing the measures outlined in the Address, discussed the potential for improving the investment climate in subsoil geological exploration, and highlighted the importance of granting investors priority rights to explore and produce hydrocarbons within licensed areas.

In his remarks, BeNeLux Chamber of Commerce President Denis Van den Weghe stressed that the BeNeLux region (Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg) is the number one investor in Kazakhstan, and that improving the investment climate in subsoil geological exploration and amending the relevant legislation are therefore important steps for developing the business environment and attracting investment into the country, thereby supporting the economic course of a Just Kazakhstan.