Press Release: Kazakhstan-BeNeLux International Environmental Forum
On 25 November 2021, the Kazakhstan-BeNeLux International Environmental Forum was held, organised by the BeNeLux Chamber of Commerce Association together with the KazEnergy Association and the Kazakhstan Association of Regional Environmental Initiatives "EcoJer."
The Forum addressed issues of global ecology, in particular the tools needed to reduce industry's negative impact on the environment, the development of green energy and technology for a low-carbon economy, including industrial waste management.
Denis Van den Weghe, President of the BeNeLux Chamber of Commerce, stressed the strong interest of BeNeLux companies in Kazakhstan, confirmed by data from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan, according to which total trade turnover between the BeNeLux countries and Kazakhstan from 2017 to 2019 amounted to €15.2 billion. Foreign direct investment from the BeNeLux countries since 2005 has totalled more than €68.9 billion.
Forum participants noted the importance of continuing fruitful cooperation with the Government of Kazakhstan and all partners to draw the attention of the business community and society to the economic and social opportunities of transitioning to a carbon-neutral economy, as well as to decarbonisation and the infrastructure transformation needed for low-carbon, sustainable development.
According to R. Sultanov, Chairman of the Board of the Economic Research Institute, an ESG Sustainable Development Project Office has recently been established, and a working group has been set up under the Ministry of National Economy, to which companies from the BeNeLux countries have been invited to help develop proposals.
Speakers also shared case studies aimed at achieving carbon neutrality and reducing their carbon footprint.
ERG's Director of Environmental Protection, Talgat Torebekov, spoke about the company's environmental strategy:
"Today ERG's enterprises meet Kazakhstan's regulatory requirements. But the Group aims to meet the highest standards. That is why the company has adopted its own Environmental Strategy, which will help significantly reduce emissions: particulate matter by 56% and pollutants by 30%. Meanwhile, the processing and sale of secondary materials recovered from production waste will reach up to 2 million tonnes through the ERG Recycling company."
Investment in the programme through 2030 will total around $1.6 billion.
One of ArcelorMittal Temirtau's priorities is to reduce the environmental burden of its production activities. The company is investing significant funds in the phased introduction of the best available technologies, aiming to achieve European-level concentrations of pollutants at emission sources. With its planned investment measures, AMT will be able to reduce emissions across the entire production chain and achieve environmental efficiency by 2025.
The Forum was attended and addressed by representatives of the Ministry of Ecology, Geology and Natural Resources of Kazakhstan, the Ambassadors of the BeNeLux countries to Kazakhstan, Eurasian Resources Group (ERG), KazMunayGas National Company, ArcelorMittal Temirtau, the Economic Research Institute, PwC, KazEnergy, EcoJer, Food Ventures, Witteveen+Bos Caspian, and Signify Philips.
