Category Archives: Uncategorised

Kyrgyzstan-gold miner raises cash

SEPT. 28 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – Kyrgyzstan-focused miner Chaarat Gold said it raised £4.1m ($5.3m) by issuing 78.8m new shares in London. Labro Investments, which previously held a 25.6% stake in the company, will raise its ownership to 31.7%. Last week, Martin Andersson, owner of Labro Investments, was named non-executive chairman of the British Virgin Islands-registered company.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 298, published on Sept. 30 2016)

ADB funds road in Kyrgyzstan

SEPT. 28 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – The Asian Development Bank (ADB) agreed to issue $95m in loans and grants to Kyrgyzstan for the reconstruction of the North-South Corridor, a vital road link. The Eurasian Development Bank, the Islamic Development Bank, the Saudi Fund for Development and China’s Export-Import Bank are also participating in the reconstruction of the road.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 298, published on Sept. 30 2016)

Armenia’s PM appoints new adviser

SEPT. 24 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – Armenia’s new PM Karen Karapetyan named Shushan Sardaryan, ex- press secretary of Gazprom Armenia, as an advisor. Previously, Mr Karapetyan served as the director of Gazprom Armenia, the Russian gas giant’s Armenian subsidiary.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 298, published on Sept. 30 2016)

Oil rig catches fire in Azerbaijan’s Caspian Sea

SEPT. 26 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — A gas leak caused an explosion at an oil platform in the Guneshli oil field, off the coast of Baku.

Although nobody was injured or killed, the fire at Platform 19, will once again raise concerns about safety at oil platforms in Azerbaijan’s Caspian Sea, less than a year after at least 31 rig workers were killed at two other rigs in a storm.

SOCAR, Azerbaijan’s state-owned oil and gas company operated the platform.

It said that the fire had burned for a full day before it was brought under control by fire-fighters.

SOCAR said that all 49 workers were evacuated during the fire.

Azerbaijan’s oil industry is still trying to recover its credibility after the rig fire in December, the deadliest since the Piper Alpha fire in the North Sea killed at least 167 people in 1988.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 298, published on Sept. 30 2016)

Tajikistan’s TALCO told to cut production

SEPT. 27 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – TALCO, Tajikistan’s aluminium smelter and the country’s biggest industrial asset, should cut output to survive because aluminium prices have fallen below production costs, the company auditors said.

Tajikistan’s government has repeatedly intervened to give TALCO incentives and preferential loans but has not been able to prevent thousands of job losses.

Now production cuts are likely.

“This year, a significant decrease in the level of world prices for aluminium has impacted TALCO’s earnings. The company auditors have suggested that the management orders a cut in production in order to keep financial losses at a minimum,” TALCO said in a statement.

TALCO produced over 73,000 tonnes of aluminium in the first half of 2016, a 13.5% increase compared to the same period last year. It exports to clients in Turkey, Taiwan, Iran, British Virgin Islands, Uzbekistan and Pakistan.

Low commodity prices, though, meant it sold aluminium at a price range of $1,400-$1,600/tonne. Production costs have reached $2,000/tonne. In April, it laid off around 600 workers to cut costs.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 298, published on Sept. 30 2016)

Kazakh journalist Matayev accuses elite of stitch up

ALMATY, SEPT. 27 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — During his trial for various financial crimes, Seitkazy Matayev, the former head of the journalists union of Kazakhstan, accused Parliamentary Speaker Nurlan Nigmatullin and media tycoon Alexander Klebanov of organising his arrest in February.

The accusation that members of the Kazakh elite were behind his arrest underscores Matayev’s defiance during his trial and shines a rare spotlight on the powers and influences of the Kazakh elite. It has also peaked interest in the case, already one of the most high-profile corruption cases in Kazakhstan.

Matayev, who had once been press secretary to Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, and his son Asset are accused of stealing government money and tax evasion. Matayev’s trial is due to end on Oct. 3. Prosecutors have asked for six years and eight months jail term.

“Nigmatullin and Klebanov are among those who want to limit my professional activity by incriminating me of financial crimes,” Matayev said. “Nigmatullin once told me bluntly: ‘Give me KazTAG and everything will stop’, referring to months of harassment against me and my family.”

Nigmatullin and Klebanov have not responded.

KazTAG is the news agency which Matayev owns. He also owned the National Press Club in Almaty, which has now been destroyed.

Denis Krivosheyev, a political analyst, said Matayev’s case is reflection of the poor media environment in Kazakhstan.

“Seitkazy’s press club provided a platform for opposition journalists, which would irritate authorities to some extent, but he had also given prominence in his news outlets to topics that upset some elite members,” he said.

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(News report from Issue No. 298, published on Sept. 30 2016)

Georgian Dream fights first election as party of government

TBILISI, SEPT. 21 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — A party of protest four years ago, the Georgian Dream coalition is now the party of power bringing with it all the challenges of a track record in government.

Georgia’s parliamentary election in October is proving to be a very different experience for Georgian Dream, its billionaire backer Bidzina Ivanishvili and his supporters who ousted the government of former President Mikheil Saakashvili in 2012. Back then they just had to pull in the sizable anti-Saakashvili vote.

Now they have to defend their own record.

Cotne, 37, was drinking in a bar in the old town of Tbilisi. He summed up the prevailing mood of ordinary Georgians. It’s been a glum couple of years, with the value of the lari sliding and economic conditions worsening.

“Although I did not like the Georgian Dream party at the beginning, I voted for the them as we needed a change,” he said of how he voted in 2012. “Right now there is nobody out there that I respect and would vote for.”

The election on Oct. 8 is mainly between the Georgian Dream and the remnants of Mr Saakashvili’s United National Movement party (UNM). They are bitter enemies, an attitude reflected in a raucous campaign with its emphasis on personalities rather than policies. At its core, the Georgian Dream is more pro-Russia than the UNM.

And the difficulties of defending a governmental record in a campaign dominated by personalities is playing against the Georgian Dream, the Tbilisi-based think tank, the Georgian Institute of Politics said earlier this month.

“A weak socio-economic programme without results, a devalued currency following the Russian rouble crash, pessimism about employment and the perception of rising crime after the amnesty for prisoners in 2013,”it said in a note.

“This drowns out the improvements in health care, justice and media freedom which causes the majority of the population to conclude the country is heading in the wrong direction and turning its back on the government.”

The Georgian Dream, at least officially, has also changed its front- man. Mr Ivanishvili served as PM for a year after winning the 2012 election. Now, though, he prefers to play the role of kingmaker.

Instead, PM Giorgi Kvirikashvili, heads the party list. He has only been PM since the start of the year and has a far lower profile than Mr Ivanishvili, who the electorate believe is still driving the Georgian Dream agenda.

Still, Georgian Dream officials exude confidence.

Levan Koberidze, a Georgian

Dream parliamentary candidate, praised the government. “We were able to bring real freedom in the country. During our rule, we maintained stability and kept the country safe, avoiding armed conflicts,” he said.

“Our policy and governance bears the best interests of Georgia and everything we have done during past four years gives us an advantage over our competitors.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 298, published on Sept. 30 2016)

Kazakhstan Airline to increase flights to China

SEPT. 28 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – Kazakhstan’s flagship carrier Air Astana plans to increase air links to China and tap Kazakhstan’s potential as a transport hub. Peter Foster, the company’s CEO, said Air Astana aims to transport 1m Chinese tourists and businessmen within three years. To achieve this goal, the company aims to triple from 20 to 60 the flights it operates with China and to hire more Chinese-speaking staff.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 298, published on Sept. 30 2016)

Kazakh government appears confused over re-launching oil project

SEPT. 29 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – Kazakhstan’s government appeared confused over when the giant Kashagan oil project in the Caspian Sea would re-start production after a three year hiatus to repairs leaky pipes. It first said that Kashagan would restart on Oct. 23, surprising analysts, before correcting themselves by announcing a year-end re-start date. Analysts have been expecting a year-end re-start.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 298, published on Sept. 30 2016)

Kyrgyz President recovers

SEPT. 27 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambayev’s health has improved after he underwent medical treatment in Moscow and he is likely to return home at the weekend, his staff said in a statement. Mr Atambayev cancelled a trip to attend a session of the UN General Assembly in New York last week after complaining of chest pains during a layover in Turkey.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 298, published on Sept. 30 2016)