SEPT. 24 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) — Centerra Gold, which is listed in Toronto, plans to look for another Kyrgyz mine to invest in once it has finalised an ownership deal for the Kumtor mine, its CEO Ian Atkinson told Bloomberg News. The Kyrgyz government and Centerra have been arguing over ownership of Kumtor, Kyrgyzstan’s largest industrial project.
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(News report from Issue No. 153, published on Sept. 25 2013)
SEPT. 10 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) — After days of talks, Toronto-listed Centerra Gold said it had agreed a non-binding deal with the Kyrgyz government over ownership of the Kumtor gold mine. Under the deal, Kyrgyzstan would swap its 32.7% stake in Centerra Gold for a 50% stake directly in a company that would own Kumtor. It would also pay Centerra Gold $100m.
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(News report from Issue No. 151, published on Sept. 11 2013)
AUG. 23 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) — Toronto-listed Centerra Gold and the Kyrgyz government began negotiations over the ownership of the Kumtor gold mine in eastern Kyrgyzstan. The Kyrgyz government holds a 32.7% stake in Centerra Gold, which owns Kumtor, but it says it should own more of the country’s biggest industrial asset.
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(News report from Issue No. 149, published on Aug. 26 2013)
JULY 10 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) — Kyrgyzstan’s economy yo-yos. Last year, it shrank by nearly 1%; this year estimates predict that it will grow by 7%.
The yo-yo effect depends on political stability, Kyrgyzstan has suffered two violent revolutions since 2005, as well as the health of its biggest industrial project, the Kumtor gold mine. Last year Kumtor, owned by Toronto-listed Centerra Gold, had a poor year and dragged down the entire national economy (it accounts for about 12% of Kyrgyzstan’s GDP).
And mitigating this yo-yo effect is one of the main reasons that international donors have pledged $1.7b in grants and loans to Kyrgyzstan over the next five years.
Earlier this year, the Kyrgyz government, led by President Almazbek Atambayev unveiled an ambitious $13b growth plan. Much of this, the government said at the time, relied on the financial might of Western donors and investors underpinning this ambition.
At a conference in Bishkek on July 10, the World Bank, the IMF and others matched this ambition, giving Kyrgyzstan the chance to stabilise and grow its economy. This should improve the investment environment for foreign companies looking for a foothold in Central Asia too.
The alternative for Kyrgyzstan is more economic, and political, instability
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(News report from Issue No. 143, published on July 15 2013)
JUNE 27 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) — Roughly 500 people protested near the Kumtor gold mine in east Kyrgyzstan, media reported, the latest in a series of protests against the Canadian owners of the mine. The protesters want the mine nationalised. Toronto-listed Centerra Gold owns Kumtor, the biggest industrial project in Kyrgyzstan. The Kyrgyz government owns a third of Centerra Gold.
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(News report from Issue No. 141, published on July 1 2013)
JUNE 5 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) — Production resumed at the Kumtor gold mine in Kyrgyzstan after the authorities lifted a state of emergency. Protesters demanding more benefits from the mine had blockaded the site and clashed with police. The Kyrgyz government and Toronto-listed Centerra Gold, which owns the mine, put a Sept. 10 deadline on talks for a new Kumtor ownership deal.
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(News report from Issue No. 138, published on June 10 2013)
MAY 31 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) — The Kyrgyz authorities declared a state of emergency around the Kumtor gold mine in the east of the country after thousands of protesters demanding more financial benefits clashed with police. The Kumtor gold mine, Kyrgyzstan’s biggest industrial project, is owned by Toronto-listed Centerra Gold. The Kyrgyz government owns a 33% stake in Centerra Gold.
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(News report from Issue No. 137, published on June 3 2013)
APRIL 5 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) — Kyrgyzstan started the sale of its second largest gold deposit, Jerooy, despite a $400m arbitration case levied by Kazakh investors
Visor Capital, Reuters reported. The Kyrgyz authorities tore up the previous sale of Jerooy after a revolution in 2010. Investors have become increasingly wary of Kyrgyzstan.
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(News report from Issue No. 130, published on April 5 2013)
JUNE 19 2012 (The Conway Bulletin) – Capital Group Company, owned by Russians Dmitri Korzhev and Dmirtri Troitsky, has bought a copper ore and gold mine in Georgia from GeoProMining for $120m, media reported. Capital Group Company already owns a mine in Armenia. Despite political animosity, Georgia and Russia have close business links.
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(News report from Issue No. 093, published on June 22 2012)
JUNE 19 2012 (The Conway Bulletin) – Kyrgyzstan has announced it will tender mining rights to 93 gold deposits on Aug. 20/21, media reported. Mining, especially gold, is Kyrgyzstan’s main economic lifeline and the Kumtor mine, operated by Toronto-listed Centerra Gold, accounts for around a third of the country’s GDP.
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(News report from Issue No. 093, published on June 22 2012)
