Kazakhstan

D

Energy

Kazakhstan is a net exporter of oil but still relies on imports of electricity; about 10 per cent of import expenditure is on electricity from Russia. Arrears in payments for electricity have led to frequent cuts in the supply. Transmission and distribution systems are in poor condition and there have been attempts to attract foreign investment in this sector. Gas supplies have also been erratic, as Uzbekistan demands payment in hard currency.

E

Currency and Banking

The country issued its own currency, the tenge, in November 1993. The previous official currency, the Kazakh rouble, was a parallel currency to the Russian rouble and was printed in Russia. The tenge was issued at a rate of 500 roubles per tenge, dropping to 250 roubles per tenge three days later; in early 2007, 132.40 tenge equalled US$1. The National Bank of Kazakhstan, founded in 1991, has enforced a tight monetary policy and in 1995 introduced measures to regulate the banking system.

F

Commerce and Trade

Kazakhstan has become more integrated into the world economy. Foreign investment has increased, especially in the oil and natural-gas sectors. In early 1993 Chevron Corporation, an American oil company, and the Kazakh government signed an agreement on joint exploration and development of the huge Tengiz oilfield, but the lack of an effective export pipeline has hampered production. A consortium of seven international petroleum companies, the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC), signed an agreement to construct a pipeline to Novorossiysk, on the Russian Black Sea coast, which was successfully completed in 2001. In January 1994 a free-trade zone was established between Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, which was soon joined by Kyrgyzstan. Russia is still the principal trading partner; of the non-CIS trade partners, China and the EU are the leading destinations for exports and Germany and Turkey two of the leading sources of imports.

G

Labour

The labour force in 2005 totalled some 8,124,631 people. Agriculture employed about 35 per cent of the labour force, industry about 17 per cent, and the service sector about 48 per cent.

H

Transport

The railways are the principal means of transport but the system is old and in need of repair. There are some 14,204 km (8,826 mi) of track, of which about 4,000 km (2,405 mi) are electrified. Of the road system of some 258,029 km (160,332 mi) about 96 per cent is paved, but the network is poorly developed. There are three airports that handle international flights and a number of domestic airports. The major international airport is at Almaty. Air Kazakhstan replaced Kazakhstan Airlines as the national carrier in 1997.