Baiterek Holding Working on $2 Billion in Projects With Foreign Investors

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ASTANA — Baiterek National Investment Holding has been developing projects involving foreign investors worth approximately $2 billion since the beginning of 2026, as the country works to attract capital for industrial production, infrastructure and technology, said Saken Olzhabayev, the holding’s managing director for international cooperation.

In an interview with Zakon.kz, Olzhabayev discussed the financing mechanisms behind Kazakhstan’s investment agenda and the challenges of converting foreign capital into domestic production. In the first nine months of 2026, Baiterek and its subsidiaries signed 79 documents with international partners, ranging from preliminary agreements to financing contracts.

Kazakhstan has set a target of attracting $150 billion in foreign direct investment by 2029. According to Olzhabayev, Baiterek’s role includes identifying industrial projects, structuring financing and connecting businesses with foreign investors.

“In 2026, the target for supporting the real economy through the holding’s instruments stands at eight trillion tenge [US$17.9 billion], with planned capitalization of one trillion tenge [US$2.24 billion]. The state capital provides a basis for attracting additional resources,” said Olzhabayev.

From investment agreements to financing

Baiterek’s database of prospective foreign investors included 163 companies from 35 countries as of the end of the third quarter of 2026. The United States accounted for the largest number of potential investors, while the holding also maintained contacts with companies and financial institutions across Europe and Asia.

South Korea accounts for one of the largest packages of agreements. During a state visit by Kazakhstan’s president in September, Baiterek and its subsidiaries worked on nine commercial documents, six of which included financing and investment commitments valued at a combined $2.45 billion.

Among them is a strategic agreement between Qazaqstan Investment Corporation (QIC) and the Korea Overseas Infrastructure and Urban Development Corporation (KIND) to establish a joint investment fund. Its initial planned volume is $200 million, with a possible increase to $1 billion. The fund would target infrastructure, logistics, energy and urban development.

Development Bank of Kazakhstan also signed a declaration with South Korea’s export credit agency, K-SURE, providing for insurance coverage of up to 200 million euros (US$224 million). The first potential project involves attracting 48 million euros (US$53.78 million) for a ferrosilicon plant in Ekibastuz, an industrial city in the Pavlodar Region. 

Separately, the Development Bank of Kazakhstan signed a credit agreement of up to $200 million with Germany’s KfW development bank, backed by a guarantee from the World Bank Group’s Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), to finance renewable energy projects.

A proposed investment fund involving China’s Silk Road Fund, QIC and Sturgeon Capital Kazakhstan has a target size of up to $200 million, with at least 70% intended for projects in Kazakhstan. The parties have agreed on the principal terms, with final investment agreements pending.

Olzhabayev highlighted the distinction between signing agreements and securing financing, noting that the documents involve different levels of commitment.

“A memorandum records intentions, an agreement on principal terms establishes the parameters of a future transaction, while a credit agreement or loan contract establishes specific obligations. The next stage involves fulfilling financing conditions and disbursing funds. What matters to us is not the number of intentions documented, but the quality of their implementation and the fulfillment of the commitments undertaken,” he explained.

Foreign partnerships and domestic production 

Baiterek is also working with foreign companies on several industrial projects, including greenhouse complexes in Shymkent with Türkiye’s Alarko Holding, an egg-processing facility with Denmark’s Thornico Group and a hybrid power plant in the West Kazakhstan Region with Switzerland’s NovaH2. The projects are at different stages of preparation.

An existing example is Silk Road Electronics in Saran, which began manufacturing Samsung household appliances in August 2025 with support from the Industrial Development Fund. The plant has a design capacity of 1.1 million appliances annually and has created 250 jobs.

The Industrial Development Fund is one of several Baiterek subsidiaries providing financing at different stages of business development. The Damu Entrepreneurship Development Fund facilitates access to financing for small and medium-sized enterprises, while the Development Bank of Kazakhstan finances large industrial and infrastructure projects. QIC provides equity investment instruments, and the Export Credit Agency of Kazakhstan supports foreign sales.

“At the outset, a company may need a loan and a guarantee; as it expands, it needs equipment and additional capital, and when entering foreign markets, it needs export financing and insurance,” Olzhabayev said.

Baiterek has introduced a unified front-office service through Damu’s regional network to help businesses access financing instruments offered by different subsidiaries. In agriculture, financing extends from field operations and machinery purchases to processing and exports, involving the Agrarian Credit Corporation and KazAgroFinance.

Measuring investment outcomes

Despite the number of international agreements, their economic impact depends on whether projects secure financing and begin operations. Olzhabayev said the holding evaluates each initiative based on its progress from investment decisions to financing and implementation.

“We therefore assess the progress of each initiative. Has the project structure been agreed upon, have investment decisions been made, have contracts been signed, and has financing begun?” said Olzhabayev. 

“Then come the production outcomes: commissioning facilities, manufacturing products, creating jobs and generating export sales. The next step is to turn concrete investor interest into projects that can be implemented,” he said. 

Beyond individual project outcomes, Baiterek plans to gradually reduce its reliance on additional state funding by expanding market-based financing and reinvesting profits. According to Olzhabayev, the transition will depend on stable financial performance and returns on investments.

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