The 17th meeting of the Kazakh-Iranian Intergovernmental Commission was held in Tehran under the co-chairmanship of Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan – Minister of Trade and Integration Bakhyt Sultanov and Minister of Agriculture of Iran Seyed Javad Sadati Nejad, Delovoy Kazakhstan reports.
The parties discussed issues of cooperation in the field of trade, economy and investment, agriculture, transport and logistics, banking, etc.
During the meeting, the Kazakh side proposed Iran to create a Kazakh-Iranian Business Council, which will allow building a dialogue between the business of the two countries, bypassing intergovernmental processes. As part of the expansion of trade cooperation, Kazakhstan and Iran confirmed their interest to work on a permanent basis to eliminate barriers to trade and provide support to exporting enterprises.
Bakhyt Sultanov offered the Iranian side to exchange lists of potential export goods.
"According to our calculations, in the future, Kazakhstani companies are ready to supply 60 processed goods of various industries worth $162.3 million to the Iranian market. These are products of the metallurgical, food, machine-building, chemical, pharmaceutical industries, as well as construction goods," the head of MIT said.
The issue of access of Kazakh agricultural and food products to the Iranian market was also discussed at the meeting. We are talking about approving permits for the import of products to Iran, as well as providing support for certification in accordance with Iranian Halal requirements. It was decided to conduct a regular exchange of information in the field of veterinary and phytosanitary measures, as well as to facilitate the simplification of trade procedures.
Tehran also appealed to the Kazakh side with a request to support the export of Iranian agricultural and food products, such as fruits, vegetables, dried nuts, etc. to the market of Kazakhstan.
During the IPC, Kazakhstan and Iran signed memoranda of understanding between:
- The Committee on Technical Regulation and Metrology of the Ministry of Trade and Integration of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Iranian National Organization for Standardization;
- The National Accreditation Center of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the National Accreditation Center of Iran;
- Kazakhstan Institute of Standardization and Metrology ("KazStandart") and the Iranian National Organization for Standardization.
It was also decided to hold consultative meetings on investment cooperation between Kazakhstan and Iran. The Iranian side is interested in Kazakhstan's investments in the Free Economic Zone "Enzeli" for the creation of agricultural packaging centers, as well as the use of existing production units in the region for export to the Persian Gulf countries. Kazakhstan invited the Iranian side to consider the site of the special economic zone "International Center for Cross-Border Cooperation "Khorgos" to create production facilities with a focus on exports to China.
Special emphasis was placed on the development of industrial cooperation between the two countries. An agreement was reached on the establishment of joint ventures in light industry on the territory of the FEZ in the southern regions of Kazakhstan, including the production of carpets and other products. The Iranian IDRO Group also expressed its readiness to create a consortium with Kazakhstani companies to implement engineering and technical projects.
The parties also confirmed their intentions to cooperate in the mining sector. We are talking about the possibility of concluding long-term contracts for the purchase of iron ore and bauxite, as well as the development of engineering and technical cooperation and investment in exploration and mining.
The potential for expanding joint ventures in the mining and metallurgical sector was also discussed. Currently, a project is being implemented in Iran to build the first coal-fired power plant in Iran with a capacity of 650 MW and metallurgical production for the production of a new complex alloy developed by Kazakh scientists, ferrosilicoaluminium (Kazakh alloy) with a capacity of 550 thousand tons per year. The implementation of this project will be a vivid example of a successful transfer of Kazakh intellectual property in a country that is the largest steel producer in the world.
The Iranian holding IMIDRO invests in Kazakhstan in the exploration and development of the Borly copper-molybdenum deposit (Karaganda region). The construction of a hydrometallurgical plant for the production of copper cathode with a capacity of 5,000 tons per year has begun.
Taking into account Iran's plans to develop the metallurgical industry and increase iron ore production, Kazakhstan confirmed its interest in deepening current and developing new areas of cooperation.
In the field of healthcare, the parties agreed to work out the creation of a joint venture for the production of medicines and medical devices on terms that comply with GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) and national legislations of the countries. A large block of issues discussed was devoted to the development of cooperation in the field of transport and logistics.
It was decided to make joint efforts of the two countries to attract additional cargo flows, establish favorable tariff conditions on the Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran route and work out the organization of transit container traffic on the route from India and the Persian Gulf countries to Iran - Kazakhstan, Central Asia and Russia. And also take measures to activate the movement of container trains on the China route/Iran/Turkey and back through the Incheburun and Sarakhs border crossings.
The sides also discussed prospects for expanding cooperation within the framework of the Eurasian Economic Union. Negotiations are currently underway to conclude a full-format free trade agreement between the EAEU countries and the Islamic Republic of Iran. The full-format agreement provides for the abolition and/or reduction of customs duties on at least 80% of the commodity nomenclature, which will contribute to the growth of trade between our countries.
One of the issues on the agenda of the 17th meeting of the Kazakh-Iranian Intergovernmental Commission was the development of an effective and secure mechanism for mutual settlements between the two countries. The parties agreed to consider the possibility of establishing a joint committee on banking cooperation to identify appropriate methods and tools to facilitate trade between the two countries. And also to explore the possibilities of using the local currencies of the two countries for settlements on bilateral trade funds.
In addition, the Iranian Export Guarantee Fund and the Export Insurance Company KazakhExport expressed their readiness to facilitate trade between the two countries.
As part of the intensification of trade and economic cooperation, Kazakhstan has offered Iranian airlines to resume regular flights between Kazakhstan and Iran. The parties agreed to hold the 18th meeting of the Joint Commission of the two countries in 2023 in Nur-Sultan.
