The expansion of the French engineering company Alstom in Kazakhstan were discussed by Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov and president of the company in Africa, Middle East and Central Asia Andrew DeLeone, DKNews.kz reports.
The Prime Minister noted that Alstom is a major manufacturer of electric locomotives and point drives, as well as one of the main participants in the modernization program of the railway industry in Kazakhstan.
"The company also acts as a competence center, thanks to which a new generation of trained highly qualified engineers is emerging in our country. The government of Kazakhstan is ready to continue long-term cooperation with Alstom" Alikhan Smailov
He added that maximum favorable conditions are created for investors in the republic: tax and customs privileges, infrastructure, state support measures etc. are provided. Thanks to this a number of projects in railway engineering and production of electric buses with foreign participation are being successfully implemented now.
"The main factor of support from the Government is the high percentage of production localization. We welcome Alstom's intentions to expand its sphere of activity by producing components for electric locomotives and establishing service centers. At the same time, we propose to consider the issue of full-scale production with high localization and full-cycle with the involvement of Kazakhstani enterprises. For our part, we are ready to assist in the implementation of new investment projects" Alikhan Smailov
In turn, Andrew DeLeone confirmed the company's interest in the further development of production in Kazakhstan and the implementation of new projects.
"We have been working in the republic for over 10 years. During this time we have invested hundreds of millions of euros and provided jobs for hundreds of people. This demonstrates the high level of our strategic partnership. The visit of the President of Kazakhstan to France last year also gave a significant impetus to its development. There is a very big incentive for French companies to continue to invest in Kazakhstan" Andrew DeLeone
He added that Alstom is considering investing another 50 to 100 million euros to build its service centers throughout the republic.
"We also want to support the development of new locomotives and increase infrastructure capacity across the country to improve transportation safety" Andrew DeLeone
During the meeting, the sides also discussed the prospects for Kazakhstan's transit-transport sphere, in particular the expansion of the Trans-Caspian international transport route.
