Aktau Caspian seaport to be managed by foreign operator

Aktau port. Photo courtesy of portaktau.kzKazakhstan's Aktau seaport, currently undergoing an expansion upgrade, may be transferred to foreign management, deputy chairman of the board of JSC Kaznex Invest Kairat Karmanov said on Nov. 29 at a press conference in Astana, trend.az reports.

"A Spanish company shows interest in taking control of the Aktau seaport. Now a Spanish delegation is in Kazakhstan. Its members study all issues. In addition, Turkish companies have expressed a wish to take the Aktau seaport under their management," he said.

Foreign companies are ready not only to manage, but also to invest, the company's deputy chairman said.

According to Karmanov, Arab companies are demonstrating an interest to the Khorgos dry port and are willing to take over the management.

"There is a high probability that the management here will be at the proper level with the arrival of foreign investors, because local companies have not yet learned how to manage it, and they need time to develop," Karmanov said.

It is planned to bring the capacity of Aktau seaport in Kazakhstan to 18 million tons of cargoes by 2020, tengrinews.kz reported late May 2013, citing Kazakhstan Minister of Regional Development Bakytzhan Sagintayev.