Source: Kazakhstan invites South Korean businesses to participate in Alatau City development

Kazakhstan and South Korea may implement more than 40 joint projects worth 4 billion US dollars, Qazinform News Agency reports.

The 11th Kazakhstan-Korea Joint Commission on Trade, Economic, and Scientific-Technical Cooperation took place in Astana with the participation of representatives from ministries and government agencies.

Kazakhstan’s Minister of Industry and Construction, Yersain Nagaspaev, stated that the upcoming visit of Head of State Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to Seoul this September will play an important role in advancing bilateral relations.

According to Nagaspaev, trade between the two countries reached 3.17 billion US dollars in 2025, while South Korean direct investment in Kazakhstan over the last ten years amounted to 8 billion US dollars.

More than 700 companies with South Korean capital are currently active in Kazakhstan.

A total of 46 projects valued at approximately 4 billion US dollars are under development. Nagaspaev also stressed the strategic significance of the new city of Alatau as a center for investment, technology, urban development, digitalization, and sustainable growth. South Korean companies have been invited to share their expertise in high-tech urban infrastructure.

Yevgeny Kim, Deputy Chairman of the Investment Committee of Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, described Alatau as a major component of the country’s new economic growth model. He noted that more than 50 investment projects worth over 2 trillion tenge are currently under consideration.

The plans include the creation of joint working groups focused on green energy, artificial intelligence, critical minerals, and infrastructure development. South Korea’s Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, Kim Jung-Kwan, noted the expansion of cooperation into new sectors, including critical minerals, technology, and smart city development. He also welcomed President Tokayev’s upcoming state visit to Seoul in September 2026.

Earlier, South Korea agreed to purchase 18 million barrels of Kazakh oil through alternative routes amid instability in the Middle East.