December 1999

 

Written by: Irina Mukambaeva, BISNIS Representative in Bishkek

 

The Chui oblast is located in the northern part of the Kyrgyz Republic, bordering on Kazakhstan, and has a population of about 765,000. The region, the most economically developed part of Kyrgyzstan, occupies a favorable geographic position and has an extensive communications network and highly developed industry. It is also a very important transport hub of Kyrgyzstan because the oblast’s center is Bishkek, the country’s capital city, and contains major railway and highway main lines and the Manas international airport. In December 1999, renovation and upgrading of the Bishkek airport—including modernization of the landing strip, navigation equipment, the airport terminal and other facilities—will be completed. German construction company Hochtief is the general contractor for the renovations and U.S. consulting company firm CH2MHill is the project manager; the bulk of the funding came from the Japanese Government.

 

The agricultural share in the GDP of the Chui oblast is 64.2 percent, and the industrial share—35.8 percent. Grain, sugar beet, vegetables, potatoes, milk and meat are the main agricultural products produced in the Chui oblast. The main industries are food processing, light and construction material industries, nonferrous metallurgy, and industrial engineering (machine-building). Major enterprises in the oblast include: the Kara-Balta mining complex (nonferrous metals), the Kant cement and slate complex (67 percent of which was recently purchased by a Luxembourg company through a privatization tender), the Bakai company (sugar and ethylene spirits), the Ainek company (glass sheet), the Molybdenum company, the Kitlap company (noodles), the Kyrgyz Chemical-metallurgical Plant (rare-earth metals), Kasiet company (wool processing), and the Tokmak canning plant.

 

Some industries of the oblast are represented by joint ventures with foreign participation. For example, sugar and ethylene spirit are produced jointly with English partners, noodle production with Chinese partners, and gasoline and diesel fuel with U.S. partners. Currently, some of the U.S. companies operating in Kyrgyzstan are: Newmont (mining), Caterpillar (mining equipment and power generators), GlobalOne, Motorola (communications), Xerox, Coca-Cola, Procter & Gamble (consumer goods), Mayer, Brown and Platt, Leboeuf, Lamb, Green & Macrae, and Baker & McKenzie (law firms).

 

The Bishkek Free Economic Zone (FEZ) is also located in the Chui valley, near Bishkek. Having attracted foreign investment worth $4.1 million, the FEZ is a home for 416 companies: 325 enterprises with foreign investment, 152 foreign and 29 local enterprises. The most prominent investments in Bishkek the FEZ are: the Plaskap-Bishkek Plant (Turkish plastic bottle and cap maker, foreign direct investment—$18 million), Corona Ltd (Kyrgyz-Russian JV, production and bottling drinking water), Volare (U.S. apparel company), Eridan-FEZ (Kyrgyz-Russian-Irish JV, metallic-plastic windows and doors, FDI—$ 0.3 million), and Full-Mobile (Kyrgyz-Italian JV, furniture production, FDI—$0.3 million). The major benefits for a company registered in the FEZ include exemption from several kinds of taxes and duties and exception/release from quotas and licensing for the export of goods manufactured in the FEZ.

 

The Chui oblast has trade ties with 49 countries and its balance of trade is positive. The major exports are nonferrous and rare-earth metals, construction materials, yarn, and agricultural products. The main export markets are Germany, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, France, and Russia. The major imports are petroleum products, coal, and food products.

 

The most promising investment opportunities for U.S. companies are in the extraction of gold and rare-earth metals, nonferrous metallurgy, hydropower, agriculture, food processing industry, tourism, and electronics.

 

Contact Information

 

Chui Oblast Administration

Department on International Cooperation, Trade and Entrepreneurship

Mr. Torogul Bekov, Department Head

205, Abdimomunov Str., Bishkek 720003, Kyrgyzstan

Tel: +996 (312) 22 35 75, 22 39 75, fax: +996(312) 22 54 93

 

Bishkek Free Economic Zone

Mr. Emil Ibraimov, Director General

28, Manas Str, Bishkek 720026, Kyrgyzstan

Tel: +996 (312) 2I 17 22, fax: +996 (312) 62 01 13  

 

U.S. Embassy – Bishkek

BISNIS Representative

171, Prospect Mira, Bishkek 720016, Kyrgyzstan

Tel: +996(312) 55 12 41, fax: +996(312) 55 12 64

Email: mukambaevaibx@state.gov