15.10.2026

Baiterek Holding has proposed to expand the participation of banks in the modernization of energy and utility infrastructure

The National Investment Holding Baiterek organized a meeting on financing the national project "Modernization of the energy and utility sectors" under the chairmanship of Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan Kanat Bozumbayev. The participants considered proposals to expand the participation of banks in infrastructure renovation, accelerate project financing and increase the availability of loans for utilities.

The meeting was attended by representatives of the Ministry of National Economy, the National Bank, the Agency for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market, the Association of Financiers of Kazakhstan and second-tier banks. First Deputy Chairman of the Board Nurbolat Aydapkelov and Managing Director Ruslan Tyulegenov, as well as heads of the Development Bank of Kazakhstan, the Kazakhstan Housing Company and the Damu Entrepreneurship Development Fund participated on behalf of the Baiterek Holding Group of companies.

Kanat Bozumbayev noted the need to expand the range of banks involved in lending to infrastructure projects and improve the mechanisms for utilities to access concessional financing. The coordination of this work is entrusted to the Ministry of National Economy and the Baiterek Holding Company as the financial operator of the national project.
"Our task is not just to resolve individual issues that arise, but to consistently improve financing conditions and ensure long-term and concessional financing," the Deputy Prime Minister stressed.

Baiterek Holding organizes and coordinates the financing of projects through its subsidiaries. In particular, the Development Bank of Kazakhstan provides direct financing, and the Kazakhstan Housing Company finances projects by buying government securities of local executive bodies and subsidizes part of the interest rate on loans exceeding 10% per annum. Additionally, the Holding coordinates the financing of projects involving second-tier banks and international financial institutions that provide loans directly. These mechanisms make it possible to raise funds to upgrade networks and reduce the cost of borrowing for enterprises.

According to Nurbolat Aydapkelov, the projects of state entities of natural monopolies have been financed for 213.8 billion tenge. For private enterprises, projects worth 434 billion tenge are under consideration by financial institutions, including 256 billion tenge in second-tier banks.

"There is a financial resource and the interest of financial institutions. The main task now is to eliminate the procedural gaps between the preparation of design estimates, tariff decisions, subsidies and bank financing. At the same time, it is necessary to resolve the issue of loan collateral and create additional incentives for banks. This will allow us to move from approving projects to actually financing them," he said.

In turn, Farhat Sarsekeyev, Chairman of the Board of the Damu Foundation, suggested using the regional direction of the Orleu program to finance small private entities of natural monopolies. The mechanism provides for equal participation of local executive bodies, the Fund and second-tier banks, with one third of the funds from each source. The proposed amount of financing is up to 1 billion tenge per project at a rate for the borrower of 12.6% per annum.

"The specifics of small private entities of natural monopolies require a separate approach. We hope that the agreed regional mechanism will make it possible to attract funds from local budgets and banks for modernization, while maintaining uniform and understandable financing conditions for borrowers. The Damu Foundation is ready to participate in further joint development of the mechanism," he said.

One of the key issues was the lack of collateral from private utilities. Even with stable revenues from the provision of services, worn-out networks and equipment do not always make it possible to attract the necessary loans. As a solution, the Holding proposed to make greater use of future cash receipts to the bank accounts of enterprises as collateral, based on the experience of the Development Bank of Kazakhstan. An additional tool may be the guarantees of the Damu Foundation.

Chairman of the Management Board of Development Bank of Kazakhstan JSC Marat Yelibayev stressed that for the successful implementation of the National Project, it is important to create conditions that will allow financial institutions to actively participate in financing projects to upgrade energy and utility infrastructure.

"DBK is consistently expanding such cooperation. To date, the Bank has concluded agreements on 21 projects of three natural monopoly entities, including Taldykorgan Joint-Stock Transport and Electric Grid Company JSC, Karaganda Zharyk LLP, and a preliminary agreement on financing the project of Almaty Electric Power Plants JSC," he added.

The proposals presented by the Holding are aimed at expanding enterprises' access to long-term financing and accelerating the renovation of energy and utility infrastructure. For residents, the result of this work should be more reliable heat, water and electricity supply, reducing network wear and the risk of accidents.