Kazakhstan to continue privatization by changing laws

/IRBIS, Oct 10, 01/ - REUTERS informs, with the reference to the first vice- premier, Danyal Akhmetov, that government of Kazakhstan is preparing changes into the legislature that will open access to pension funds to liquid securities of national companies and allow the government to sell state blocks of companies attractive to the foreign investors. Now, there is $1.5 bn accumulated in pension funds and these funds should be invested into liquid securities of national companies after making changes in the legislature, he said. These changes are believed to help the pension funds to integrate with the real sector of the economy. The economy of Kazakhstan is growing at 10% a year due to high oil and metals prices and there is a social stratum of "national bourgeois" which is ready to invest into the economy as well as $1.5 bn pension assets accumulated during the most successful reform in the CIS and $1.2 bn in banks, is said. However, most of the industrial companies were sold to foreign investors during the first years of independence and "blue chips" program was not implemented at all. He said that the government may sell the state blocks in successful companies, mostly in production and processing of ore, after making changes into the legislature. It is said that certain portion of the shares of, for example, Kazakhmys (copper company), will be sold firs of all not to any company, including pension funds, but on open stock market. Soon exact figures will be given after making necessary calculation, was added. There were no terms mentioned, though he mentioned some companies whose state blocks could be sold. They are Kazzinc, and Eurasian group, and the process will start after making changes into the law on joint stock companies, he added. The Eurasian group is made of Aliuminii Kazakhstana JSC, SSGPO JSC, TNC Kazchrome, Eurasian energy corporation and others. The changes in the law will affect the expansion of the rights of minority shareholders and in this case the shares can be sold more expensively. He did not give the sales period though.