ASTANA, Kazakhstan, December 2. Turkish Cengiz Holding plans to build two sugar plants in Kazakhstan with a total production capacity of up to 300,000 tons of sugar per year, Trend reports via the Ministry of Agriculture of Kazakhstan.
A memorandum of understanding for the project was signed following a meeting between the Minister of Agriculture, Aidarbek Saparov, and Cengiz Holding's board member, Shaban Cengiz.
According to Cengiz, the project will involve an investment of $500 million over a 10-year period. Construction of the two plants is expected to begin in 2026, with the goal of launching them within two years.
The potential locations under consideration for the plants are the North Kazakhstan and Pavlodar regions, both of which offer the necessary climate conditions, infrastructure, and land resources to support sugar production.
The execution of this initiative will not merely address the domestic sugar consumption requirements but will also catalyze the advancement of ancillary sectors, including livestock feed, culinary components, ethanol production, and various other commodities. The stakeholders reached a consensus to further engage in the project’s intricacies and delineate the forthcoming action items in the imminent timeframe.
Meanwhile, Minister Saparov noted that Kazakhstan currently has four sugar plants, three of which process sugar beets with a combined annual capacity of 870,000 tons. However, the country's annual sugar consumption reaches 500,000 tons, and domestic production from local raw materials covers only 14% of this demand.
Cengiz Holding is a Turkish conglomerate with primary interests in construction, energy, mining, and tourism.
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