Kazakhstan

Revamped ENRC should set its sights low

8 March 2018

The colourful Kazakh miner, renamed ERG after it delisted under a cloud in 2013, is testing a recovering commodities market. A fresh IPO sounds a non-starter, but selling a stake in one of its operations could fly. If so, it would help the group trim almost $6 bln of debt.

Big Oil can learn from $50 bln Kazakh fiasco

21 May 2014

The oil majors running the Kashagan field may have to wait until 2016 before any black gold flows again. That’ll be a decade late and five times over budget. The debacle shows the drawback of too many partners involved in the same project under tough climate conditions.

Kazakhstan succumbs to allure of currency wars

11 February 2014

The oil-rich nation devalued the tenge by nearly a fifth. It makes sense: there’s no reason to use up currency reserves to resist a move that has many advantages and few drawbacks. Stronger countries than Kazakhstan would struggle to avoid the global game of beggar-thy-neighbour.

Kazakh deal shows China’s enduring thirst for oil

9 September 2013

Buying into the Kashagan oilfield gives China’s national oil producer access to one of the world’s last great finds. The $5 bln cost of the stake - plus $3 bln to help Kazakhstan fund a tricky expansion - shows that, for China, resources are still scarcer than capital.

Resistance to Kazakh mining stitch-up looks futile

24 June 2013

ENRC minority holders are in a bad place, now the Kazakhmys board has accepted the low-ball bid from oligarchs and government. Unless Kazakhmys shareholders overrule their board, any ENRC holdouts could end up with unlisted, illiquid shares. Better to admit defeat and cut losses.

ENRC board has reputation leverage

29 May 2013

Kazakhmys, ENRC’s 26 pct owner, may be less fussed than other minority shareholders about getting a high price out of the miner’s founding oligarchs. But Kazakhmys won’t necessarily embrace a low offer that ENRC’s independent board has snubbed. Reputational cover is valuable.

ENRC board needs to summon its poker skills

9 May 2013

The hapless miner’s independent directors hold a weak hand. But they shouldn’t just fold if ENRC’s dominant shareholders team up to make a low-ball bid for the company. There are risks to losing a deal. Still, there is a floor to a recommendable offer.

ENRC is problem-free, by some standards

1 May 2013

Yes, it was a mistake for the London Stock Exchange to give the governance-challenged Kazakh miner its seal of approval. But the murky dealings at Russia’s Surgutneftegas make ENRC look like a model of transparency. And a few bad apples don’t drag down the whole London market.

Kazakh miner nears endgame with chairman’s exit

23 April 2013

The hapless 3.8 bln-pound ENRC is losing its board boss and two directors. That further dents its reputation and value. The onus is now on the board to wring a decent price from the founders - if a mooted buyout appears. If no bid arrives, ENRC has a huge repair job to do.

This time the ENRC board has to show real mettle

19 April 2013

A possible bid led by one or more of the troubled Kazakh miner’s dominant shareholders could offer minorities a welcome exit. But there’s a serious information gap to cross. The cleanest way for the board to secure a robust asset valuation is to get an auction going.

Why buy ENRC if its assets may soon be on the slab?

11 April 2013

The London-listed Kazakh miner is a regular bid-talk target. But buying it makes little sense if its assets can be bought later for less. Reports that Chairman Mehmet Dalman has threatened to resign may be wide of the mark. But ENRC has yet to present a convincing revival plan.

Conoco’s $5 bln Kazakh sale is the easy part

26 November 2012

The U.S. oil giant’s investors should be happy to see the costly Asian project go. The cash also will help fund lavish capex plans and the generous dividend. But Conoco’s real chore is to prove it can boost sluggish output while retreating from promising, if risky, regions.

Kazakh events show EBRD failure on democracy remit

20 December 2011

The European bank, the only international financial institution with a mandate to promote democracy, has operated in Central Asia for 20 years. With the Kazakh regime violently suppressing a strike of its oil workers, it may be time for some soul-searching at the bank.