Kazakhstan: At a briefing held last week, the Kazakh Minister of Industry and Construction, Kanat Sharlapaev, announced the current level that has been reached. “The wheelset on which it stands is Kazakhstani. Some of the metal is sourced from our companies, and some of the plastics are also cast [by them]”, he was quoted as saying by Kapital.kz news agency.
Kazakhstan-made passenger coaches are produced by ZIKSTO. The company commenced deliveries in 2023 and is on track to deliver 307 coaches to the national operator Kazakhstan Temir Zholy (KTZ) by 2025. Then, Stadler will begin production of 537 coaches under a long-term contract, with the localisation level set at 9.4% in the first year, rising to 35.2% in 2029.
Alstom, which builds electric locomotives in the country, has announced a localisation rate of 31% and plans to increase it to 39% over the next few years. The localisation rate for diesel locomotives produced in the country by Wabtec reached 74%, as the Kazakh authorities disclosed several years ago. CRRC, in contrast, only imports its rolling stock.
Mr. Sharlapaev has stated that gondola cars have a localisation level of 70%, which he considers to be a high percentage. These vehicles are produced by the Kazakhstan Car-Building Company, a subsidiary of KTZ. This summer has also seen the commencement of assembly of gondola cars at the new TEXOL car-building plant in Atyrau.
The minister has highlighted that Kazakhstan is now adopting a strategy of entering into long-term contracts with guaranteed order volumes, which is expected to drive an increase in the localisation rate. He emphasised a need to increase production of medium and large cast steel components, with Railways Systemz KZ acting as its primary local producer.
