About CKEM Center

China Kazakhstan Energy and Mining (CKEM) Center is a cross-border industry platform created to support practical cooperation between China and Kazakhstan in the fields of energy, mining, critical minerals, oil and gas, chemicals, and industrial localization. Our mission is to connect trusted companies, technologies, capital, and implementation capabilities with real market opportunities and development needs across Kazakhstan and the wider Central Asian region. Kazakhstan holds globally significant reserves of uranium, chromium, tungsten, zinc, copper, gold, and silicon-related raw materials, while China brings scale, engineering depth, manufacturing capability, and industrial experience in precisely the sectors Kazakhstan is seeking to accelerate.

CKEM Center was established in response to a clear structural opportunity: Kazakhstan is entering a new investment cycle across power generation, subsoil use, critical minerals, industrial processing, and infrastructure modernization, while Chinese companies are under growing pressure to internationalize and identify high-potential overseas markets. Kazakhstan's location, resource base, reform agenda, and industrial ambitions make it one of the most strategically aligned destinations for Chinese companies seeking long-term, project-based expansion in Central Asia.

Our role is to serve as a practical bridge between these two markets. We help selected Chinese companies present their technologies, industrial capabilities, case studies, and project materials in a market-ready format for Kazakhstan and Central Asia. At the same time, we help local stakeholders identify relevant partners, solutions, and localization pathways. CKEM Center is therefore more than a company directory: it is a structured market-entry and business development platform designed to turn industrial capability into visible opportunities, qualified introductions, and commercially relevant cooperation.

Power and renewables

Kazakhstan's development priorities reinforce the need for this kind of bridge. Official plans point to more than 26 GW of additional power capacity by 2035, with 10 GW already in development, while the QaJET mechanism is intended to catalyze 10 GW of new renewable capacity by 2035. Kazakhstan also maintains a target of increasing the share of renewables in electricity generation to 15% by 2030. These plans create broad demand for generation equipment, grid technologies, EPC capabilities, storage systems, localization partners, and industrial supply chains.

Critical minerals and exploration

In parallel, Kazakhstan is intensifying its focus on critical minerals and geological exploration. The government has announced work on a national strategy for the development of critical minerals and has indicated that geological-exploration funding over the next three years will be comparable to the combined scale of the previous three decades. Public reporting in early 2026 points to planned exploration allocations of roughly 240 billion tenge over three years, reflecting the seriousness of Kazakhstan's push to attract investment and accelerate discovery and development.

Oil and gas

The oil and gas sector remains equally important. Kazakhstan has introduced amendments to improve the investment climate for hydrocarbon exploration and production, especially in underexplored and deep formations, while continuing to advance large upstream projects and new exploration activity. This creates ongoing demand not only for financing, but also for drilling, geophysics, reservoir technologies, field services, digital solutions, and local implementation partners who understand both technical and regulatory realities.

Chemicals and agricultural inputs

The chemical and agricultural-input sectors are also becoming increasingly important. Kazakhstan has publicly stated the goal of fully supplying domestic farmers with domestically produced fertilizers by 2030. This matters because fertilizer use remains very low by international standards; recent reported figures show nitrogen use at about 2.4 kg per hectare and phosphorus use at about 1.33 kg per hectare in 2022. This suggests significant room for growth in fertilizer production, blending, distribution, and downstream agronomic services, especially as Kazakhstan seeks higher agricultural productivity and stronger domestic processing chains.

This opportunity may expand further as Kazakhstan develops bioenergy and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) ambitions. Official government materials confirm active discussions on SAF development, including a project discussed with LanzaJet involving up to 100,000 tons of bioethanol processing capacity per year and expected production of about 54,000 tons of aviation fuel annually. As these sectors grow, demand is likely to increase for industrial chemistry, feedstock systems, treatment materials, and productivity-enhancing agricultural inputs.

How we work

In this context, CKEM Center helps companies move beyond generic market entry and toward real projects, real partners, and real localization pathways. We support technology transfer, company positioning, partner identification, market-entry strategy, localization planning, and business development. We also help convert scattered supplier materials — presentations, brochures, case studies, and technical documents — into structured, shareable company profiles that are easier to present to potential clients, partners, investors, and government stakeholders.

Our work is supported by strong industry connectivity and practical market knowledge. We are backed by partner networks such as Energy Insights & Analytics and KAZENERGY, and we support sector dialogue, including dedicated Kazakhstan–China industry engagement through events such as CSSOPE. With offices in Shanghai, Beijing, Astana, and Almaty, and with partner teams bringing more than 100 years of combined cross-border project experience, we offer a uniquely practical understanding of both the Chinese and Kazakh business environments.

At CKEM Center, we believe that successful cross-border cooperation requires more than introductions. It requires trust, local understanding, strong industrial logic, and the ability to navigate regulation, implementation, localization, and commercial execution. Our purpose is to provide that bridge — helping companies enter the market faster, reduce execution risk, and build long-term partnerships grounded in real economic value.