January 13, 2011

 

Kazakhstan has no plans of entering 2011 world grain export market

 

 

The Kazakh National Grain Company JSC Food Contract Corporation does not set itself the task of grain exports to world markets in the current marketing year, Managing Director Daulet Uvashev said Wednesday (Jan 12).

 

"The Corporation does not intend to export grain to the world market in the current marketing year," said Uvashev, the company's managing director for foreign economic activities.

 

He said the national grain company of the republic has a goal, to ensure domestic market with grain in the first place.

 

Kazakhstan has 9.3 million tonnes of grain, Kazakh Agriculture Minister Akylbek Kurishbayev said earlier. According to his information, roughly 2.6 million tonnes of 9.3 million tonnes of grain is the grain of the stabilisation fund, which is sold at fixed prices within the previously concluded memorandums.

 

Kurishbayev said this volume is quite enough to fully meet the country's needs in the bread until the next harvest and export to markets in the previously planned volume.

 

At the same time, Uvashev said, the private grain companies have the right to export grain in any direction.

 

"We will not tolerate a situation in 2007, when, and commercial structures, and the" Food Corporation" exported grain, though at that time a record harvest gathered," he added. 

 

However, Kazakhstan, despite such a tough situation, yet is able to deliver 800,000 tonnes of grain to Azerbaijan in 2011.

 

"While I cannot say for sure, but with a favourable scenario, we will be able to meet Azerbaijan's grain needs," he said.

 

Uvashev reminded that Azerbaijan annually imports an average of 800,000 tonnes of grain.

 

"The Southern Federal District of Russia - Stavropol and Krasnodar, and Kazakhstan are the main suppliers of grain to Azerbaijan. But because of the drought last summer in Russia and the ban on export of grain, Stavropol and Krasnodar are cut off from Azerbaijan," Uvashev said.

 

Due to this, Azerbaijan abolished VAT (18%) on imported grain, Uvashev added.

 

"The Baku Grain Terminal, which we have built on a parity basis with the Azerbaijani side, is currently working on the old stocks of grain," he said.

 

Moreover, the grain terminal's mills commissioned in 2010 produce high quality flour.

 

"We used the Kazakh grain with high levels of gluten in 28% at the flour mill and now our products, albeit in small volumes, are on the Azerbaijani market as Kazakh flour", Uvashev said.

 

Imports of wheat and rye, wheat or rye flour, to Azerbaijan are exempted from VAT since December 2010. These privileges on VAT for importers are valid until August 1, 2011.

 

As previously reported, the Azerbaijani government has already freed importers of wheat and flour from paying VAT due to rising prices for these products in world markets from July 2008 to April 2009.