Decision deals setback to ambitions of Kazakh state holding KazMunaiGaz in looking for foreign partners to grow offshore oil and gas production

 Gloomy forecast comes despite billions of dollars invested by Western majors in the country in last 25 years

Kazakhstan’s central role in China’s BRI and membership in the EAEU present new opportunities for stronger relations between Kazakhstan and ASEAN.

The State Department released its updated strategy for Central Asia last month, a relatively short document that is mostly taken up with reiterating traditional U.S. priorities in the region.

The oil price crash is an existential threat to petrostates from Nigeria to Iran, where governments rely on oil wealth to stabilize power and pay off competing interests.

 Russia’s invitation for India to link up with Eurasian Economic Union recalls the SCO expansion saga.

Three decades after gaining independence, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan face a growing struggle convincing investors and markets of the potential for significant new oil opportunities in the Caspian region.

Tajikistan spent all the proceeds from its first ever eurobond on the giant Rogun hydropower dam. It is still consuming a quarter of the budget each year.

Central Asia needs more 500kV loops in order to share power between the countries of the region.