A new twist has emerged in Kazakhstan’s mining sector after businessman Shahmurat Mutalip put forward an offer to acquire a 40% stake in Eurasian Resources Group (ERG), entering a prolonged shareholder dispute and challenging the position of the company’s chief executive, Shukhrat Ibragimov. According to the Financial Times, Mutalip has reached a preliminary agreement with the families of ERG co-founders Patokh Shodiev and the late Alexander Mashkevich to purchase their combined holdings for $1.4 billion, subject to the Ibrahimov family waiving its right of first refusal.
ERG was founded in the 1990s on the basis of former state-owned mining assets and later became one of the most prominent post-Soviet companies to list in London. Today, ownership is split between the three founding families, each holding about 20%, and the government of Kazakhstan, which controls the remaining 40%. The talks are taking place amid rising international competition for metals critical to clean energy, artificial intelligence and industrial infrastructure, increasing the strategic value of ERG’s assets.
Mutalip’s move has surprised the market, given his limited background in mining and his career roots in construction. His recent interest in large-scale resource assets, including a reported bid for a controlling stake in Kazzinc, has raised questions about financing and long-term strategy. At the same time, ERG continues to face financial pressure due to its reliance on loans from Russian state banks under Western sanctions, adding further uncertainty to the outcome of the ownership battle.
