A member of Kazakhstan’s Mazhilis has proposed introducing unified transparency standards for subsoil users, calling for mandatory disclosure of income and production data across the mining and oil and gas sectors.
Deputy Yerlan Barlybayev, representing the Ak Zhol faction, submitted the proposal to Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov, arguing that greater transparency is essential to uphold the constitutional principle that subsoil resources belong to the people.
The инициативa highlights inconsistencies in disclosure practices among companies operating in the extractive industries. While joint-stock companies are required by law to publish financial statements, many major players in Kazakhstan’s mining and oil and gas sectors operate as limited liability partnerships, whose financial reporting is accessible only to their founders. These include companies such as Tengizchevroil, Kazakhmys Corporation and Kazzinc, as well as entities registered in foreign jurisdictions or within the Astana International Financial Centre.
According to Barlybayev, this lack of transparency prevents the public from objectively assessing how effectively the country’s natural resources are being utilised. He emphasised that the issue lies not in corporate structure itself, but in the absence of consistent disclosure standards for large subsoil users.
To address this, the proposal calls for all major extractive companies to provide public reporting aligned with the requirements applied to listed companies under securities market legislation. This would ensure a comparable level of transparency across the sector.
As a longer-term measure, the deputy also suggested that new entities seeking licences for strategic deposits should be established exclusively as joint-stock companies. While this requirement would not affect existing investors, it is expected to improve transparency and governance standards over time.
The proposal reflects growing attention to accountability and resource governance in Kazakhstan’s extractive industries.
