Special economic zones in Kazakhstan have produced goods worth KZT 15.9 trillion, of which KZT 1.1 trillion was exported. In total, 561 investment projects have been implemented in the SEZs, drawing KZT 11.5 trillion in investment and creating more than 38,000 jobs, the website infohub.kz reports.
According to the Ministry of Industry and Construction, 18 special economic zones operate in the country, including four sites established in 2025–2026. The ministry says infrastructure and state support measures help enterprises launch production, adopt technology and expand exports.
Among the major projects, the ministry singled out the gas chemical complex of Kazakhstan Petrochemical Industries Inc. in Atyrau Region. It operates in the National Industrial Petrochemical Technopark SEZ and became the first such complex in the country.
KPI has a design capacity of 500,000 tonnes of polypropylene per year. In the first half of 2026, the plant produced goods worth KZT 366.2 billion. The ministry estimates that the complex is helping to build a petrochemical cluster, supply the domestic market and expand exports.
In the Astana — New City SEZ, a plant of Tau-Ken Altyn LLP operates with a capacity of 25 tonnes of refined gold and 50 tonnes of silver per year. To date, the enterprise has produced goods worth more than KZT 8.8 trillion. The ministry noted that the project has provided a full cycle of precious metals processing within the country.
SMT Central Asia LLP, in the Saryarka SEZ, produces pipes and fittings for the oil and gas, utilities and energy sectors. The plant's capacity is 30,000 tonnes of products per year, and total output has reached KZT 33.64 billion.
The plant produces heat-insulated pipeline systems which, according to the ministry, meet international quality requirements.
In Turkistan Region, Turkistan Tokyma LLP of the Lihua group is developing a cotton-textile complex in the Turan SEZ. The first phase of production was launched in December 2025, creating 430 jobs.
Once at full capacity, the complex plans to produce 11,400 tonnes of yarn, 47.3 million square metres of fabric, 2 million sets of bed linen and 4 million blankets annually.
The project envisages processing domestic cotton into finished textile products and expanding export supplies.
In the Jibek Joly SEZ in Zhambyl Region, the first phase of a deep corn processing plant of Shengtai Biotech LLP of the Fufeng group has been launched. The first stage has a capacity of 500,000 tonnes of raw material per year.
The complex is designed to produce starch, amino acids and feed additives. According to the ministry, its development will increase the depth of processing of agricultural raw materials and exports of high value-added products. Once all phases are completed, about 1,500 permanent jobs are expected to be created.
QazIndustry coordinates the activities of Kazakhstan's special economic and industrial zones.
Earlier, Kursiv wrote that a metallurgical plant with Chinese investment worth $1.2 billion is planned to be launched in the Jibek Joly SEZ in Zhambyl Region. The first phase, with a capacity of 1 million tonnes of steel per year, is to be commissioned in 2027, with output to increase to 3 million tonnes by 2029.