The Managing Director for Economics and Finance of Samruk-Kazyna JSC, Aidar Ryskulov, stated that the company does not consider the debt of Kazakhstan Temir Zholy (KTZ) of 2.9 trillion tenge to be critical, as claimed by the Supreme Audit Chamber (SAC).
According to Ulysmedia.kz, Ryskulov explained that KTZ's main debt, which the SAC highlighted, was raised to renew its fleet of locomotives and passenger carriages.
"Overall, the company's financial stability does not indicate that it is in any critical condition. KTZ services its debts and makes regular payments. This is confirmed by the agency's ratings," said Aidar Ryskulov.
He noted that the company is currently seeing a positive trend in its financial rating based on the EBDA (Earnings Before Deductions, Amortisation, etc.) ratio.
"KTZ now faces major challenges, with a large investment programme. It involves attracting around 3-4 trillion tenge over the next five years for infrastructure projects. But the main problem is subsidising transportation. Essentially, 73% of all cargo is transported below cost. Last year, KTZ lost 330 billion tenge. As a result, KTZ is underfunding its infrastructure," he said.
Earlier, the head of the SAC, Alikhan Smailov, stated that KTZ is unable to meet its obligations and is in the 'red' zone of credit risk. He noted that at the beginning of 2024, the company's debt stood at 2.9 trillion tenge and continues to grow. He also said that 45%, or 1.3 trillion tenge, of the total debt was used to refinance previously incurred debt obligations.
Later, the Minister of Transport, Marat Karabayev, commented on the information regarding KTZ's large debts. He stated that the national company has been profitable since 2020. He acknowledged that there was a loss-making period previously, and the debt of 2.9 trillion tenge arose because the state did not allocate funds.