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Apr 05, 2019 12:32 GMT
Spotlight on the ‘Stans
“Azerbaijan: The land of fire.” It’s an evocative tagline for a
country. Butunless you have visited or you’re a supporter of the
Atlético de Madridfootball club, their sponsored team, you may not
know much about thecountry or its neighbors Kazakhstan,
Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.
But if you work in the Energy, Resources, and Marine (ERM)
sector, you’reprobably very familiar with ‘the ‘Stans.
The border between Europe and Asia is rich in natural resources,
includingoil, gas, coal and uranium, and the ERM sector is booming
thanks to EUinvestment.
https://www.cwt-energy-resources-marine.com/content/erm/global/en/home.html
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I asked our experts to shed some light on this fascinating
region.
Azerbaijan - Earth, wind and fire
The influence of the ERM industry can be seen in the settlement
of NeftDaşlari. What began as an oil rig with a couple of elevated
walkways hasflourished into an entire city in the Caspian Sea.
Azerbaijan has more volcanoes than any other country on earth
and acontinuous natural show that has marveled explorers over the
centuries.Yanar Dag – the fire mountain – blazes continuously, fed
off undergroundgas deposits.
For my colleague Richard Saunders, Global Head of Partner
CommercialRelations, Azerbaijan is full of surprises with
incredible architecture and aunique mix of influences from East and
West: “In Baku many of the oldCommunist-style buildings have been
completely renovated and nowresemble something more akin to the
grand boulevards of Paris.”
Almaty, Kazakhstan
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Kazakhstan - A gleaming capital and cafe culture
With abundant reserves of oil and valuable minerals, the country
has aflourishing economy. Its capital Astana can compete with
Shanghai orSingapore for its futuristic outlook and spectacular
architecture.
But Marc Redfern, Director of our Global Partners Network for
Europe andCentral Asia is mad about Almaty: “It is one of my
favorite cities in the world.Parts of it are European in style. In
Spring the city comes to life after the longcold winter with
pavement cafes seemingly appearing from nowhere. In lessthan 30
minutes, you can escape the hustle (and traffic) of the city and
beright at the foothills of the Tien Shan mountains breathing in
the cooler air.”
When traveling to the country, you need to be aware that ATMs
are largelyavailable only in big cities so always carry cash.
And be aware winters areextremely cold. If you are traveling
between November and the end of April,pack warm clothes.
Turkmenistan - Rich in resources
The rich resources of this desert country can be found in the
Darvaza GasCrater, known to locals as the ‘Gates of Hell.’ This
natural gas depositcollapsed into an underground cavern when
geologists set it on fire toprevent the spread of methane gas.
But that's not all. Under the Decree of the People’s Council, on
the 17th ofAugust 2003, the population was granted subsided
electricity, natural gas,water, and salt until 2030.
Despite having amazing Silk Road sites, the country is one of
the least-visitedin the world.
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Darvaza gas crater, Turkmenistan
Uzbekistan - Untapped reserves
When it comes to natural resources, Uzbekistan scores high. It
has the fourthlargest gold deposit in the world, the tenth largest
copper deposit, and thetwelfth largest uranium deposit. The
national gas company, Uzbekneftegas,ranks eleventh in the world in
natural gas production. The country hassignificant untapped
reserves of oil and gas: There are 194 deposits ofhydrocarbons in
Uzbekistan, including 98 condensate and natural gasdeposits and 96
gas condensate deposits.
But there's way more to it than that. Rich in commodities, the
country alsopossesses a vast architectural, historical, and
cultural heritage. In fact, if youare going to travel there
for business, add a few days to your stay to visit themagnificent
cities of Samarkand and Bukhara.
You can also enjoy Tashkent’s metro stations. The capital is
known for havingone of the most beautiful underground systems in
the world. And of course, ifyou want to see one of the largest
gold mines, you need to visit Muruntan.
Of course, there’s no need to add that we can safely organize
crew orindividual travel to these destinations so your employees
can focus on your
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business.
Blog author: Tony Berry, Vice President Global Program
Management, CWTEnergy, Resources & Marine.
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