CEO Spotlight: A Bright Future Ahead for Kusto Group and Yerkin Tatishev

With an ambitious vision and a deep sense of ethical responsibility, Yerkin Tatishev and Kusto Group have launched an initiative to build a sustainable protein export business and modern agricultural sector in Kazakhstan.

Innovative entrepreneurs like Yerkin Tatishev, Founder and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Kusto Group, are prepared to lead the way in Kazakhstan’s future. His leadership and revolutionary practices have already led his company into a profitable pan-Asian conglomerate.

Kusto Group, under Tatishev’s leadership, will be a driving force in Kazakhstan’s economic growth in the agri-business industry. Quite a difference from the country’s initial days of independence and economic tumult.

Yerkin Tatishev and Kusto Group launch agricultural initiative in Kazakhstan

Focal points for Kusto Group are the agricultural ventures in Kazakhstan and the country’s ability to produce high-quality beef and other crops to be exported around the region and internationally. Kazakhstan has typically fallen behind other competitors in this industry around the globe.

Kusto Group and Tatishev, along with his team, are now promoting investment in the country’s agriculture industry. Nearly 200 million hectares of land have been set aside for farmland. This area is about half of the farmland of the United States, which has a larger overall landmass than Kazakhstan. Given the sizable landmass and potential, Kazakhstan is in place to become an agricultural leader in the region and beyond.

What is intriguing for Tatishev’s entrepreneurial vision is the potential of his country’s land.  It has its own ecosystem needing solutions such as machinery, fertilizers, land management, IT solutions and investments, and food processing facilities, according to Tatishev.

The country is currently experiencing a major overhaul of agri-business practices and approaches to food production. The demand for high-quality marbled beef has driven the competitive spirit of the leader of the Kusto Group to take advantage of this regional high-demand market.

Kusto Group’s joint ventures with leading American firms

Tatishev continues to seek out international partners who can bring specialist expertise to complement his agribusiness vision. Kusto Group has recently ventured with the U.S.-based Valmont Industries, a leader in the center-pivot irrigation system to build a facility to produce modern irrigation systems in Kazakhstan.

It is estimated that their project to domestically manufacture irrigation systems will double crop yields while cutting in half water usage. Another positive move for efficiency and effective use of water resources in the country.

Kusto Group, the government of Kazakhstan and US-based Tyson Foods signed a cooperative agreement that will include the construction of a modern meat processing facility in Kazakhstan. The deal represents the largest investment project in the country’s agricultural sector since its independence. The joint venture is projected to provide an annual agricultural economic benefit to the country well in excess of one billion dollars (USD)

Even though it is only in the development stages, Tatishev’s vision for Kazakhstan, a country richly steeped in history with a strong sense of values, is a sustainable model of agriculture that uses technology and resources efficiently. Kusto Group and Tatishev have accepted the ambitious challenge and have demonstrated a commitment beyond increasing their own profitability.

Kusto Group’s international operations

In addition to their interests in Kazakhstan, Kusto Group has many other investments and operations in multiple sectors across the globe. In Vietnam, the construction company, Coteccons, is a market leader in part due to the lead investments of Kusto Group in the company.

Coteccons is the only Vietnamese construction company to be invited to bid against Korean and Japanese construction companies on government projects, which are known to be large and complex. Coteccons has doubled its revenues between 2012 and 2015 and is listed on the Ho Chi Minh stock exchange as a market leader.

The company is on track to capture 10% of Vietnam’s residential and industrial construction market by year’s end. Coteccons employs more than 1,500 people and is the developer behind the Diamond Island project, the foremost luxury residential complex ever to be built in the city of Ho Chi Minh.

Kusto Group acquired Tambour, the leading paint manufacturer in Israel in 2014. The company has a rich heritage, with a celebrated 80-year history in Israel. Tambour has developed paints that are environmentally friendly with a low solvent content. Beyond its domestic dominance, the company has also achieved success in foreign markets.

Tatishev’s cooperative effort with Tambour’s current chairman, Max Sartiyev, has led to an emphasis on research and development and the expansion and diversification of their product line including plaster, adhesives and gypsum blocks.

Tambour’s product line is comprised of many concrete products produced in collaboration with BASF, the largest chemical producer in the world. This has led to Tambour’s contribution to the development of some of Israel’s flagship construction projects.

The Tel Aviv-Jerusalem train tunnel, Jerusalem’s light line and the renovation of Tel Aviv’s concrete lighthouse are some of the projects completed by or currently in the works for Tambour. Kusto Group aims to establish Tambour on the world stage as an international household name in the top 10 brands of paint within five to seven years.

Yerkin Tatishev’s vision for Kazakhstan 

Tatishev and Kusto Group have also invested in Kazakhstan’s oil and gas industry, keeping his strong ties to the region while being respectful to the land. In 10 years, Kusto Group’s KazPetrol Group (KPG) has transformed from an empty field to a billion-dollar company.

Kusto’s KPG predicts it will reach the peak production of five million barrels of light oil annually in the coming year. This business, founded in 2005, is meeting the domestic demand and boosting Kazakhstan’s economy without damaging the land in the process.

Kazakhstan’s economic growth and development are being noticed on an international scale. Indicators such as the 2019 World Bank Ease of Doing Business index has placed Kazakhstan 25th out of 140 countries. Last year, Moody’s credit rating scale upgraded the country’s rating from stable to positive. Other predictors suggest that Kazakhstan’s GDP will rise by 3.6% this year.

Kusto Group under the innovative spirit and guidance of Yerkin Tatishev will no doubt be a significant factor in this country’s growth and potential economic rise in the new decade and for years to come.

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