A company perspective on doing business in the former Soviet Union: a mining venture in Kazakstan

Abstract BHP Minerals recently applied for and received a license to conduct exploration and mining of gold covering an area of in excess of 2.5 million acres in Kazakstan. The license required that BHP negotiate an agreement with the Government. The agreement had to clarify the conditions for conducting operations, augment existing laws and regulations, and address fiscal and other terms which would impact the commerical viability of any potential discovery. This paper reviews the complex acquisition and negotiation process from the perspective of a foreign investor conducting exploration activites in emerging countries which are moving from a command economy to a market driven economy.