Family Ties and Land Deals: How the Kozhamzharovs Gained and Lost Land Near Shymkent Oil Refiner

On February 20, the Shymkent prosecutor’s office announced that three land plots near the Shymkent Oil Refinery had been returned to state ownership.

The statement didn’t specify who previously owned the land, but Orda.kz discovered that it belonged to a company linked to the brothers of ex-prosecutor and ex-senator Kairat Kozhamzharov, who headed the Financial Police and Anti-Corruption Agency in the mid-2000s.

Court records show that it was HILL Invest LLP who lost ownership of 54.7 hectares near the refinery. The company was founded in 2011 and run by Kuat Kozhamzharov — Kairat’s middle brother.

The company initially received the land for agricultural use in 2012 while Kairat was the Aqmola Region Akim.

According to Resolution No. 667 issued by the Sairam District Akimat on June 19, 2012, HILL Invest LLP was granted temporary paid land use rights for one year. The 59.372-hectare plot, located within the Sairam Rural District, was designated for agricultural production, with 50.282 hectares allocated for irrigated farming and 9.09 hectares for pasture land,  the Specialized Interdistrict Economic Court of Shymkent resolution states.

In 2013, during Kairat's tenure as Secretary of Kazakhstan’s Security Council, the land designation was changed to industrial use and transferred to private ownership:

According to Resolution No. 2094 of the Sairam District Akimat dated November 22, 2013, 54.432 hectares of land previously used by HILL Invest LLP for agricultural production were reclassified to construct a plant for processing base oils and petroleum products. The land was also transferred to private ownership.

However, judging by the photos published by the Shymkent prosecutor's office and satellite images, no refinery-related facilities were built.

Another key figure in the story is Dulat Kozhamzharov, Kairat's youngest brother, ranked 57 among Kazakhstan’s wealthiest people by Forbes in 2024.

Dulat Kozhamzharov is a major businessman in the petrochemical industry. He is listed as the founder of seven companies, including High Industrial Lubricants & Liquids Corporation  LLP (HILL), which Kuat Kozhamzharov headed until May 2014.

By September 2014, this LLP had become one of the founders of HILL Invest. Before that, its founder was only a certain LLP, Chemical Logistics. By then, Kairat had been heading the Anticorruption Agency for a month and a half, which he would lead until December 2017.

On April 10, 2015, the Shymkent Akimat sold an 8.4-hectare plot to HILL Invest. A few months later, in July, the company leased two additional plots — 4.15 hectares and 41.88 hectares — for 10 years.

Nine months prior, the Akimat had approved a change in the land’s designation from agricultural use to constructing a fuel and lubricants plant. At the time, the city was led by Darkhan Satybaldy, who is now the First Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration.

Nothing changed on these 54 hectares near the Shymkent Oil Refinery for nearly nine years.

During this time, the eldest Kozhamzharov brother, Kairat, served as Prosecutor General from 2017 to 2019 and later as a senator until 2023.

Now, he runs his law firm —  he personally confirmed this to an Orda.kz journalist while attending the funeral of Bolat Nazarbayev. In 2024, he also became a published author with his book Who is the Killer? Orda.kz previously covered his career and controversies in detail last year.

Meanwhile, his younger brothers, Dulat and Kuat, have remained active in business.

Public records show both are listed as founders of HILL-Import LLP and Invest Joint Comp. Kuat also co-founded Investments Management Company (IMC) LLP alongside his nephew, Yelnar Kozhamzharov — Kairat’s son.

Public data suggests that Kuat and Yelnar have been business partners since 2009 when Yelnar’s father was still heading the Financial Police.

Yelnar Kozhamzharov is listed as the founder of four legal entities.

In 2024, an unscheduled inspection by the Shymkent Department of Land Resources revealed that HILL Invest had acquired land near the Shymkent Oil Refinery illegally, violating Kazakhstan’s Land Code.

The main issue concerned two plots leased in 2015.

According to the court ruling, "Under paragraph 1 of Article 48 of the Land Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan, state land plots must be allocated through a competitive process, such as an auction or tender, except in specific cases.

In this instance, the lease agreement was signed without competition, constituting a serious violation of land legislation."

As a result, in December 2023, the Shymkent SIEC ruled to:

• Invalidate lease agreement No. 003/820, dated July 23, 2015, between the Department of Architecture, Urban Development, and Land Relations of Shymkent and HILL Invest LLP.
• Nullify land purchase and sale agreement No. 003/470, dated April 10, 2015, for 8.4 hectares.

The court noted, "The defendant’s representative, B. Shadirbekov, acknowledged the claims and did not object to the ruling."

Original Author: Igor Ulitin