Kumtor - The Times Of Central Asia

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Natural resources

Kyrgyzstan Expands Mineral Reserves Amid New Exploration Drive

Kyrgyzstan now boasts over 1,000 deposits of 51 different types of minerals, including precious, base, and rare earth metals, as well as coal and hydrocarbons, according to the Ministry of Natural Resources, Ecology, and Technical Supervision. Among the most prominent is the Kumtor gold mine, situated at an altitude of 4,000 meters in the Issyk-Kul region. Kumtor ranks among the world’s ten largest gold deposits and remains a cornerstone of the national mining sector. Approximately 400 deposits across the country are currently under development or active exploration, while operations at around 600 sites have been suspended pending reserve reassessments and upgrades to mining technologies. The mining sector is considered a strategic priority for Kyrgyzstan’s economy. After years of limited geological activity, the government allocated 1 billion soms in 2024 to Kyrgyzgeology for equipment modernization and intensified exploration of polymetals and rare earth elements. Between January and September 2025, the industry recorded stable growth in both output and reserves. As of January 1, 2025, Kyrgyzstan’s confirmed reserves included 973 tons of gold, 1,100 tons of silver, and 960,400 tons of copper, along with significant quantities of other minerals. Recent exploration efforts yielded an additional 5.8 tons of gold, 3.7 tons of silver, and substantial volumes of non-ferrous metals, coal, and construction materials. In the first nine months of 2025, Kyrgyzstan produced 17 tons of gold, 198,000 tons of oil, 18.9 million cubic meters of gas, and 2.3 million tons of coal. To support industry growth, the government conducted 26 auctions for subsoil use rights, generating $1.6 million in revenue. As of September 2025, a total of 2,005 mining licenses had been issued, including 103 granted to state-owned enterprises.

Gold Mining

Underground Gold Mining Officially Launched at Kumtor

Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov has inaugurated underground mining operations at the high-altitude Kumtor gold mine during a working visit to the Issyk-Kul region. According to Japarov, underground development at Kumtor should have started two decades ago. However, the mine’s former operator, Canadian company Centerra Gold, opted instead for open-pit mining, which was less costly but had serious environmental consequences. He said the dumping of waste rock onto the Davydov and Lysyi glaciers resulted in their degradation. “The launch of underground gold mining at Kumtor is a crucial step toward environmental protection and glacier preservation,” Japarov stated. He reported that approximately 1,600 meters of tunnels have already been excavated, and ore with a gold content exceeding five grams per ton is ready for extraction. The underground operation is projected to continue for 17 years, with proven reserves estimated at 147 tons of gold. While Centerra Gold had previously explored underground mining, low global gold prices over a decade ago rendered the project financially unviable. The open-pit method yielded between five and seven grams of gold per ton of ore, then considered the threshold for profitability. As gold content declined over time, the possibility of mine closure loomed. That outlook changed with rising gold prices. Following the nationalization of Kumtor in 2021, the mine’s profitability increased substantially. According to Japarov, since May 2021 the mine has produced 54 tons of gold, generating $3.5 billion in revenue. Of that, $891 million was paid into the state budget through taxes and other contributions. By contrast, the president noted, Kyrgyzstan received just $100 million during the 28 years the mine was under foreign ownership. Speaking to The Times of Central Asia, veteran Kyrgyz geologist Rozalia Djenchuraeva suggested Kumtor’s reserves may be even larger. “Even on Soviet maps, one can see that there is a lot of gold in this area. Gold-bearing veins run under the glaciers from the Kyrgyz-Chinese border through Kumtor and extend westward for many kilometers,” she said. Djenchuraeva added that with modern technologies, especially underground extraction, it is possible to mine gold efficiently while adhering to environmental standards.

Gold Mining

Kumtor Launches Tire Retreading Program to Cut Costs and Waste

Kumtor, Kyrgyzstan’s largest gold mining operation, has initiated a tire retreading program for its fleet of large Caterpillar mining dump trucks. The announcement was made by Kubat Abdraimov, chairman of the board of the state-owned Kyrgyzaltyn company, which oversees the Kumtor enterprise. The retreading work is being carried out at a facility in Tokmok. The first set of refurbished tires has already been installed on dump trucks and is undergoing operational testing at the mine. If successful, the program will expand, with the Tokmok plant expected to retread between 200 and 300 tires annually. “This will save more than $1.5 million per year. At the same time, we are solving an important environmental problem by reducing waste and reusing resources,” Abdraimov said during a site inspection of Kumtor’s production facilities. New tires for Caterpillar dump trucks can cost up to $30,000 each. In the high-altitude conditions of the Kumtor mine, located at 3,500 to 4,500 meters above sea level, tire wear is especially rapid, making operations significantly more expensive. According to the company’s press service, the refurbished tires were delivered to the mine at the end of May. One vehicle fitted with the retreaded tires has already logged over 1,000 kilometers and more than 100 hours of work under full load. The condition of the tires is being monitored continuously. In the early years of Kumtor’s development during the 1990s, the initial tire supply came from the Belarusian manufacturer BelAZ. However, the products proved unsuitable for the mine’s extreme conditions, leading to a switch to Canadian suppliers along with other imported components. Abdraimov also highlighted the critical contribution of technical personnel to the reliability of mining operations. “The mine uses modern mining and auxiliary equipment. Work is carried out around the clock in challenging weather and at high altitudes. The reliability and qualifications of the repair crews are key to sustainable operation,” he said. Industry experts suggest the tire retreading initiative could be a foundational step in creating a domestic industrial cluster focused on the repair and maintenance of mining equipment in Kyrgyzstan.

Gold

Kyrgyzstan’s Gold Reserves Could Last a Century, Says Top Geologist

Kyrgyzstan’s largest gold mining operation, Kumtor Gold Company, has identified an additional 147 tons of gold through recent geological exploration. These reserves have now been officially added to the balance sheet of the state-run enterprise, reinforcing expert forecasts that gold extraction in the country can continue for decades to come. The announcement was made by Minister of Natural Resources Meder Mashiev during a press briefing in Bishkek. Mashiev noted that previously unexploited reserves at Kumtor, a key contributor to the national budget, were estimated at 127 tons. Following the new exploration, total reserves now stand at 261 tons. Kumtor Gold Company was nationalized in 2022 after Canadian firm Centerra Gold withdrew from the project. At the time, industry experts predicted the mine would cease operations by 2027 due to depleted reserves at the main open pit. The prospect of investing in new infrastructure at adjacent sites was deemed economically unfeasible. This view was partly supported by production data: in 2015, ore yielded about 5 grams of gold per ton; today, it yields less than one gram. Local experts, however, have described this decline as temporary. According to official figures, Kumtor produced 17.3 tons of gold in 2022, 13.5 tons in 2023, and was projected to produce 12.2 tons in 2024, numbers not seen since 2012, when output fell below 10 tons. Back then, the company cited falling global gold prices and the limited viability of high-volume production. Under the 2022 agreement with Centerra Gold, the Kyrgyz Cabinet of Ministers assumed full management of the Kumtor mine. The Canadian company also agreed to pay over $60 million for environmental protection and transferred control of a $53 million reclamation fund to the Kyrgyz side. In return, it was released from future mine reclamation obligations. In an interview with The Times of Central Asia, Rozalia Djenchuraeva, a geologist at the National Academy of Sciences, stated that with proper management, Kumtor could continue producing gold for another hundred years. “Gold is not running out. There’s still a substantial amount at Kumtor. In the 1980s and 1990s, we recalculated potential reserves in the area and identified over a thousand tons,” Djenchuraeva said. “The entire strip where Kumtor is located is gold-bearing. It stretches along the mountains beneath glaciers, and we have enough gold to last a century. The key is to avoid harming nature.” She emphasized that much of the remaining gold lies beneath glaciers, making extraction without environmental damage particularly challenging. “The high-altitude ecosystem is very sensitive to human interference,” she said. Nonetheless, Djenchuraeva believes that modern exploration and mining technologies offer a path forward. “If we proceed responsibly and with care, gold extraction can continue for many years to come,” she concluded.

Gold

Kumtor: Drop In Gold Production No Cause For Concern

Kyrgyzstan's largest gold mining company, Kumtor, has announced a decrease in gold production. However, authorities assure that this is temporary. In 2023, Kumtor Gold Company produced 13.5 tons of gold, less than planned; the professional community even began to talk about the mine's imminent depletion. However, the company itself hastened to reassure citizens. The company's representatives commented: “Reduced gold production targets are common due to the low grade of gold in commercial ore mined at Kumtor. The mining of low-grade ore will continue for some time. In the future, gold production is expected to increase to 17-18 tons gradually. This takes into account the implementation of projects for underground mining of gold-containing ore and processing waste ore from the tailings pond.” It is worth noting that all of Kyrgyzstan is watching the volume of gold production, as Kumtor's share of the country's GDP is almost 10%. In 2023, the company paid more than $200 million to the country's budget. After nationalization in 2021, foreign experts predicted a rapid closure of production. Allegedly, the gold extracted by open-pit mining at the mine is running out. “Right now, the ore is poor," responded Cabinet Chief Akylbek Japarov to the criticism. "We plan to mine 14 tons each. Previously, we were getting 17 tons. This happens in geology.” However, the low figures have forced the country's authorities to reconsider their approach to mining. Gold will now be mined underground. In addition, it was announced that the processing of gold in Kumtor's tailings pond will begin soon. Specialists of the Institute of Geology at the National Academy of Sciences confirmed to The Times of Central Asia information about the reduction of precious metals in the area of the open pit at Kumtor. Earlier, there were 7 grams of gold per ton of ore; today, it is 5 grams. “But the gold is not running out. There is still quite a lot of gold at Kumtor - over a thousand tons. But everything depends on the areas that are going to be developed. Part of the gold-bearing strip is under glaciers,” said geologist Rozalia Jenchuraeva. The Institute of Geology recommends that the government quietly conduct exploration and not rush to mine gold hidden under glaciers, as this could damage the ecology. “There is still enough gold at Kumtor, and you don't have to worry about it. Although gold mined underground will be more expensive, this method will have less impact on the melting of glaciers. The depth of gold content will probably change, but we will have enough for a hundred years; we need to be rational in our approach to mining,” Jenchuraeva emphasized. Previously, the Kumtor mine produced 20-22 tons of gold annually.

Kyrgyzstan Railway

Bridging Continents: The China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan Railway – A Tale of Opportunities, Challenges, and Controversies

On June 6, 2024, an agreement was signed in Beijing to begin the construction of a railway between China and Uzbekistan which will pass through Kyrgyzstan, a strategic infrastructure project designed to create a new land transport corridor between Central and East Asia. For 27 years, this project remained a pipe-dream. Now, the presidents of the three countries have confidently declared that this railway, with a length of 523 kilometers, is extremely necessary and will be highly profitable for the entire region. However, such sentiments were not always the case, and doubts have long lived in the heads of multiple Kyrgyz presidents. Both Askar Akayev, who ruled the country from 1990 until the revolution in 2005, his successor Kurmanbek Bakiyev, also overthrown as a result of revolution in 2010, and Almazbek Atambayev, were not sure of the benefits of this project. Until 2017, that is, shortly before Atambayev’s resignation and the transfer of power to his, as it seemed to him at that time, reliable friend Sooronbay Jeenbekov, Atambayev was more or less consistent in defending the interests of his country, but later his focus shifted towards China. Why was there such a turn from Atambayev towards Beijing? This later became clear. On January 26, 2018, an accident occurred in the old part of the Bishkek Combined Heat and Power Plant (CHP), which was supposed to have been modernized by that time. This incident served to reveal large-scale corruption and financial violations at the CHP. The contract for implementation of the modernization was signed on July 16, 2013 between the owner of the CHP, Electric Stations OJSC, and the Chinese company, TBEA, in the amount of $386 million dollars. The financing was provided as a loan by a state fund of China, the Export and Import Bank of China (Eximbank), and Kyrgyzstan had to return approximately $500 million including interest. However, after the accident and the transfer of the case to court, it transpired that the real cost of the subhead modernization was a maximum of $250-260 million. Hence, the cost was hugely inflated; as an example, a pair of pliers was invoiced for $640, and fire extinguishers for $1,600. A similar situation occurred with the Datka-Kemin power line, the construction of which began in 2012, when Atambayev was president. The project was implemented by the same Chinese company, TBEA, which carried out work on modernization of the CHP, and the amount cited for the project was the same, $386 million. Again, the loan was issued by Eximbank. As a result of corruption scandals which were revealed in 2019, Atambayev was deprived of presidential immunity and paid with his freedom. Kyrgyzstan’s accumulated debt since its independence in 1991 is estimated at $6.2 billion - 45% of GDP - around $1.7 billion of which is owed to Eximbank. After Sadyr Japarov came to power in November 2020, issues surrounding the Kumtor Gold Mine came to the fore. Discovered by geologists in 1978, the largest open pit gold mine in Central Asia,...