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Rosatom Exits Key Uranium Ventures in Kazakhstan Amid Strategic Shifts

Uranium One Group, a subsidiary of State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom. has announced its withdrawal from uranium projects in Kazakhstan. This decision coincides with Kazakhstan’s ongoing selection of operators for a consortium tasked with constructing the country’s first nuclear power plant. According to Kazatomprom (KAP), Uranium One Group has sold its 49.979% stake in the Zarechnoye joint venture to SNURDC Astana Mining Company Limited. The ultimate beneficiary of the acquiring party is China’s State Nuclear Uranium Resources Development Co., Ltd. Kazatomprom retains its 49.979% stake in the venture. The Zarechnoye joint venture, operational since its discovery in 1977, extracts uranium from the Zarechnoye deposit in Kazakhstan’s Turkestan region. As of early 2024, the deposit holds approximately 3,500 tons of uranium ore, with mining operations expected to conclude by 2028. In addition, Uranium One Group is set to divest its 30% stakes in the Khorasan-U and Kyzylkum joint ventures to China Uranium Development Company Limited, a subsidiary of China General Nuclear Power Corporation (CGN). The transaction awaits the completion of closing procedures. Kazatomprom’s share in these ventures remains unchanged, with 50% ownership in Khorasan-U and a 50% indirect interest in Kyzylkum. Khorasan-U operates in the Zhanakorgan district of the Kyzylorda region, mining uranium from the Khorasan-1 section of the North Khorasan deposit. This deposit contains reserves of approximately 33,000 tons of uranium as of 2024, with mining projected to continue until 2038. Meanwhile, Kyzylkum focuses on processing uranium from Khorasan-U but does not hold subsoil usage rights, restricting its activities to processing. Kazatomprom has prioritized replenishing its mineral resource base, recently securing four new licenses for uranium exploration. These areas are estimated to contain over 180,000 tons of uranium, which Kazatomprom plans to develop independently. In November 2023, Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources reported environmental violations at the Zarechnoye joint venture. Soil samples revealed excessive concentrations of sulfuric acid, prompting authorities to issue directives for remediation. Kazakh political analyst Daniyar Ashimbayev highlighted that Kazatomprom oversees 14 subsidiaries, including joint ventures with Japan, France, Russia, Kyrgyzstan, and China. These partnerships underscore Kazakhstan’s significant role in the global uranium market. China and Russia remain the largest importers of Kazakh uranium. From January to October 2023, Kazakhstan exported $2.46 billion worth of uranium, with $922.7 million going to China and $1.2 billion to Russia. Several nations are vying for inclusion in the consortium that will construct Kazakhstan’s first nuclear power plant. During a state visit to Kazakhstan, Russian President Vladimir Putin emphasized Rosatom’s advanced nuclear technologies. Valentina Matvienko, Speaker of Russia’s Federation Council, underscored Kazakhstan’s interest in Rosatom’s involvement. However, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has yet to finalize the decision. Kazakhstan’s Energy Minister, Almasadam Satkaliyev, has recently visited South Korea, France, and China to explore nuclear energy partnerships. Political analyst Gaziz Abishev affirmed this diplomatic outreach as a strategic effort to secure the most advantageous terms for Kazakhstan, ensuring that competing nations present their best proposals.

International Finance Copper United Kingdom Mining

UK Supports €12.6M Deal to Boost Exports to Uzbekistan’s Copper Producer

UK Export Finance (UKEF) has guaranteed a €12.6 million ($13.25 million) loan to the Almalyk Mining and Metallurgical Complex (AMMC) in Uzbekistan. The loan will refinance the purchase of fully automated vehicles from the Scottish multinational company Weir and marks UKEF’s first agreement in Uzbekistan. The loan, provided by the International Bank, aims to support Weir’s exports to AMMC, one of Central Asia’s largest copper production facilities. “UK businesses are increasingly keen to bring their goods and services to this dynamic market - and UKEF is here to help buyers in Uzbekistan seize this opportunity,” said Tim Reid, CEO of UKEF. Strategic Importance of Copper The UK Department of Business and Trade reports that nearly 90% of UK imports from Uzbekistan consist of non-ferrous metals, metal ores, and slag. Copper, a vital material for construction and green technologies such as solar panels and electric vehicles, is in increasing demand. Global copper requirements are projected to grow by an additional one million tons annually until 2035. The UKEF-backed deal reflects the UK’s commitment to enhancing machinery exports and supporting the global supply chain. In 2023, total trade between the UK and Uzbekistan reached £381 million, with specialized machinery ranking as the fourth most-traded category. Sustaining Production at Almalyk UKEF’s financial backing is crucial for sustaining production at AMMC by ensuring access to capital from a trusted supplier. The partnership highlights UKEF’s broader role in facilitating growth opportunities for UK businesses in Central Asia’s dynamic market.

Critical Minerals Mining Disaster Mining Raw Materials

New Era of Mining Starts in Kyrgyzstan

Kyrgyzstan will soon be issuing licenses for mining critical raw materials (CRM), which would have been almost unthinkable five years ago. However, a lot has changed in Kyrgyzstan, where a new president came to power in late 2020 and has since radically changed the form of leadership and is seeking new sources of revenue. A lot has changed in the world also, as governments are realizing the importance of CRMs for their economies and are scrambling to find supplies. Past Experiences Kyrgyzstan does not have significant reserves of natural gas or oil as most of the other Central Asian countries do. It was clear from the first days of independence that Kyrgyzstan’s main source of export revenue would come from mining, and Kyrgyzstan has significant deposits of CRMs. The Kumtor gold mine, 4,000-meters high in the mountains on the south part of the massive Lake Issyk-Kul, quickly became the economic savior for a country where most exports were agricultural products. Initial estimates put gold reserves at Kumtor at some 514 tons, but subsequent exploration revealed more gold at the site. Kumtor was a joint venture with Canadian company Cameco, but over time Cameco acquired nearly 75% of the project. There was environmental damage at the site that almost completely destroyed two nearby glaciers - Davidov and Lysiy. The most infamous incident involving Kumtor occurred in May 1998, when a Kumtor truck overturned into the Barskoon River, dumping nearly two tons of sodium cyanide into the water. Thousands of people were evacuated from area, several died, and business at Issyk-Kul, Kyrgyzstan’s premier tourst attraction, plummetted. The example of environmental problems at Kumtor turned public opinion in Kyrgyzstan against mining projects. Some 20 year later, the issue again came to the fore over the Kyzyl-Ompol uranium site in the Tong district of Issyl-Kul Province. In April 2019, nearly 30,000 people signed a petition to halt work at Kyzyl-Ompol. Anti-mining sentiment grew and by October 31, 2019, Kyrgyzstan’s parliament approved a moratorium on exploration and extraction of uranium and thorium that was signed into law in December that year. Something Everyone Wants The European Commission wrote that CRMs are crucial for “producing a broad range of goods and applications used in everyday life and modern technologies,” and noted, “Reliable and unhindered access to certain raw materials is a growing concern within the EU and across the globe.” Additionally, the attempts by many nations to wean themselves off fossil fuels have led to a surge in countries seeking to construct nuclear power plants (NPP) to meet their energy needs. There are currently some 440 operating NPPs in the world, 60 new reactors are under construction, and another 110 are planned to be built. Current President Sadyr Japarov rose to power after Kyrgyzstan’s revolution in 2020. Japarov, who is from the Issyk-Kul area, was an opponent of foreign ownership of the Kumtor gold mine, and in 2021 his government forced out Canadian company Centerra (which took over from Cameco in 2004). Kumtor was...

journalist Crime Mining Russia

Mystery and Intrigue Behind the Death of Inessa Papernaya

Further details have come to light which shroud the death of Inessa Papernaya in yet more mystery. As reported by TCA yesterday, Papernaya and her companion were found dead in a Tashkent hotel on October 20, along with an Uzbek man in a neighboring room whom media sources initially referred to simply as U.Kh. It has since come to light that this person was Khushnud Udekov, a well-known 48-year-old businessman from the Khorezm region whose private gas company was liquidated. Initially, reports stated that Papernaya was a Russian journalist known for her work with lenta.ru and profile.ru. It was also reported that Papernaya was in Uzbekistan on vacation, and was staying at the Karaman Palace Hotel with her fiancé, Maxim Radchenko, whom she had traveled with in order to meet his relatives. However, Papernaya’s last post for either of these publications came in 2019, since when she had become an employee of the Russian mining company, Norilsk Nickel. According to accounts surrounding the death of Papernaya and Radchenko, hotel staff knocked on the door of their room after the couple, who were supposed to have returned to Moscow, stopped answering the phone. Receiving no response, staff entered the room, where they discovered the bodies of the pair in the bathroom. “When she didn’t answer her phone at 11 PM, I felt something was wrong,” Papernaya’s mother told the media. “I knew something had happened.” The body of Udekov was subsequently found in the room directly below, with some local publications speculating that the businessman may have been the target of a contract killing. Preliminary reports attributed the cause of the deaths to poisoning of “unknown origin,” with early suggestions being made that gas seeped into the room through the ventilation system after the hotel’s pool was cleaned on October 19-20, leading to the incident. The hotel where the incident occurred was also still under construction, and the first floor was stuffed with building materials and furniture. Following the gruesome discovery, authorities sealed off the Karaman Palace Hotel. The Prosecutor General’s Office of Uzbekistan launched an investigation under Article 186 of the Uzbek Criminal Code, which covers the provision of unsafe services, and a forensic examination was ordered to determine the precise causes of death. According to Hayat Shamsutdinov, the press secretary of Uzbekistan's Prosecutor General 's Office, the exact cause of death will be determined after a thorough examination, the results of which are expected in about a month. Forensic expert Alexey Reshetun, however, has stated that it is “extremely difficult to imagine that two adults would die in a single room as a result of gas entering through the ventilation.” Relatives of Radchenko, meanwhile, have disputed what they describe as several different versions of the deaths which have been put forward. Radchenko’s sister stated that the family were initially told “he had an epileptic seizure; she ran up to him, slipped, fell, hit her head and died. This is some kind of TV series: how do you fall? What...

Russia Industry Gold mining in central asia Mining Gold National Bank

Changing Volumes of Gold Mined in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan

According to data issued by the U.S. Geological Service, in 2023, 130 tons of gold were mined in Kazakhstan and 100 tons in Uzbekistan. Kazakhstan's volume increased by 15 tons compared to 2022, whilst Uzbekistan's decreased by 4 tons. Russia produced 310 tons of gold, equivalent to that mined the previous year. Worldwide, 3,600 tons of gold were produced in 2023, 60 tons less than in 2022. The U.S. Geological Survey has yet to release the latest estimate of gold production in Kyrgyzstan but according to data, the country mined 25.3 tons in 2022. As of September 1, Uzbekistan’s international reserves reached $39.15 billion; a record indicator since data disclosure began in 2018. The National Bank of Kazakhstan counts the country’s gold and foreign exchange reserves in February 2024 at $36.1 billion. In 2014, this indicator was at $26.05 billion, meaning that over the past ten years, the volume of gross international reserves has increased by $10 billion (+38.6%).

Industry Mining Raw Materials Critical Minerals critical raw materials

Kyrgyzstan Begins Development of Large Titanomagnetite Deposit

Kyrgyzstan has begun developing its largest titanomagnetite deposit, Kyzyl-Ompol, in the Issyk-Kul region. Speaking at the launch ceremony on September 25, the Chairman of the Kyrgyz Cabinet of Ministers, Akylbek Japarov, emphasized that the state will develop and finance this strategic deposit. "This is a very important event for Kyrgyzstan. The Kyzyl-Ompol deposit contains millions of tons of titanomagnetite. Titanium is valuable in various industries, including medicine, aviation, and space. The development of this deposit will allow us not only to increase exports but also to create new jobs, which will give an impetus to developing the country's economy," Japarov said. Japarov also emphasized the importance of an environmentally friendly approach to the deposit's development, saying that technologies used to extract titanomagnetite will guarantee the safe extraction of associated minerals such as uranium and thorium. Early in June, the Kyrgyz parliament approved a government bill lifting a ban on the mining of uranium and thorium that had been in place since 2019. The move caused environmental concerns in Kyrgyz society, as the country still works on the rehabilitation and conservation of radioactive uranium waste sites left over from the Soviet era. The ban was lifted to start the mining of titanomagnetite, which is accompanied by uranium and thorium. The government plans to process both elements at the Kara-Balta Mining Combine, some 100 km west of Bishkek.