MINEX Forum

Month: June 2024

  • Строительство инфраструктуры на крупном месторождении вольфрамовых руд в Казахстане продвигается полным ходом

    Строительство инфраструктуры на крупном месторождении вольфрамовых руд в Казахстане продвигается полным ходом

    На крупном месторождении вольфрамовых руд, которое располагается в Енбекшиказахском районе Алматинской области, полным ходом идёт возведение объектов инфраструктуры. Подрядчик China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) заявил, что горно-обогатительный комбинат будет запущен до конца 2024 года, передает Kazakhstan Today.

    Строительство на участке началось в мае 2022 года. Как отметил главный инженер проекта из CCECC Чжан Шань Бай, значительную часть работ занял монтаж конвейерной ленты длиной 2 км. Особенность транспортировки руды заключается в том, что после предварительного грохочения сырье будет перенаправляться на дальнейшие этапы по конвейеру, проложенному внутри горного тоннеля. Это уникальный для Казахстана проект по бурению и строительству конвейерной ленты в горном массиве.

    Специалисты CCECC собрали дробильную установку за шесть месяцев. Мощность будущей обогатительной фабрики составит 10 тыс. тонн руды в день. На Богутинском месторождении планируется добывать 3,3 млн тонн руды в год. По прогнозам, после запуска проекта горно-обогатительный комбинат будет обеспечивать более 10% мирового производства вольфрамового концентрата. На втором этапе оператор начнет выпускать паравольфрамат аммония и перерабатывать карбид вольфрама в порошок.

    В прошлом году было сообщено, что проект Богуты получил название «Жетису Вольфрамы». Китайский инвестор Jiaxin International Resources Investment Ltd. пообещал инвестировать в предприятие 450 миллионов долларов.

  • Infrastructure Construction Progresses at Major Tungsten Ore Deposit in Kazakhstan

    Infrastructure Construction Progresses at Major Tungsten Ore Deposit in Kazakhstan

    At a major tungsten ore deposit located in the Enbekshikazakh district of the Almaty region, infrastructure construction is in full swing. The contractor, China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC), has announced that the mining and processing plant will be operational by the end of 2024, as reported by Kazakhstan Today.

    Construction at the site began in May 2022. Zhang Shan Bai, the chief project engineer from CCECC, noted that a significant portion of the work involved installing a 2 km conveyor belt. The unique feature of the ore transportation system is that after preliminary screening, the raw material will be conveyed through an underground tunnel for further processing. This is a pioneering project in Kazakhstan for drilling and constructing a conveyor belt within a mountain massif.

    CCECC specialists assembled the crushing plant in six months. The future beneficiation plant will have a capacity of 10,000 tons of ore per day. The Boguta deposit aims to extract 3.3 million tons of ore annually. It is projected that once operational, the mining and processing complex will contribute over 10% of the global tungsten concentrate production. In the second phase, the operator will begin producing ammonium paratungstate and processing tungsten carbide powder.

    Last year, it was reported that the Boguta project was named “Zhetisu Wolfram.” The Chinese investor, Jiaxin International Resources Investment Ltd., has pledged to invest $450 million into the enterprise.

  • SQM and Talga Group Partner to Develop Sweden’s Aero Lithium Project

    SQM and Talga Group Partner to Develop Sweden’s Aero Lithium Project

    SQM (NYSE: SQM), the world’s second largest lithium producer, has signed an earn-in agreement with Talga Group(ASX: TLG), a company specializing in battery anode and advanced materials, to jointly advance the Aero lithium project in northern Sweden. Under this agreement, the Chilean lithium miner can earn up to a 70% interest in Aero by funding up to $19 million in exploration spending over a seven-year period.

    Talga will maintain all rights and obligations over graphite minerals at Aero and will receive a management fee for each stage of the earn-in deal. Additionally, Talga will be awarded a “success fee” if a decision to mine is made. Mark Thompson, managing director of Talga, expressed that collaborating with SQM presents an opportunity to build a European lithium supply center. “As one of the few potentially large-scale lithium hard rock opportunities in Europe, Aero might be significant to the region’s battery and electric vehicle industry,” Thompson said.

    Once the earn-in period concludes, both parties must contribute to further expenditures proportionate to their ownership stakes or face dilution. SQM International Lithium division CEO, Mark Fones, stated that the deal with Talga aligns with SQM’s strategy to build a global and competitive lithium asset portfolio. “Expanding into new and promising jurisdictions, such as Sweden, has been a strategic goal for us, and partnering with Talga, who has demonstrated expertise in the region, further enhances this achievement,” Fones noted.

    SQM’s expansion efforts began about three years ago, initially targeting Australia. In July, SQM reached an earn-in deal with Tambourah Metals (ASX: TMB) for the Julimar North project in Western Australia. Subsequently, SQM acquired a 30% interest in Australia’s Pirra Lithium, with an option to increase its stake to 40%. SQM also formed a partnership with Hancock Prospecting, owned by Australia’s richest person, Gina Rinehart, for the Azure’s Andover project.

    In addition to international ventures, SQM holds a 50/50 interest with Wesfarmers in the Mt. Holland lithium mine in Western Australia, which commenced operations in March. This operation is expected to produce enough lithium hydroxide to power nearly one million new electric vehicles annually for fifty years.

    Domestically, SQM has expanded its lithium carbonate capacity, aiming to produce 210,000 tonnes this year and 240,000 tonnes by 2025, with a target of 305,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent by then. The company recently signed an agreement with copper giant Codelco, granting the state-run miner a majority share in the new partnership while extending SQM’s lease in the Atacama salt flats through 2060.

  • Tajikistan’s Mining Industry Surges with 18% Growth in Early 2024

    Tajikistan’s Mining Industry Surges with 18% Growth in Early 2024

    Mining output in Tajikistan has grown by more than 18% over the past year. Enterprises in the mining and precious metals industry for the first four months of 2024 produced quantities worth 4.3 billion somonis ($398.6 million), which is 667 million somonis ($61.7 million) or almost 19% more than the same period in 2023.

    According to Muhammadvalishokh Makshulov, a Ministry of Industry and New Technologies spokesman, the demand depends primarily on increasing enterprises’ capacity and creating new directions in their work.

    According to the ministry, last year the company Zarafshon launched a metallurgical plant to produce metallic copper, built on the most modern technologies in the world, thanks to the acquisition of more than $119 million.

    Also, on 5 July 2023, the enrichment plant of TVEA Dushanbe Mining Industry LLC, with a capacity of processing 900,000 tons of ore per year in the Ayni district of the Sughd region, started operating. This company started production at two mines: Kumargi Bolo and Duobai Sharqi. The first mine is located at an altitude of almost 4,000 meters, and the second is at 2,300 meters.

    Last year, with the attraction of $43 million in foreign capital, construction began on the second stage of a metallurgical plant to produce lead, silver, and copper for the Tajik-Chinese mining and industrial company.

    Currently, 21 companies are engaged in the mining and processing of minerals and precious metals in Tajikistan, seven of which are active due to Chinese investments.

    About 12,500 people work in the business of mining and processing minerals and precious metals. Of these, 11,500 are Tajik citizens, and the rest are Chinese.

  • «КазМунайГаз» будет развивать возобновляемые источники энергии на месторождении Тенгиз

    «КазМунайГаз» будет развивать возобновляемые источники энергии на месторождении Тенгиз

    Руководство АО «КазМунайГаз» (КМГ) объявило о планах по разработке возобновляемых источников энергиина месторождении Тенгиз. Этот вопрос глава нацкомпании обсудил с управляющим директором американской энергетической корпорации Chevron Дереком Магнессом.

    По информации пресс-центра КМГ, производство «зелёной» энергии позволит сократить выбросы вредных веществ в атмосферу и увеличить объёмы дополнительной энергии. Кроме того, такие меры дадут возможность высвободить значительные объёмы голубого топлива для внутреннего потребления. В компании также отметили, что в дополнительных поставках газа нуждаются и нефтегазохимические проекты.

    Руководители Chevron и КМГ обсудили перспективы разработки месторождений Карачаганак и Тенгиз, а также помощь, которую корпорация может оказать в реализации нефтехимических амбиций нацкомпании.

  • KazMunayGas to Develop Renewable Energy Sources at Tengiz Field

    KazMunayGas to Develop Renewable Energy Sources at Tengiz Field

    The management of KazMunayGas (KMG) has announced plans to develop renewable energy sources at the Tengizfield. This initiative was discussed by the head of the national company with Derek Magness, managing director of the American energy corporation Chevron.

    According to KMG’s press center, producing green energy will help reduce harmful emissions into the atmosphere and increase the additional energy supply. Moreover, these measures will allow significant volumes of natural gas to be freed up for domestic consumption. The company also highlighted that additional gas supplies are needed for petrochemical projects.

    Leaders from Chevron and KMG also discussed the development prospects of the Karachaganak field and Tengiz, as well as the support the corporation can provide in achieving the national company’s petrochemical ambitions.

  • Aurubis Appoints Toralf Haag as New Chief Executive

    Aurubis Appoints Toralf Haag as New Chief Executive

    Germany’s Aurubis has announced the appointment of Toralf Haag as its new chief executive, effective September 1. Additionally, Tim Kurth, currently the managing director of the Bulgarian branch, will take on the role of Chief Operations Officer for custom smelting, the company stated on Thursday.

    In January, the copper producer revealed it had agreed to terminate the contracts of its chief executive and chief financial officers amid a top-level reshuffle due to their handling of an alleged theft and fraud incident.

    Aurubis shares experienced a significant uptick, rising by 4.67% as of 1444 GMT and trading up 7.2% as of 1226 GMT, hours before the official announcement.

    A local analyst attributed the early rise in share price to a report by German business publication Manager Magazin, which mentioned that major shareholder Salzgitter had previously explored the possibility of acquiring more shares in Aurubis. The report stated that Salzgitter had enlisted two investment banks to “calculate the project.” However, Salzgitter reaffirmed it currently has “no interest” in taking over Aurubis, according to the magazine.

  • Efforts Resume to Rescue 15 Trapped Miners in Poland Amid Grim Conditions

    Efforts Resume to Rescue 15 Trapped Miners in Poland Amid Grim Conditions

    Rescue workers are set to resume their efforts early Thursday to reach 15 miners trapped underground in a Polish coal mine, though local media reports suggest it may be too late to save them. The rescue operation had been suspended on Wednesday due to dangerous conditions. The miners have been trapped since Tuesday following a methane explosionthat killed at least eight miners. The incident occurred in a shaft over 1 km underground in the Halemba mine, located in the town of Ruda Slaska, 300 km southwest of Warsaw.

    “The level of the gas has fallen low enough to allow us to renew the rescue effort,” stated Zbigniew Madej, spokesman for the state-owned company Polish Coal Co, to the IAR news agency. Initial indications suggest it may take as little as two to three hours to reach the remaining miners.

    Poland’s President Lech Kaczynski expressed his concerns for the trapped men during a news conference on Wednesday after visiting the site. “Even though we should never lose hope, I will not hide the fact that the situation is very, very grim,” he said. Officials noted that the blast seemed to have damaged an underground water pump, leading to flooding and leaving little hope of finding anyone alive.

    Family members are waiting patiently at the site for news of their loved ones and are being offered counseling by local doctors. “I was once a miner myself. When I heard the news, my first thought was that my son is dead,” said Michal Wasowski, 55, whose son is among the missing. “A methane explosion is one of the most horrible things that can happen underground and this time it happened to my son.”

    The Halemba mine, one of the oldest in Poland, has been operational since 1957. Situated in the heart of the Silesia region’s industrial belt, it has witnessed several disasters, including a gas explosion in 1990 that killed 19 miners. Poland’s state-run mining industry, established before the fall of communism in 1989 and lacking investment for years, has seen hundreds of deaths over the decades. The president announced there would be a public inquiry into the cause of the disaster, noting indications that some of the miners were inexperienced and not sufficiently qualified.

  • АО Qarmet запускает масштабный проект по газификации производства

    АО Qarmet запускает масштабный проект по газификации производства

    АО Qarmet начало значительный проект по газификации своих производственных процессов, о чем сообщается на канале компании в Telegram. Руководство компании считает, что использование природного газасущественно снизит вредные выбросы в атмосферу и повысит экономическую эффективность комбината. Переход на этот экологически чистый энергоноситель уже начался, а его завершение планируется на следующий год. В рамках проекта мощности завода будут подключены к магистральному газопроводу «Сарыарка», расположенному в 25 км от предприятия. Qarmet Tubular Products Aktau изготавливает необходимые 600 тонн труб различного размера для новой линии. Эти трубы, изготовленные из сырья, поставляемого непосредственно комбинатом, будут доставлены на завод в Темиртау к концу месяца.

  • Qarmet Launches Major Production Gasification Project

    Qarmet Launches Major Production Gasification Project

    АО Qarmet has initiated a significant project to gasify its production processes, as reported on the company’s Telegram channel. The company’s leadership believes that utilizing natural gas will significantly reduce harmful atmospheric emissions and enhance the plant’s economic efficiency. The transition to this eco-friendly energy source has already begun, with completion expected next year. The project will connect the plant’s capacities to the Saryarka gas pipeline, located 25 km from the factory. Qarmet Tubular Products Aktau is manufacturing the required 600 tons of various-sized pipes for the new line. These pipes, made from raw materials supplied directly by the plant, are expected to be delivered to the Temirtau plant by the end of the month.