Canadian mining company Ivanhoe Mines and UK-based Pallas Resources have announced a joint venture for geological exploration in the Chu-Sarysu Copper Basin in Kazakhstan, according to Interfax-Kazakhstan.
The Chu-Sarysu Basin is the third-largest sedimentary-hosted copper basin in the world. Experts predict that this project could lead to one of the biggest copper discoveries in Central Asia in recent decades.
The companies have secured the largest exploration license package in Kazakhstan, covering 16,000 square kilometers—a scale comparable to Ivanhoe Mines’ past exploration projects in Mongolia and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
According to Robert Friedland, founder of Ivanhoe Mines, Kazakhstan has the potential to become a global hub for copper production. The U.S. Geological Survey estimates that the Chu-Sarysu Basin holds up to 25 million tons of copper resources.
While the exact start date for exploration has not been disclosed, the companies plan to invest $18.7 million in the first two years. The project will utilize advanced airborne geophysical technologies and digital data analysis, elevating Kazakhstan’s geological exploration to a new level.
