Kazakhstan’s Kazzinc JSC has announced plans to invest over $700 million to expand operations at the Vasilkovskoye gold deposit in the Akmola region. The project is operated by Altyntau Kokshetau JSC, a Kazzinc subsidiary, which currently extracts ore using open-pit methods.
Since the beginning of 2025, Kazzinc has produced 408,000 ounces of gold, down 9% compared to the same period in 2024. The decline is mainly due to lower ore grades as mining moves deeper into the pit, the company said.
Vasilkovskoye remains one of Kazakhstan’s largest gold assets. As of the end of 2024, its total ore reserves were estimated at 40 million tonnes, with an average gold grade of 2.1 grams per tonne, according to Swiss company Glencore, which owns 69.61% of Kazzinc’s shares. The sovereign wealth fund Tau-Ken Samruk holds another 29.8%.
In 2024, the mine produced more than 18.7 tonnes of gold, depleting high-grade ore reserves but delivering higher profits than in 2023.
The new investment project introduces a hybrid mining approach, combining open-pit and underground operations. The open pit will be deepened to 680 meters, with annual ore extraction of up to 6 million tonnes, while a new underground mine will produce up to 2 million tonnes of ore per year.
