China runs five times more mining projects in Central Asia than all European companies combined. But a shift is under way. Türkiye is investing billions, building rare earth processing capacity, and forging a new industrial corridor from the Caspian to the Mediterranean. In this episode, we explore why Ankara is emerging as the pivot point in the global race for critical metals — and what it means for Kazakhstan, Europe, and the West.
Let us begin with a single figure. Seventy per cent. That is the share of Central Asia’s critical mineral output that currently goes to China. Twenty-five active Chinese projects in the region — five times the number of all European projects combined. Meanwhile, Kazakhstan is capable of producing half of the thirty-four materials the European Union classifies as critical: lithium, cobalt, copper, tungsten, rare earth elements. The Senate of Kazakhstan has valued the country’s subsoil potential at forty-six trillion dollars. Let that figure sink in.
The question is — who will become the partner in transforming this wealth from ore into finished products? Who will help build the full value chain, from geological exploration to processing? And who will offer not merely capital, but technology, market access, and industrial expertise?
It is precisely to address these questions that we are holding the twelfth International Mining and Exploration Forum, MINEX Asia, which will take place on the twenty-fourth and twenty-fifth of June at the Hilton Ankara.
The choice of Türkiye as the venue is no coincidence. The forum operates in a nomadic format, moving from country to country and retracing the routes of the Great Silk Road. This year, we are undertaking what is, in many ways, a unique endeavour — to offer an in-depth assessment of the strengthening ties amongst Turkic nations and the transition towards a new quality of partnership, uniting the mineral-rich countries of Central Asia with Türkiye’s industrial might and the financial capital of the West and the Middle East.
Just a week ago, on the thirteenth and fourteenth of May, President Erdoğan paid a state visit to Astana. Thirteen agreements were signed in the fields of investment, energy, and infrastructure, including the historic Declaration on Eternal Friendship and Partnership. The implementation of these projects is expected to attract over 920 million dollars in investment and create more than 3,100 jobs in Kazakhstan.
President Tokayev placed particular emphasis on the mining sector as one of the priority areas of cooperation. He highlighted the considerable experience of Turkish companies and urged them to take a more active role in Kazakh projects. This was not a formulaic diplomatic remark. It was a concrete political signal. And we are already seeing tangible results: Miryıldız is building a mining and processing plant in the Abai region, Çelikler Holding is developing coal chemistry, and Aksa Energy is delivering an energy project in Kyzylorda. To date, approximately one hundred investment projects worth four billion dollars have been carried out in Kazakhstan with Turkish participation, and a further fifty projects of comparable value are currently under way. The total volume of investment cooperation has reached an impressive eight billion dollars.
To lend further momentum to this process, President Tokayev proposed the establishment of a joint fund for mining projects. Moreover, Kazakhstan’s new Tax Code now directly incentivises deep processing of raw materials through a favourable royalty regime.
The intensification of engagement with Turkish business is taking place across virtually all Central Asian countries. A Turkish-Uzbek business forum was recently held in Tashkent, where ambitious plans to raise bilateral trade to five billion dollars were presented. Uzbekistan is launching a critical minerals development programme worth two and a half billion dollars. Last September, a Kyrgyz-Turkish business forum set a new benchmark for economic cooperation. Kyrgyzstan has identified twenty-two critical minerals for strategic development, and Turkish investment in the country already exceeds one and a half billion dollars.
We are witnessing a systemic shift. The Turkic states are moving from the political rhetoric of brotherhood towards pragmatic economic partnership. And the mining industry sits at the very heart of this process.
Now, a word on Türkiye. It has long ceased to be merely a transit country along the Middle Corridor. Türkiye’s mineral resource potential is valued at three and a half trillion dollars. The Beylikova project is one of the world’s largest, rare-earth deposits. Türkiye has announced the creation of a mining exchange in 2026 and is preparing a large-scale national programme for the processing of critical metals. The country is purposefully transitioning from raw material exports to high-technology processing — from boron to rare earth magnets and battery precursors.
What precisely will be discussed at the forum?
Day one focuses on strategy and capital. We shall begin with Türkiye’s mining strategy and its shift towards a model of industrial autonomy. Next — the Middle Corridor: how the Trans-Caspian route can become not simply a logistical bypass, but an integrated industrial belt linking extraction, processing, and end markets. A dedicated session will address the most pressing question — who is financing the future of mining in our region? China, the West, the Middle East — each is playing its own hand, and the countries of the region must build a balanced, multi-vector strategy. Day one will conclude with presentations of projects being delivered by Turkish companies in Central Asia and the Caspian region.
In the evening, we shall host a reception at the residence of the British Embassy, in partnership with the Department for Business and Trade, attended by senior dignitaries.
Day two centres on technology and sustainable development. How can Kazakhstan and the countries of Central Asia integrate into European supply chains in light of the CBAM mechanism and digital product passport requirements? How should tailings storage facilities be managed to international standards? How is artificial intelligence already transforming geological exploration — from the processing of Soviet-era archival data to unmanned geophysics?
Who is expected to attend the forum?
Amongst the key organisational partners on the Turkish side are the Supreme Mining Council of the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Türkiye (TOBB), the Gold Producers’ Association, and the Turkish Mining Association, which accounts for approximately seventy-five per cent of all mineral extraction in the country. The forum also anticipates the participation of senior officials from the Türkiye Wealth Fund, as well as leading companies such as Dama Engineering, Argetest, KSE Mining, Kayen Maden, Positive Group Makine Muhendislik, DMT Türkiye, ExxonMobil and many others.
Now — the most important point. What specifically does this forum offer Kazakh companies?
Firstly, Central Asian countries, like Kazakhstan, produces nineteen of the thirty-four critical minerals for EU countries. Yet the bulk of output is still exported in unprocessed form. The forum provides a platform to find a processing partner, and Türkiye — with its industrial infrastructure and the logistical reach of the Middle Corridor — is a natural candidate.
Secondly, investment. The forum includes a dedicated session where your projects — copper, gold, lithium, rare earths — can be presented directly to investors. Not through intermediaries, not via correspondence, but face to face with the decision-makers.
Thirdly, the Korean Institute KIGAM last year discovered a lithium deposit in East Kazakhstan valued at nearly sixteen billion dollars. A comprehensive plan for the development of rare and rare earth metals through to 2028 is already under way. However, competing with China in processing is no easy task — and it is precisely for this reason that partnership with Turkish companies, which are themselves building processing capacity, opens a new route for landlocked Central Asian countries to Western markets.
And fourthly, networking. The forum offers a digital matchmaking system, bilateral meetings, an informal reception at the British Embassy in Ankara, and a gala dinner. These are the kinds of networking in-person opportunities simply cannot be forged over email.
Colleagues, let us take a broad view. Europe is seeking an alternative to its dependence on China for critical minerals. The United States has launched the C5+1 dialogue on critical minerals. Türkiye is building processing hubs. And Kazakhstan and the countries of Central Asia are sitting on a resource base that the world is quite literally searching for.
That is precisely why MINEX Asia in Ankara is not just another conference. It is the place where resources meet capital, and strategies meet concrete partners. Registration is open at 2026.minexasia.com.
Come not to listen — come to do business. We look forward to welcoming you to the forum on the twenty-fourth and twenty-fifth of June.
