Karaganda Region, long the industrial backbone of Kazakhstan, is pushing to modernise its mining sector through digital technology and a wave of new investment projects, even as the industry grapples with volatile commodity prices, ageing infrastructure and a growing shortage of skilled workers.
Speaking to news agency NewTimes.kz, Alibek Moldakarimov, deputy head of the Region’s Department of Entrepreneurship and Industry, said the extractive sector remains a cornerstone of the regional economy, employing more than 40,000 people across 109 enterprises. The sector produced goods worth 81.1 billion tenge in January alone — up 2% on the same period last year — with total output forecast to reach 850 billion tenge for the year.
The region’s resource base spans coal, copper, iron, manganese, lead and zinc, and the mining and metallurgical complex accounts for approximately 70% of all industrial output in the area. Sixteen mining projects have been included in Kazakhstan’s national investment pipeline, with the potential to create nearly 2,000 new jobs. Two additional copper extraction and processing projects are also expected to launch this year.
Several major enterprises are already active in the region, including Qarmet, Kazakhmys, Altynalmas, Asia FerroAlloys, Shubarkol Komir and Nova Zinc. Companies are increasingly turning to digital solutions to improve both efficiency and workplace safety. Qarmet has deployed an electronic system that automates occupational health and safety processes and monitors worker welfare in real time. Altynalmas, meanwhile, has introduced a fleet management system to oversee mining transport operations, alongside a seismograph — the Zetl 7156 — to monitor blasting activity, and an automated pre-shift medical screening system called ESMA that checks workers’ physical condition before they begin work.
On the investment front, a new open-pit coal mine operated by Saryozen Komir has been launched in the Nurinsky District, with planned annual output of around 300,000 tonnes. Eurasian Land has also commissioned a manganese ore extraction project with capacity of approximately 80,000 tonnes per year. Later in 2025, a copper extraction and processing operation at the Tesiktassk deposit in the Aktogai District is expected to come online.
Despite the optimism, Moldakarimov acknowledged that the sector faces significant structural challenges. Global commodity price instability and intensifying international competition are pressing concerns, as is the need for energy-efficient and environmentally sustainable technology upgrades. Most acutely, the industry is confronting a critical shortage of qualified personnel and young specialists — a problem companies are attempting to address through closer partnerships with educational institutions and dedicated training programmes.
