Kazakhstan requires between $10 billion and $12 billion in investment to develop its copper and aluminium processing industries to their full potential, with the country currently exporting up to 97% of its copper in raw or insufficiently processed form, the deputy minister of national economy has told the Senate.
Arman Kasenov, speaking during a government session in parliament, said the copper segment alone represents potential projects exceeding $5 to $6 billion, with more than 100 leading international companies possessing deep expertise available as potential partners. Copper ranks as the second most important segment in Kazakhstan’s metallurgy sector after gold in terms of significance and value-added potential, yet the overwhelming majority of output continues to leave the country without meaningful processing.
Among the specific opportunities Kasenov identified is the production of ultra-thin copper foil for batteries and electric vehicles, alongside other potential downstream manufacturing facilities. He said Kazakhstan has room for at least one large modern copper smelter, which could be built either by domestic companies independently or in partnership with leading international firms.
The aluminium processing gap presents a parallel challenge. Kazakhstan converts bauxite into alumina, but only one third of that alumina is then processed into primary aluminium at ERG’s Pavlodar plant, which is already running at 100% capacity. The remaining two thirds of domestically produced alumina is exported. Kasenov said the country has a clear opportunity to establish full alumina-to-aluminium conversion domestically, enabling the production of downstream metal products including wire, cable and rolled goods — an investment he estimated at more than $5 to $6 billion.
Kazakhstan-registered exploration company ALTYN GEO RESOURCE has announced plans to begin geological exploration at the Taldy alluvial gold prospect in the Samarsky District of East Kazakhstan Region, the latest in a series of licence areas the company is advancing simultaneously across the region.
The Taldy licence area covers 15.8 square kilometres across seven blocks, located approximately 45 kilometres northwest of the city of Altai. The company received its solid minerals exploration licence from the Ministry of Industry and Construction on 30 December 2025. The programme is designed to evaluate alluvial gold prospectivity and calculate reserves to KazRC standards, with the primary objectives of delineating the productive layer, determining overburden and sand thicknesses, and assessing gold grades and processing characteristics.
Exploration will use percussion cable drilling on a grid of 200 to 400 metres between lines and 20 to 40 metres between holes, with approximately 100 boreholes planned across a total of 3,000 linear metres at an average depth of 30 metres. UAV aerial photography will provide detailed topographic mapping at scales of 1:2,000 to 1:5,000. An estimated 257.9 tonnes of samples will be collected. Field operations will be conducted on a rotational basis with teams of 16 specialists working 15-day shifts. The programme is scheduled to run from the first quarter of 2026 through to the fourth quarter of 2031, with the final phase producing a geological report and KazRC-compliant reserve calculation.
The Taldy area is characterised by gold mineralisation associated with fracture, shear and silicification zones in terrigenous rocks, with arsenopyrite serving as an indicator of the highest concentrations of fine-grained gold.
ALTYN GEO RESOURCE is simultaneously advancing two further alluvial gold exploration programmes. In Abai Region’s Zharminsk District, a 20.26 square kilometre licence area called Nizhny Agynykatti is targeted for work commencing in the fourth quarter of 2026 through to end-2031. In East Kazakhstan’s Ulansky District, the Taldybulak licence area of 11.23 square kilometres is similarly scheduled for the same period, with the company noting that gold content in the Taldybulak river valley is irregular in distribution.
The company’s co-owners are listed as Xingwang Engineering Kazakhstan Co. Ltd and Inzhu Caspian Gold LLP. The ownership of Xingwang Engineering Kazakhstan is not publicly disclosed, though its director is identified as Liu Xiangju.
Eurasian Resources Group has confirmed a significant change to its shareholder structure, with Nature Energy Solutions Ltd. — a company owned by Kazakhstani businessman Shakhmurat Mutalip — acquiring a combined 39.3% stake from two of the group’s founding shareholders.
The acquisition comprises an 18.6% stake sold by Patokh Chodiev and a 20.7% stake sold by the heirs of the late Alexander Machkevitch. ERG said all of its enterprises continue to operate as usual and that the shareholding changes do not affect day-to-day operations, production programmes or the fulfilment of obligations to employees, partners and government authorities.
The group said the restructuring is intended to strengthen business resilience, enhance corporate governance effectiveness and support the implementation of ERG’s long-term development strategy.
The transaction marks a significant consolidation of Kazakhstani domestic ownership within ERG, one of the world’s largest diversified natural resources groups with major operations in copper, cobalt, aluminium, chrome and other commodities across Kazakhstan, Africa and beyond. Mutalip has been rapidly expanding his mining portfolio in recent months, having previously acquired gold producer Altynalmas and been linked to potential stakes in Kazzinc.
RG Gold, the Akmola Region gold producer acquired by China’s Zijin Gold International from Bulat Utemuratov in 2025, has disclosed a dispute with Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Industry and Construction over the renewal of exploration licences covering additional territories adjacent to its main Raygorodok operation, according to the company’s 2025 financial statements.
The company applied to the Ministry of Industry in 2024 for a three-year extension of geological exploration licences. The application received approval for consideration on 30 December 2024, and documents were submitted to the ministry’s Working Group on 11 August 2025. However, a protocol dated 10 December 2025 issued objections that RG Gold says it does not agree with. The company resubmitted its documents on 25 December 2025, and a further Working Group meeting was still pending at the time the financial statements were finalised in early March 2026.
The underlying subsoil use contract, valid until 2040, grants RG Gold rights over the Novodneprovskaya contract territory, which encompasses two ore fields — Novodneprovskoe and Raygorodskoye — the latter hosting the North and South Raygorodok deposits that form the core of the company’s production base, along with the Sharyk prospective area and several exploration zones. Reserve estimates for the main deposits were most recently revised and approved under the KAZRC code in 2025 on the basis of an updated geological model. The company also holds six exploration licences on nearby territories issued in 2020 for six years, which under Kazakhstan’s Subsoil Code can be extended for a further four years.
The disclosure comes as Zijin presses ahead with ambitious expansion plans at the site. Gold production in doré form reached 6.5 tonnes in 2025, with 1.2 tonnes attributed to the new Chinese owner following the October acquisition. RG Gold’s profit for the reporting period doubled to 158 billion tenge on the back of record gold prices, with approximately $120 million falling to Zijin’s account. Production guidance for 2026 is set at 6.4 tonnes, with a medium-term target of approximately 11 tonnes annually once processing capacity is expanded by 10 million tonnes per year.
The company’s charitable expenditure drew attention in the financial statements. RG Gold spent 18.16 billion tenge sponsoring the Bulat Utemuratov Foundation for social projects, 1.2 billion tenge on Kazakhstani tennis and the ATP-250 Almaty Open tournament, and just 22 million tenge on landscaping improvements in Shchuchinsk — the town closest to the mine in Burabai District.
Давайте начнём с одной цифры. Семьдесят процентов. Именно столько критического минерального сырья Центральной Азии сегодня уходит в Китай. Двадцать пять активных китайских проектов в регионе — это в пять раз больше, чем у всех европейских компаний вместе взятых. При этом Казахстан способен производить половину из тридцати четырёх материалов, которые Евросоюз называет критически важными: литий, кобальт, медь, вольфрам, редкоземельные элементы. В Сенате Казахстана оценивали потенциал казахстанских недр в сорок шесть триллионов долларов. Вдумайтесь в эту цифру.
Вопрос в том — кто станет партнёром в превращении этого богатства из руды в готовую продукцию? Кто поможет выстроить полную цепочку — от геологоразведки до переработки? И кто предложит не просто деньги, а технологии, рынки сбыта и промышленные компетенции?
Именно для того, чтобы ответить на эти вопросы, мы проводим двенадцатый Международный горно-геологический форум МАЙНЕКС Азия, который состоится двадцать четвёртого и двадцать пятого июня в отеле HiltonAnkara.
Выбор Турции в качестве места проведения форума не случаен. Форум проводится в номад-формате, перемещаясь из страны в страну и повторяя маршруты Великого Шёлкового Пути. В этом году мы предпринимаем в своём роде уникальную попытку дать глубокую оценку процессов укрепления связей между тюркскими народами и перехода в новое качество объединения богатых минеральными ресурсами странами Центральной Азии с промышленной мощью Турции, а также финансовым капиталом стран Запада и Ближнего Востока.
Буквально неделю назад, тринадцатого-четырнадцатого мая, Президент Эрдоган совершил государственный визит в Астану. Было подписано тринадцать соглашений в сферах инвестиций, энергетики и инфраструктуры, включая историческую Декларацию о вечной дружбе и партнерстве. Реализация проектов позволит привлечь свыше 920 миллионов долларов инвестиций и создать более 3 100 рабочих мест в Казахстане.
Президент Токаев особо подчеркнул, что горнодобывающий комплекс является одним из приоритетных направлений взаимодействия. Он отметил богатый опыт турецких компаний и призвал их активнее участвовать в казахстанских проектах. Это не протокольная фраза. Это конкретный политический сигнал. И мы уже видим реальные плоды: компания Miryıldız построит ГОК в Абайской области, Çelikler Holding развивает угольную химию, а Aksa Energy реализует энергетический проект в Кызылорде. На сегодняшний день в Казахстане с участием турецких компаний осуществлено около 100 инвестиционных проектов на 4 миллиарда долларов, и еще 50 проектов на аналогичную сумму находятся в стадии реализации. Общий объем инвестиционного сотрудничества достиг внушительных 8 миллиардов долларов.
Чтобы придать этому еще большее ускорение, Президент Токаев предложил создать совместный фонд для горнодобывающих проектов. Более того, новый Налоговый кодекс Казахстана теперь прямо поощряет глубокую переработку сырья через благоприятный режим роялти.
Активизация взаимодействия с турецким бизнесом происходит практически во всех странах Средней Азии. Недавно в Ташкенте состоялся турецко-узбекский бизнес-форум, на котором были представлены амбициозные планы довести товарооборот до пяти миллиардов долларов. Узбекистан запускает программу развития критических минералов на два с половиной миллиарда долларов. В сентябре прошлого года прошёл кыргызско-турецкий бизнес-форум, задавший новую планку экономического сотрудничества. Кыргызстан определил двадцать два критических минерала для стратегического развития, а турецкие инвестиции в страну уже превышают полтора миллиарда.
Мы наблюдаем системный сдвиг. Тюркские государства переходят от политической риторики братства к прагматическому экономическому партнёрству. И горнодобывающая отрасль находится в самом центре этого процесса.
Теперь о Турции. Это уже давно не просто транзитная страна Среднего коридора. Минерально-сырьевой потенциал Турции оценивается в три с половиной триллиона долларов. Проект Бейликова— одно из крупнейших в мире месторождений редкоземельных элементов. Турция объявила о создании горнорудной биржи в двадцать шестом году и готовит масштабную национальную программу по переработке критически важных металлов. Страна целенаправленно переходит от экспорта сырья к высокотехнологичной переработке — от бора до магнитов из редких земель и батарейных прекурсоров.
Что именно будет обсуждаться на форуме?
Первый день — стратегия и капитал. Мы начнём с горнорудной стратегии Турции и её перехода к модели промышленной автономии. Затем — Средний коридор: как Транскаспийский маршрут может стать не просто логистическим обходом, а интегрированным промышленным поясом, связывающим добычу, переработку и рынки сбыта. Отдельная сессия посвящена острейшему вопросу — кто финансирует будущее горнодобычи в нашем регионе? Китай, Запад, Ближний Восток — каждый играет свою партию, и странам региона необходимо выстроить сбалансированную многовекторную стратегию. Первый день завершится презентациями проектов, реализуемых турецкими компаниями в странах Средней Азии и в Прикаспийском регионе.
Вечером в резиденции посольства Великобритании совместно с Департаментом Бизнеса и Торговли мы проведем фуршет с участием высокопоставленных лиц.
Второй день — технологии и устойчивое развитие. Как Казахстану и странам Центральной Азии вписаться в европейские цепочки поставок с учётом механизма CBAM и требований к цифровым паспортам продукции? Как управлять хвостохранилищами по мировым стандартам? Как искусственный интеллект уже сегодня меняет геологоразведку — от обработки советских архивных данных до беспилотной геофизики?
Кто планирует участвовать в форуме?
Среди ключевых партнёров в организации форума с турецкой стороны принимают участие Высший Горный Совет Союза торговых палат и товарных бирж Турции (TOBB), Ассоциация золотопромышленников и Ассоциация горнопромышленников Турции, на долю которой приходится около 75% всей добычи полезных ископаемых. В форуме также ожидается участие высшего руководства Фонда благосостояния Турции, а также ведущих компаний, таких как Dama Engineering, Argetest, KSE Mining, Kayen Maden, Positive Group Makine Muhendislik, DMT Türkiye, ExxonMobil и многих других.
Теперь — самое важное. Что конкретно даёт этот форум казахстанским компаниям?
Первое. Казахстан производит девятнадцать из тридцати четырёх критических минералов для стран ЕС. Но основная часть по-прежнему уходит на экспорт в необработанном виде. Форум — это площадка, где можно найти партнёра по переработке, и Турция с её промышленной инфраструктурой и логистическим плечом Среднего коридора — естественный кандидат.
Второе. Инвестиции. На форуме предусмотрена специальная сессия, где ваши проекты — медные, золотые, литиевые, редкоземельные — могут быть представлены напрямую инвесторам. Не через посредников, не через переписку, а лицом к лицу с теми, кто принимает решения.
Третье. Корейский институт KIGAM в прошлом году обнаружил месторождение лития в Восточном Казахстане стоимостью почти шестнадцать миллиардов долларов. Комплексный план развития редких и редкоземельных металлов до двадцать восьмого года уже запущен. Но конкурировать с Китаем в переработке сложно — и именно поэтому партнёрство с турецкими компаниями, которые сами строят перерабатывающие мощности, открывает для Казахстана новый маршрут на западные рынки!
И четвёртое. Нетворкинг. Форум — это цифровая система подбора партнёров, двусторонние встречи, неформальный приём в Посольстве Великобритании в Анкаре и гала-ужин. Это те контакты, которые невозможно завязать по электронной почте.
Коллеги, давайте посмотрим на ситуацию широко. Европа ищет альтернативу китайской зависимости в критических минералах. США запустили диалог C5+1 по критическим минералам. Турция строит перерабатывающие хабы. А Казахстан и страны Центральной Азии сидят на ресурсной базе, которую мир буквально разыскивает.
Именно поэтому МАЙНЕКС Азия в Анкаре — это не просто ещё одна конференция. Это место, где ресурсы встречаются с капиталом, а стратегии — с конкретными партнёрами. Регистрация открыта на сайте 2026.minexasia.com.
Приходите не слушать — приходите договариваться. Будем рады видеть вас на форуме двадцать четвёртого и двадцать пятого июня!
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.
Kazakhstan could attract between $10 billion and $12 billion in investment for copper and aluminium processing projects, a deputy minister of the national economy has told the country’s Senate, highlighting a structural weakness in which the overwhelming majority of the country’s copper leaves the country in raw or minimally processed form.
Deputy Minister Arman Kasenov told senators that copper ranks second only to gold in terms of importance and value-added potential within Kazakhstan’s metallurgical sector — yet up to 97% of the metal extracted is currently exported either without processing or after only primary treatment. He said investment in the copper segment alone could exceed $5 to $6 billion, with priority directions including the production of ultra-thin copper foil, a material in high demand for battery and electric vehicle manufacturing.
Kasenov said Kazakhstan has the conditions to establish at least one large modern copper smelting plant, either through domestic companies or in partnership with credible international players. The statement aligns with the government’s broader push to move from a raw material export model toward domestic value-added industrial production.
On aluminium, the deputy minister highlighted a similar processing gap. Kazakhstan currently produces alumina from bauxite, but only one third of that alumina is converted into primary aluminium at ERG’s Pavlodar plant, which is already operating at full capacity. The remaining two thirds of Kazakhstani alumina is exported. Expanding domestic alumina-to-aluminium conversion would open opportunities for the production of aluminium wire, cable, rolled products and other downstream goods. Kasenov estimated the investment required for such expansion at more than $5 to $6 billion — a figure consistent with the scale of the East Hope Group’s proposed $12.6 billion full-cycle aluminium project in Kostanai Region currently under discussion with the government.
Turkish-Dutch conglomerate CoreX Holding, formerly known in Kazakhstan as Yildirim Holding, is closing four joint ventures with Qazgeology — a subsidiary of the state mining holding Tau-Ken Samruk — that had been carrying out exploration activities across several regions and mineral types, a senior company official has confirmed.
Speaking on the sidelines of the 4th Mining Congress in Astana, CoreX Holding’s deputy director general for administrative management in Kazakhstan, Anvar Boranbayev, said the company had operated five joint ventures with Qazgeology under exploration licences. Four of these are now being wound down.
The company’s production contract at the Voskhod chromite mine near Khromtau in Aktobe Region — operated through its Voskhod-Oriel enterprise — runs until 2029, by which point the deposit’s reserves and output have been declining in recent years. CoreX is conducting geological exploration in the Khromtau district in an effort to replenish its mineral resource base before the contract expires.
The company also holds an evaluated licence area called Udar on the Kempirsa plateau near the settlement of Badamsha in Aktobe Region, operated through its Sunrise Mining subsidiary. Boranbayev said a production permit application has been submitted to the Ministry of Industry and is awaiting approval, with the company expecting to proceed once public and environmental review requirements for its mining plan have been satisfied. If reserves of approximately 500,000 tonnes of refined chrome are exploited at a rational rate, production at Udar could last four to five years.
CoreX, as the former Yildirim group, has previously faced questions over chrome raw material supplies to Russia — including to its own Tikhvin ferroalloy plant and the Novotroitsk chromium compounds plant — in the context of sanctions. In Kazakhstan, the company supplies the Aktobe Chromium Compounds Plant. A separate project, the Qazaq Soda calcined soda plant in Zhambyl Region, has experienced delays due to permitting documentation requirements but is now advancing with adjusted implementation plans.
The Astana International Financial Centre has convened a roundtable between representatives of the Astana International Exchange and Hong Kong Stock Exchange to explore practical pathways for Kazakhstani junior mining and fintech companies to access international capital markets — a step the AIFC frames as essential to unlocking investment in the country’s vast but underfinanced early-stage exploration pipeline.
The event brought together exchange leadership, investment banks and exploration companies including Kusto Altyn and Copper, Pallas Resources, KazakhNickel, Atlant Minerals, Altyn Samruk and Qazgeology, alongside members of the AIFC’s Mining Sector Expert Council. The discussion centred on the financing mechanisms and listing requirements of both HKEX and AIX, with particular attention to what Hong Kong can offer companies seeking access to Asian institutional capital.
AIFC chief product officer Zhanbolat Kakishev said junior companies worldwide play a key role in new mineral discoveries but face the greatest financing challenges at early stages. “The launch of Junior Mining Platform was one of AIFC’s steps toward building a financing ecosystem for such projects,” he said, adding that the roundtable was designed to develop practical mechanisms for preparing junior companies for international investment and eventual capital market listings.
A concrete example of the dual listing model was presented to participants: the 2025 simultaneous listing of Jiaxin International Resources Investment Limited — a tungsten producer operating in Almaty Region — on both AIX and HKEX. The offering became the first CNY-denominated IPO in Central Asia and the first Belt and Road segment IPO on AIX. Combined investor demand across global markets exceeded the target volume by more than 220 times, reaching over $34 billion — a figure participants cited as evidence of substantial international appetite for Kazakhstani mining assets.
Johnson Choi of HKEX outlined the key stages of the listing process and highlighted barriers companies typically encounter, including corporate governance standards, disclosure requirements and transparency obligations. Qazgeology CEO Bakyt Chirchikbayev said the platform and roundtable had provided the most comprehensive information his organisation had received on international capital market requirements. “Such initiatives help companies objectively assess their readiness for listing,” he said.
The roundtable also discussed institutional investor interest in rare earth projects from Hong Kong-based funds, the legal mechanics of dual listings, yuan-denominated bond issuance and the role of investment banks in the listing process. The broader context includes growing yuan-denominated capital market activity through AIX: Samruk-Kazyna completed Kazakhstan’s first panda bond placement of three billion yuan on AIX in April 2026, followed by Caspian Solar’s 625 million yuan green bond in May.
The Kazakhstani government has confirmed its support for a major investment project by China’s East Hope Group, with First Deputy Prime Minister Nurlybek Nalibayev meeting the Chinese conglomerate’s director general Chen Lei to advance plans for a full-cycle green aluminium production complex in Kostanai Region.
The project, with a planned investment of approximately $12.6 billion, envisions an environmentally clean aluminium production chain encompassing bauxite mining and processing, an electrolysis plant and a wind power station to supply the operation with renewable electricity. East Hope Group is currently conducting geological exploration across a number of licence blocks in Kostanai and Aktobe regions in preparation for the project’s development phases.
The government’s endorsement follows earlier reports from late March indicating that Chinese investors are planning to construct two alumina plants in Kostanai Region with combined investments exceeding 1.1 trillion tenge. According to the regional administration, the first facility — with annual capacity of one million tonnes of alumina — is expected to begin operations in 2028, followed by a second plant capable of producing up to two million tonnes of alumina per year from 2029.
The scale of the proposed investment would make it one of the largest single foreign direct investment projects in Kazakhstan’s industrial history, and would establish the country as a significant player in global aluminium supply chains by creating fully integrated domestic capacity from raw material extraction through to primary metal production.
