Technabexport and Zarechnoye JV signed a contract for uranium supply to Russia at the cost of $1 bn.

/INTERFAX-KAZAKHSTAN, Moscow, June 15, 06/ - Technabexport PC and Russian-Kazakhstan-Kirghiz uranium-mining enterprise Zarechnoye (Zarechnoye JV) on Thursday in Moscow signed a contract for uranium supply to RF for a period until 2022 for a total of about $1 bn., Interfax was informed in Technabexport. Zarechnoye JV is occupied with mining of uranium on a field of the same name in Kazakhstan. The enterprise plans to produce the first production in III quarter of 2006, and in January of 2007, according to signed contract, the first shipment of uranium to Russia will take place. It was noted in Technabexport that the signed document has become the first contract for import of uranium in the history of RF, and Zarechnoye JV is the first joint project of Russia on extraction of uranium on the territory of another state. The contract was signed in the context of complex program of RF and Kazakhstan on cooperation in the field of world use of atom energy, explained in the company. On the whole this program provides both for development of Zarechnoye JV and set up of new uranium-mining enterprises in Kazakhstan with the assistance of RF. At that it is assumed that in the future volume of mining and supply of Kazakhstan uranium to Russia will grow to 6 th. tons per year. Planned production capacity of Zarechnoye JV is 1 th. tons of uranium a year. The enterprise intends to achieve production volume of extraction in 2009. Evaluative volume of reserves on the field, which is settled by Zarechnoye JV, amounts 19 th. tons of uranium. Technabexport PC and NAC Kazatomprom, which own 49.3% of the enterprise each, are the primary owners of JV. Besides, Russian Atompredmetzoloto PC and Kirghiz Kara- Baltinsk mining combine own 0.7% each. Total investments of all participants of JV in the construction total about $60 m. Technabexport PC at 100% belongs to the state. The company is the biggest world supplier of goods and services in the sphere of nuclear fuel cycle. Technabexport has daughter companies in Germany, Korean Republic and Japan. [2006-06-16]