About creation of molybdenum production in Kazakhstan - NAC Kazatomprom JSC

/NAC Kazatomprom JSC, August 25, 05/ - On August 20 of 2005 Nursultan Nazarbayev Kazakhstan President visited Stepnogorsk city. During the visit country's head talked with M. Jakishev President of National atomic company Kazatomprom JSC and E. Pirmatov General director of Stepnogorsk mining-chemical combine (SMCC). Jakishev reported to the country's head about the development strategy and condition of business at the combine and perspective of SMCC's development until year 2010. Country's head approved plans on SMCC's development and especially marked perspectives on creation of molybdenum production in Kazakhstan. One sixth of the world revealed molybdenum reserves, over 249 th. tons, is in Kazakhstan, while there is no production on molybdenum goods output in the country. Molybdenum is widely used for getting special sorts of steel, catalysts for oil refining industry. As a result of scientific-research works, workers of Stepnogorsk mining- chemical combine and National atomic company Kazatomprom under the direction of SMCC's Pirmatov, doctor of technical sciences, created a unique technological scheme of receiving molybdenum oxide, which was approved at testing-industrial area of hydrometallurgical plant. Laboratory analysis showed full correspondence to international quality standards. This is a big victory of Kazakhstan's scientists, technologists and production workers. And the first lot of molybdenum oxide was outputted by the president's visit. In order to create industrial processing of molybdenum ore, within 3 months it's planned to build a concentrating plant on processing one million tons of molybdenum ore per year, prepare area and assemble equipment for molybdenum oxide production by the new Kazakhstan technology, which production capacity of 1000 tons of molybdenum oxide per year. It's planned to output first lot in the beginning of 2006. For providing production with raw stuff there has been founded a joint venture Moliken LLP, on processing ores of Shorskoye field jointly with British company Eurika mining. Mineralogical resources of the field on molybdenum are 21 th. tons. It's also planned to start pits in copper- molybdenum fields: Kyzyltu and Seletinskoye. Realization of the projects will let by 100% load capacities of ore rout, and output about 1150 tons of molybdenum per year. As the whole it's planned to invest within 2005-2007 over USD180 m. into the combine's development that will let provide high profitable and stable production at the combine by year 2010. National atomic company Kazatomprom is the national operator on export of uranium and other materials of double destination. 100% of the company's shares belong to the state in the person of the Ministry of energy and mineral resources of Kazakhstan. NAC Kazatomprom is a holding controlling six main directions of activity: geological survey, uranium extraction, metallurgy, power engineering, scientific provision of production and re-preparation of personnel, and also social provision. By the beginning of 2005 over 19,000 persons worked in the company. [2005-08-25]