Government may change rules for geological exploration in Kazakhstan

According to Marat Karabayev, minister of industry and infrastructural development in Kazakhstan, companies that have been conducting geological exploration at a site for a while will get the opportunity to continue this work with a right for extraction.

«We are focusing our attention on modern methods of geological exploration. One of the potential novelties we are discussing is the issue of mineral license. We are now suggesting that a company involved in geological exploration must also be able to get a mineral license to continue exploration and extracting operations on a certain site. We are discussing the possibility to amend our legislation,» the minister said during the Astana Mining & Metallurgy Congress 2023.

As the official noted, this move is expected to spark more investors’ interest in geological exploration in Kazakhstan.

«Of course, we are inviting all big companies to come here and take part in the exploration. You’ll get everything you discover,» Karabayev said.

The industry minister has invited foreign businesses to take part in the auction for mineral exploration that is scheduled for October 2023.

«In October, we are going to hold an online auction for 25 fields with commercial reserves worth $46 billion. I’d like to invite all our investors to take part in this auction,» the official highlighted.

He also noted that Kazakhstan is expected to increase its copper production to one million tons by 2027. As of today, the country has produced 453,000 tons of copper.