Giant Titanium Deposit Could Earn Kyrgyzstan $88bn, Says Cabinet Head

Akylbek Japarov, head of the country's Cabinet of Ministers, was reported as saying on September 26 that Kyrgyzstan could earn as much as $88bn from the development of its giant deposit of titanomagnetite, a mineral containing oxides of titanium and iron.

For comparison, the second poorest Central Asian country's GDP is expected by the IMF to amount to around $13.6bn this year.

Japarov inaugurated work at the Kyzyl-Ompol deposit, located in the northeastern region of Issyk-Kul, on September 25.

Referring to a Sputnik Kyrgyzstan article, Japarov said that the country planned to move to the production of titanium sponge, which trades on the market at around $8,000/tonne, and export the valuable commodity to China.

Representatives of a plant in Urumqi, in Xinjiang, northwestern China, had expressed their readiness to purchase titanium concentrate, Japarov was further cited as saying, adding: "Currently, about 5,000 trucks that bring goods [to Kyrgyzstan] from China leave empty. They agree to deliver concentrate for $500. God willing, next year we will be able to extract titanium, and before that, we will send raw materials.

"Titanium reserves in the Tash-Bulak [block, part of Kyzyl-Ompol deposit] alone are estimated at 13 million tonnes. Considering losses during mining and metallurgical extraction, the republic will be able to get about 11 million tonnes of metal, which at current prices can bring about $88 billion."

The deposit will be exploited by the state company Kyrgyzaltyn. It has permits to mine titanomagnetite, zirconium, phosphorus, thorium, and uranium in the Tash-Bulak area.