Mining in Tajikistan
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Tajikistan Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...
has rich deposits of
gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...
,
silver Silver is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂erǵ-, ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, whi ...
, and
antimony Antimony is a chemical element with the symbol Sb (from la, stibium) and atomic number 51. A lustrous gray metalloid, it is found in nature mainly as the sulfide mineral stibnite (Sb2S3). Antimony compounds have been known since ancient time ...
. The largest silver deposits are in
Sughd Province Sughd Province ( tg, Вилояти Суғд, Viloyati Sughd, Sogdia Region , fa, ولایت سغد) is one of the four administrative divisions and one of the three provinces ( tg, вилоятҳо, viloyatho , fa, ولایت) that make up ...
, where Tajikistan's largest gold mining operation also is located. Russia's
Norilsk Norilsk ( rus, Нори́льск, p=nɐˈrʲilʲsk, ''Norílʹsk'') is a closed city in Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia, located south of the western Taymyr Peninsula, around 90 km east of the Yenisey River and 1,500 km north of Krasnoyarsk. Norilsk i ...
nickel company has explored a large new silver deposit at Bolshoy Kanimansur. More than 400 mineral deposits of some 70 different minerals have been discovered in Tajikistan, including
strontium Strontium is the chemical element with the symbol Sr and atomic number 38. An alkaline earth metal, strontium is a soft silver-white yellowish metallic element that is highly chemically reactive. The metal forms a dark oxide layer when it is ex ...
,
tungsten Tungsten, or wolfram, is a chemical element with the symbol W and atomic number 74. Tungsten is a rare metal found naturally on Earth almost exclusively as compounds with other elements. It was identified as a new element in 1781 and first isolat ...
,
molybdenum Molybdenum is a chemical element with the symbol Mo and atomic number 42 which is located in period 5 and group 6. The name is from Neo-Latin ''molybdaenum'', which is based on Ancient Greek ', meaning lead, since its ores were confused with lea ...
,
bismuth Bismuth is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Bi and atomic number 83. It is a post-transition metal and one of the pnictogens, with chemical properties resembling its lighter group 15 siblings arsenic and antimony. Elemental ...
,
salt Salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl), a chemical compound belonging to the larger class of salts; salt in the form of a natural crystalline mineral is known as rock salt or halite. Salt is present in vast quantitie ...
,
lead Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...
,
zinc Zinc is a chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. Zinc is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a shiny-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodi ...
,
fluorspar Fluorite (also called fluorspar) is the mineral form of calcium fluoride, CaF2. It belongs to the halide minerals. It crystallizes in isometric cubic habit, although octahedral and more complex isometric forms are not uncommon. The Mohs scal ...
, and
mercury Mercury commonly refers to: * Mercury (planet), the nearest planet to the Sun * Mercury (element), a metallic chemical element with the symbol Hg * Mercury (mythology), a Roman god Mercury or The Mercury may also refer to: Companies * Merc ...
. These minerals have been found suitable for mining.
Uranium Uranium is a chemical element with the symbol U and atomic number 92. It is a silvery-grey metal in the actinide series of the periodic table. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons. Uranium is weak ...
, an important mineral in the Soviet era, remains in some quantity but is no longer extracted. The Tajikistan Aluminium Company (
TALCO Talco may refer to: * The Tajik Aluminium Company, abbreviated as TALCO * Talco, Texas * Talco (band) Talco is an Italian ska punk band and alternative band from Marghera, Venice. Musically the group combines the horns and rhythms of ska-punk ...
), an
aluminium Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. I ...
smelter Smelting is a process of applying heat to ore, to extract a base metal. It is a form of extractive metallurgy. It is used to extract many metals from their ores, including Silver mining#Ore processing, silver, iron-making, iron, copper extracti ...
, is the country's only large-scale production enterprise in the mining sector. Tajikistan hosts the annual Mining World Tajikistan, an international exhibition on mining in
Dushanbe Dushanbe ( tg, Душанбе, ; ; russian: Душанбе) is the capital and largest city of Tajikistan. , Dushanbe had a population of 863,400 and that population was largely Tajik. Until 1929, the city was known in Russian as Dyushambe (r ...
.


History

The mining industry reached a notable level in the 9th–11th centuries, visible by ancient mining openings and metallurgical operations. These are evident in the Karamazar Mountains' Mansura mine, in the Kondara Ore Gorge, the Koninukra Silver Mine, Pamir, Darvaza, Kukhilal, and the Lyadzhvardara Lazurite Gorge. The archaeologist Mikhail Evgenievich Masson explored early mining sites in the eastern Tajikistan mountains. Rare metals were not mined in Tajikistan before the World War II. The output of concentrates of rare metals in 1943, however, exceeded that of 1941 by sixty times, and that of 1942 by ten times. No copper, molybdenum, tungsten, or zinc has been produced in recent years and mining activity since the 1990s has been severely disrupted due to
civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
and political conflict. Mineral exports contribute substantially to the national economy of Tajikistan. According to the 2008 statistics of the
World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Interna ...
, aluminium contributed about 50% to the national exchequer, with aluminium and cotton accounting for 9% of the
gross domestic product Gross domestic product (GDP) is a money, monetary Measurement in economics, measure of the market value of all the final goods and services produced and sold (not resold) in a specific time period by countries. Due to its complex and subjec ...
.


Minerals


Gold

Gold mining Gold mining is the extraction of gold resources by mining. Historically, mining gold from alluvial deposits used manual separation processes, such as gold panning. However, with the expansion of gold mining to ores that are not on the surface ...
in Tajikistan is significant to the world mineral market. According to estimates from the
Tajik Academy of Sciences Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Академияи илмҳои Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, italic=yes, ''Akademiyai ilmhoi Jumhuriyi Tojikiston''; russian: Академия наук Республики Тадж ...
, gold deposits are estimated at 429.3
tonne The tonne ( or ; symbol: t) is a unit of mass equal to 1000  kilograms. It is a non-SI unit accepted for use with SI. It is also referred to as a metric ton to distinguish it from the non-metric units of the short ton ( United State ...
s. Tajikistan's largest gold mining operation is located in
Sughd Province Sughd Province ( tg, Вилояти Суғд, Viloyati Sughd, Sogdia Region , fa, ولایت سغد) is one of the four administrative divisions and one of the three provinces ( tg, вилоятҳо, viloyatho , fa, ولایت) that make up ...
, with most gold being mined southeast of
Gharm Gharm (, tr. Gharm; , tr. Garm; , tr. Gharm) is a city and jamoat in the Rasht Valley area of central Tajikistan. The population of the town is 9,800 (January 2020 estimate). From the 1920s until 1955 there was a Gharm Oblast in Tajikistan ...
, in the
Pamir Mountains The Pamir Mountains are a mountain range between Central Asia and Pakistan. It is located at a junction with other notable mountains, namely the Tian Shan, Karakoram, Kunlun, Hindu Kush and the Himalaya mountain ranges. They are among the world ...
, in the Yakhsu Valley, Chkalovsk and Jilau. It has taken off since independence from Russia with of gold mined in 2000 compared to 1,100 in 1996. The Darvaz joint venture, in the Hatlon region of Eastern Tajikistan, did exploit the gold from 1997 to 1999, producing 110 kilograms (kg) of gold in 1997. However, operational problems arose following damage to the placer mining operation that took place during hostilities in the area in December 1996. Mills and the living quarters at the facility were damaged as result of the hostilities. As of 2011, Tajikistan produces up to 1.3–1.5 tonnes of gold annually, with a significant investment from China, with
Zijin Mining Zijin Mining Group Co., Limited is a multi-national mining company headquartered in Mainland China. Background Zijin is a Shanghai Stock Exchange and Hong Kong Stock Exchange listed mining company principally engaged in the prospecting, explor ...
working in the country. In January 2011, according to geologist Azim Ibrokhim, two massive gold deposits were discovered, one in the centre of the country contains 118 tonnes and the other in the north, which is believed to have 59 tonnes of gold. Tajikistan plans to produce 2,441 kg of gold by the end of the year 2012.


Silver

Proven silver reserves at Big Kon-i Mansur (کلان کان منصور) were determined during the Soviet era at about 50,000 tonnes, according to Tajikistan's Main Directorate of Geology (MDG). That total equals about 49g of silver per tonne of ore. The same tonne contains 480g of lead and 380g of zinc. The deposit has one billion tonnes of ore. The silver deposit is the world's second largest, according to the Tajik government. The world's most productive silver mine is Cannington in Australia. However, Soviet-era projections took only the most conservative estimates into account, geologists say; the ore could be richer than the Soviet estimates.


Aluminium

The Tajikistan Aluminium Company (TALCO; previously TadAZ, "Tajikistan Aluminium Smelter"), an
aluminium Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. I ...
smelter Smelting is a process of applying heat to ore, to extract a base metal. It is a form of extractive metallurgy. It is used to extract many metals from their ores, including Silver mining#Ore processing, silver, iron-making, iron, copper extracti ...
, is Tajikistan's only large-scale production enterprise in the mining sector, and runs one of the world's largest aluminium manufacturing plants, located in
Tursunzade tg, Tursunzoda , image_skyline = Tursunzoda GovtHouse.jpg , imagesize = , image_caption = Tursunzoda Government House , image_flag = , image_seal = , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Tajikistan , pushpin_label_position =b ...
, in the country's western area. Its production capacity is reported to be 517,000 t/year (accounting for consumption of 40% of electrical energy generated in the country) and most of it is exported with only about 5000 t/year consumed within the country. As of 2006, the company was responsible for some 416,000 tonnes of aluminium in their
ball mill A ball mill is a type of grinder used to grind or blend materials for use in mineral dressing processes, paints, pyrotechnics, ceramics, and selective laser sintering. It works on the principle of impact and attrition: size reduction is done ...
s, connected to two 500 kW 6 kV motors. Tajikistan's extensive aluminium processing industry depends entirely on imported ore.


Uranium

Uranium and graphite was formerly exploited by the Soviets, northeast of Khudzhand, but this industry has now diminished. At its peak, the industry produced approximately 170 tonnes of waste rock annually. The State Enterprise "Eastern Combine for Rare Metals" ( IA Vostokredmet) has estimated that Tajikistan still has some 55 tonnes of uranium reserves remaining. Vostokredmet established a plant in Chkalovsk in 1945, known as the Leninabad Mining and Chemical Combine, now Industrial Association "Eastern Combine for Rare Metals" ( IA Vostokredmet), and the centre of the uranium industry in the Tajik SSR until it ceased in 1992.


Other

Mercury was mined at the Dzhizhikrutskoye deposit, north of
Dushanbe Dushanbe ( tg, Душанбе, ; ; russian: Душанбе) is the capital and largest city of Tajikistan. , Dushanbe had a population of 863,400 and that population was largely Tajik. Until 1929, the city was known in Russian as Dyushambe (r ...
. Antimony was extracted at
Isfara Isfara ( tg, Исфара fa, اسفره; russian: Исфара) is a city in Sughd Region in northern Tajikistan, situated on the border with Kyrgyzstan. The city was the seat of the former Isfara District. There are currently territorial disp ...
and Dzhizhikrutskoye (2,000 tonnes in 2000); and arsenic, cadmium, tungsten, and lead-zinc in the Yuzhno-Yangikanskiy deposit, north of the
Zeravshan River The Zeravshan; uz, Zeravshon, Зеравшон, زېرەۋشان; from Persian language, Persian fa, , Zarâfšân – meaning "the spreader of gold" is a river in Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, Central Asia. Its name, "spreader of gold" in Persi ...
.
Copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...
-
bismuth Bismuth is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Bi and atomic number 83. It is a post-transition metal and one of the pnictogens, with chemical properties resembling its lighter group 15 siblings arsenic and antimony. Elemental ...
, antimony-mercury, and lead-silver ores are also extracted. Antimony deposits are stated to be the largest in the
Commonwealth of Independent States The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) is a regional intergovernmental organization in Eurasia. It was formed following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. It covers an area of and has an estimated population of 239,796,010. ...
(CIS) region. Silver deposits have been reported from the northeastern region of Bol'shoy Kanimansur region, which are also considered as one of the largest in the world, apart from being the largest in CIS region. Rare metals reserves of
gallium Gallium is a chemical element with the symbol Ga and atomic number 31. Discovered by French chemist Paul-Émile Lecoq de Boisbaudran in 1875, Gallium is in group 13 of the periodic table and is similar to the other metals of the group (aluminiu ...
,
germanium Germanium is a chemical element with the symbol Ge and atomic number 32. It is lustrous, hard-brittle, grayish-white and similar in appearance to silicon. It is a metalloid in the carbon group that is chemically similar to its group neighbors s ...
,
indium Indium is a chemical element with the symbol In and atomic number 49. Indium is the softest metal that is not an alkali metal. It is a silvery-white metal that resembles tin in appearance. It is a post-transition metal that makes up 0.21 parts p ...
,
selenium Selenium is a chemical element with the symbol Se and atomic number 34. It is a nonmetal (more rarely considered a metalloid) with properties that are intermediate between the elements above and below in the periodic table, sulfur and tellurium, ...
,
tellurium Tellurium is a chemical element with the symbol Te and atomic number 52. It is a brittle, mildly toxic, rare, silver-white metalloid. Tellurium is chemically related to selenium and sulfur, all three of which are chalcogens. It is occasionally fou ...
and
thallium Thallium is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Tl and atomic number 81. It is a gray post-transition metal that is not found free in nature. When isolated, thallium resembles tin, but discolors when exposed to air. Chemists W ...
have been established; some amount of thallium was mined in the 1990s. Some of the rarer minerals are said to be located in the Zerafshan region. Northern Tajikistan has resources required for construction such as
granite Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...
,
limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...
,
marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite. Marble is typically not Foliation (geology), foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the ...
and
volcanic tuff Tuff is a type of rock made of volcanic ash ejected from a vent during a volcanic eruption. Following ejection and deposition, the ash is lithified into a solid rock. Rock that contains greater than 75% ash is considered tuff, while rock cont ...
. Coal extraction is also reported from Fan-Yagnon and Shurab areas. Strontium deposits have been established in the southern region of Tajikistan in the Chilkultan and Davgir region and these deposits are in the process of commercial exploitation. Deposits of
boron Boron is a chemical element with the symbol B and atomic number 5. In its crystalline form it is a brittle, dark, lustrous metalloid; in its amorphous form it is a brown powder. As the lightest element of the ''boron group'' it has th ...
,
sodium chloride Sodium chloride , commonly known as salt (although sea salt also contains other chemical salts), is an ionic compound with the chemical formula NaCl, representing a 1:1 ratio of sodium and chloride ions. With molar masses of 22.99 and 35.45 g ...
,
carbonates A carbonate is a salt of carbonic acid (H2CO3), characterized by the presence of the carbonate ion, a polyatomic ion with the formula . The word ''carbonate'' may also refer to a carbonate ester, an organic compound containing the carbonate g ...
,
fluorite Fluorite (also called fluorspar) is the mineral form of calcium fluoride, CaF2. It belongs to the halide minerals. It crystallizes in isometric cubic habit, although octahedral and more complex isometric forms are not uncommon. The Mohs sca ...
, precious and semiprecious stones have also been reported. Among the Central Asian republics, Tajikistan ranks first in lead, zinc, and fluorspar resources. File:Scapolite-40988.jpg,
Scapolite The scapolites (Gr. σκάπος, rod, and λίθος, stone) are a group of rock-forming silicate minerals composed of aluminium, calcium, and sodium silicate with chlorine, carbonate and sulfate. The two endmembers are meionite () and marialit ...
File:Pyrrhotite-Spinel-t08-01a.jpg,
Spinel Spinel () is the magnesium/aluminium member of the larger spinel group of minerals. It has the formula in the cubic crystal system. Its name comes from the Latin word , which means ''spine'' in reference to its pointed crystals. Properties S ...
on
pyrrhotite Pyrrhotite is an iron sulfide mineral with the formula Fe(1-x)S (x = 0 to 0.2). It is a nonstoichiometric variant of FeS, the mineral known as troilite. Pyrrhotite is also called magnetic pyrite, because the color is similar to pyrite and it is ...
File:Stillwellite-(Ce)-33970.jpg,
Stillwellite-(Ce) Stillwellite-(Ce) is a rare-earth boro-silicate mineral with chemical formula . Location It occurs as a metasomatic replacement of metamorphosed limestones in the Mary Kathleen mine, Australia and in alkalic pegmatites associated with syenite in ...


Fossil fuels

Natural gas Natural gas (also called fossil gas or simply gas) is a naturally occurring mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons consisting primarily of methane in addition to various smaller amounts of other higher alkanes. Low levels of trace gases like carbo ...
is produced in the
Gissar Valley Hisar (also Gissar, Gisar, Hissar, or Hisor) Valley in Tajikistan runs east–west along the southern slopes of Hisar Range and on the northern border of Khatlon Province. It is about 100 km long and up to 20 km wide in the middle, stretching from ...
and Vakhsh Valley, oil in both the north and south and
brown coal Lignite, often referred to as brown coal, is a soft, brown, combustible, sedimentary rock formed from naturally compressed peat. It has a carbon content around 25–35%, and is considered the lowest rank of coal due to its relatively low heat ...
is produced at Shurab in the Leninabad region. Coal exploitation in the country has been a major contributor to the national economy in recent years with output of hard coal increasing by 39% to 31,200 tonnes, and brown coal increasing by 70% to 15,200 tonnes. The bulk of foreign investment into Tajik mining activities derives from companies from
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
,
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
,
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
,
Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...
,
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
,
Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
,
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
,
Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...
and Russia, although compared to some of the other
Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...
n countries, investment is extremely low due to the proximity of Tajikistan to
Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
and political barriers.


Waste management

Heavy metals from mining can be harmful to the environment when left exposed, and failures to manage wastes may cause pollution. Wastes from the Anzob processing plant contain antimony, mercury, and sulfates. Wastes from the Adrasman plant contain cadmium, lead, and zinc. Wastes from the Leninabad rare metals plant contain cobalt, molybdenum, nickel, and tungsten. Wastes from the Takob smelter contain lead and zinc. Mining and heavy industry in the Ferghana Valley have contaminated the soil with toxic heavy metals.


Gallery

File:The only bridge out of Siafark, Tajikistan.jpg, Bridge from Siafark to the mine. File:BelAZ dump trucks burned during the Civil War in Tajikistan.jpg, Destruction of machinery during Civil War in Tajikistan. File:Soldiers guarding a mine in Tajikistan.jpg, Tajik soldiers guarding the Darwaz mine.


References

{{Reflist, 33em


External links


More information
from
USGS The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, a ...