Altynalmas Acquires Maykainzoloto, Site of Fatal 2024 Mine Incident

Joint-stock company AK Altynalmas has acquired 100 percent of the shares of Maykainzoloto JSC, the mining company where a fatal incident in January 2024 claimed the lives of four rescuers, Orda.kz reports.

Altynalmas announced the acquisition through an official statement. Previously, the mine was owned by Rense Enterprises Limited.

Altynalmas specialists have been working at the site since April 2024. After the incident, they carried out restoration work, repaired production infrastructure, modernized key systems, and monitored safety measures.

Construction and preparatory activities began in August, and by October, operations resumed, reaching planned production targets within a month. The company plans to modernize the facility further, implement new technologies, and enhance workplace safety.

The acquisition of Maykainzoloto is a strategically important step aimed at strengthening Altynalmas’s position in the gold mining industry of Kazakhstan,  the company said in a statement.

Maykainzoloto is managed by Kairolla Zhursunbayev, who took over after the fatal incident. He also leads LLP Kazakhaltyn and oversees its branches at the Aqsu and Jolymbet mines.

Altynalmas is among Kazakhstan’s largest gold producers and is owned by the Dutch company Gouden Reserves BV and businessman Vladimir Dzhumanbayev. The company was previously part of Timur Kulibayev's business network.

The mine was the site of a significant incident in early 2024, when the ground collapsed beneath a bus carrying rescuers from RTSSh PVASS. The vehicle fell underground, killing four individuals. A subsequent investigation found the employer fully responsible.

In February 2025, a court in Pavlodar Region sentenced two former industrial safety officers who had overlooked violations committed during mining operations.

In December 2024, another fatality occurred at the Maykainzoloto site when a gold mining company employee was struck by heavy equipment.

Original Author: Nikita Drobny