Is The Era Of Easy Extraction Over? Resource Development Is Being Rebuilt In Kazakhstan
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Kazakhstan is trying to extract the maximum from its subsoil amid growing demand for fossil raw materials. About 10,000 deposits have already been registered in the country, while geological exploration continues to expand through investment, technology, and full digitalization, Orda.kz reports.
These and other figures were announced by Minister of Industry and Construction Ersayin Nagaspayev at the plenary session “Geology of Central Asia” held as part of the GECA 2026 forum in Astana.
Of the 10,000 deposits, more than 1,000 are solid minerals, 359 are hydrocarbons, more than 3,700 are common minerals, and about 4,900 are groundwater sources.
Since the 2018 reform, more than $1 billion in private investment has been attracted to geological exploration. According to the minister’s remarks, this includes funds from both Kazakhstani and foreign companies.
Today, the sector has about 3,000 licenses for solid minerals and more than 250 exploration and production contracts. At the same time, the minister noted that easily accessible deposits are being depleted.
Promising resources are often concentrated at greater depths and in geologically complex areas, which requires the introduction of modern technologies and innovative approaches. Therefore, today the emphasis is shifting from quantitative growth to improving the quality of geological research.Ersayin Nagaspayev said.
Over the next three years, geologists plan to survey 100,000 square kilometers using modern technologies, from satellite monitoring to airborne geophysics.
At the same time, the industry is going digital. A unified subsoil use platform with 22 public services, including electronic auctions, is already operating. Full digitalization of geological data is expected to be completed in 2026. The Ministry of Industry expects this to make the sector more transparent and simplify investors’ access to subsoil resources.
Original author: Alexander Zhdanov
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