The Kara-Balta Mining Plant is undergoing active rehabilitation work.
The plant was commissioned in 1955 and became the largest enterprise for uranium processing for the Soviet atomic industry, with a production capacity of up to 3,000 tons of uranium dioxide.
Initially, the plant processed uranium ore, but later it expanded its production to include molybdenum, tungsten, tin, gold, silver, barite, and respiratory protection equipment.
In 1997, the facility was included in the privatization program, and in 2007, 72.78% of the state shares of JSC «Kara-Balta Mining Plant» were sold to foreign private individuals. However, poor management by investors led to a decline in production. In 2016, the plant halted its operations, and in 2022, it was declared bankrupt due to tax debts and obligations to the budget, employees, and contractors totaling 1.652 billion som. Workers had not received their salaries for years. As a result, of more than 300 employees, only 50 remained at the plant.
Two years ago, the country’s president, Sadyr Japarov, inspected the plant and instructed the Cabinet of Ministers and JSC «Kyrgyzaltyn» to take measures to preserve jobs and assets, rehabilitate the facilities, and settle the wage arrears to employees, as well as tax and budget payments.
As part of the restructuring process, a new enterprise, LLC «Kara-Balta Mining Company» (LLC «KBMC»), was created. As the sole participant, JSC «Kyrgyzaltyn» acquired the shares of KBMC, fully covering the tax debts, wages, and payments to contractors.
«Thus, favorable conditions have been created at the enterprise for sustainable operations, and most importantly, all unique specialists have been retained,» said the General Director of LLC «KBMC» Kuanyshbek Risbaev.
According to him, the enterprise is in the stage of organizational preparation, and a complete inventory of the plant’s assets and subsidiaries has been conducted to identify and preserve its assets. Subsidiaries have been reorganized, preserving jobs and increasing wages. For the first time in the plant’s history, technical and environmental audits have begun. The technical audit is necessary to determine the state of equipment, facilities, and the future needs of the enterprise for development.
As of today, the organizational and production structure of LLC «KBMC» looks as follows:
- Management;
- Hydrometallurgical workshop;
- Railway workshop;
- Tailings storage facility.
Subsidiaries:
- LLC «Cholpon Factory»;
- LLC «Atom Security Agency»;
- Health facility;
- Football Club «Kyrgyzaltyn.»
The total number of employees at KBMC is 314.
Hydrometallurgical Workshop (Workshop No. 6)
The hydrometallurgical production for processing radioactive concentrates at KBMC is the only one of its kind in Kyrgyzstan, and there are only two similar productions in Central Asia.
The workshop is designed for the selective extraction of natural uranium and its purification from impurities.
It is known that the state plans to develop the Kyzyl-Ompol deposit, which contains large reserves of titanomagnetite, as well as small reserves of zirconium, phosphorus, uranium, and thorium. This KBMC workshop will be able to separate the ore, extracting titanomagnetite from other associated natural elements.
Railway Section
The railway section is currently undergoing repair and preparatory activities, with 19 kilometers of tracks being updated, and a mass replacement of sleepers and beams is underway. The railway workshop has 3 units of equipment (a diesel locomotive and railcars) in working condition. During the Soviet period, the section handled up to 4 million tons of freight annually.
The section is ready to provide timely supply of materials, raw materials, and necessary products to the hydrometallurgical workshop and other facilities along the main railway routes, ensuring timely shipment of finished products.
Tailings Storage Facility
The tailings storage facility in the southern industrial zone of Kara-Balta, covering an area of 549 hectares, is one of the largest radioactive waste storage sites in the world.
During the decline of KBMC, “black” metal scavengers cut down the fencing of the tailings storage facility, leaving only separate sections and posts.
Now, a new fence is being installed here, with a total length of 9.21 kilometers. Additionally, surveillance and lighting equipment, lightning rods, gates, and booths are being installed around the perimeter of the tailings storage facility, protecting the restricted area from unauthorized access and livestock.
According to a representative of an independent auditing company, Omurbek Elamanov, an environmental audit is currently being conducted to ensure the plant’s compliance with environmental standards.
Filter Half-Mask Production Workshop — «Cholpon Factory»
The Chief Accountant of «Cholpon,» Alesya Umraliyeva, reported that the factory is the only producer of respirators with a full production cycle in the CIS.
The factory produces masks that protect 99% of a person’s respiratory organs from harmful substances such as aerosols, uranium, lime, and cement dust.
«The factory was established in 1988. Our respirators are used in the mining industry, at cement and lime factories. Previously, we supplied our products to Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Russia. Now we work for the domestic market. For example, our clients include the Kant Cement Plant, the Mailuu-Suu Lamp Plant, the Refinery, and ‘Interglass.’ In 2023, we produced about 250,000 respirators. All components are manufactured in-house. Environmentally friendly materials are used in production, and only 100% cotton is used. The fabric’s weave and density comply with all GOST requirements,» said Umraliyeva, adding that the factory’s equipment has been preserved since the Soviet period.
Health Facility
Since 1959, a health facility has been operating at KBMC to provide medical treatment to the plant’s workers.
Currently, the health facility is successfully working to strengthen the health of workers employed in particularly harmful and dangerous conditions. Doctors monitor and treat workers on an outpatient basis without interrupting production.
Medical staff conduct examinations, diagnostics, and treatments, organize primary and secondary prevention, prevent cardiovascular and hypertensive diseases, and detect diabetes, among other services.
Not only KBMC employees but also residents of Kara-Balta, Jayyl, Panfilov, and Sokuluk districts seek their help.
Football Field Rehabilitation
As part of the implementation of President Sadyr Japarov’s decree «On Measures for the Further Development of Football in the Kyrgyz Republic for 2024-2034,» a football club «Kyrgyzaltyn» was created in the city of Kara-Balta, which is the successor to the municipal team «Kara-Balta.»
FC «Kyrgyzaltyn» consists of 7 teams, including the main team (45 professional football players who play in the country’s Premier League), a reserve team, a women’s team, and youth teams.
«Kyrgyzaltyn» is also working on the installation of a hybrid lawn and an automatic irrigation system at the football field of the «Manas» sports complex in Kara-Balta.
The hybrid field and irrigation system were purchased in the Netherlands, and the equipment is being installed by the globally renowned company «Sport Engineering.»
In conclusion, the Deputy Chairman of the Board of JSC «Kyrgyzaltyn» for Production and Geological Exploration, Buzurman Subanov, noted that the modernization of KBMC includes the launch of additional facilities, the introduction of new technologies, and the equipping of the laboratory with modern equipment.
«A large-scale reconstruction of KBMC is being carried out to establish the processing of collective concentrate from deposits,» he emphasized.