After ten years of decline, Kazakhstan’s manganese industry has a chance at recovery. In the Zhaksy district of Akmola region, the company Esil-Manganets has applied for a license to industrially develop the Tasoba deposit. If the permit is granted, the site will host the “Vostochny” (Eastern) quarry, with annual extraction of up to 390,000 tonnes of ore and a mine life of about 15 years.
The site’s history dates back to the mid-20th century — the first geological surveys here were conducted as far back as the 1940s–1950s. The modern phase began in 2013, when the company received a contract for detailed exploration. The contract was extended twice, and in 2020 the exploration work culminated in the state commission approving the reserves.
The state balance figures are substantial. Approximately 9.7 million tonnes of ore are accounted for, containing more than 1.7 million tonnes of manganese. Metal concentration ranges from 16–19%. Most of this falls under the C1 and C2 categories, plus nearly two million tonnes of off-balance reserves containing 319,000 tonnes of manganese.
The site’s boundaries have changed over time: in 2022, part of the territory was returned to the state, after which the company continued operating within the new limits. Today, the licensed area covers approximately 179 square kilometers, while the actual mining zone will occupy 1.83 square kilometers.
The project’s timeline is mapped out year by year. The next two seasons will be devoted to stripping and preparing the quarry space. No ore extraction is planned for 2026; 155,000 tonnes are expected in 2027. Full production capacity is targeted for 2028: 390,000 tonnes annually, alongside the movement of 1.2 million cubic meters of waste rock.
The project is backed by structures linked to Umai Mining, with Igor Bidilo and Anton Manych named as the ultimate beneficiaries. According to Yasai Holding data, plans also called for building a modular processing plant with a capacity of 800,000 tonnes per year at the same site, to produce concentrate with a manganese content of 36%. Investment was estimated at over 5 billion tenge.
Tasoba isn’t the industry’s only hope — an underground project at Zhezdy is being developed in parallel. But the launch of the Akmola quarry could be the turning point after which the country’s production curve finally starts climbing.
Source: inbusiness.kz
Image: Ministry of Ecology, Geology and Natural Resources of the Republic of Kazakhstan
