Main Natural Resources

There are more than 1500 deposits of various mineral resources explored in Yakutia, including 150 kimberlitic pipes, around 600 gold-bearing, 44 tin-bearing and the same number of coal-bearing deposits, 34 oil-gas fields, 26 mica deposits, 7 iron ore ones, along with a number of antimony, zeolite, apatite and many other deposits. The republic energy resources are also very considerable. The Republic accounts for 47 per cent of explored resources of coal, 35 per cent of natural gas and oil of the Eastern Siberia and the Far East region as well as 22 per cent of the total water resources of Russia.

Nowadays, the Sakha Republic (Yakutia) takes leading positions in Russia providing, in particular, 100 per cent of antimony mining, 98 per cent of rough diamonds, 40 per cent of tin, 15 per cent of gold and 24 per cent of cut diamonds. According to the existing estimates, the republic concentrates the main explored and forecasting Russian resources of diamonds and antimony, 40 per cent of tin, 20 per cent of gold, 9 per cent of explored and 15 per cent of forecasting reserves of tungsten, 10 per cent of industrial reserves of phosphates, iron ores and significant reserves of hydrocarbons. Many explored but currently not mined deposits are known as large, unique deposits of a complex type.

Diamonds. The total explored reserves of diamonds are able to supply the diamond industry for 30 years.

According to the five-year plan of the Republic's diamond industry development, construction and putting into operation of four underground sites Udachny, Aykhal, Mir, International are planned. In August, 2003 was constructed and put into operation Nyurbinsky ore mining and processing enterprise. As the result index of physical volume of diamond industry established 118.7 per cent to a level of 2003, in a comparable estimation.

Oil and Gas. The predominant part of hydrocarbon resources is concentrated in such oil and gas-bearing provinces as Vilyuiskya, Nepsko-Botuobinskaya and Predpatomskaya. The largest reserves of natural gas are located in such deposits as SredneVilyuiskoe, SredneBotuobinskoye, SredneTyungskoye, VerkhneVvilyuchanskoye and Chayandinskoye.

All oil reserves that have been discovered by now are located within the Nepsko-Botuobinskaya oil-bearing province. Under a pilot production are being now the following deposits: Srednebotuobinskoye (with recoverable reserves of 66.1 mln. tons), Irelyakhskoye (with recoverable reserves of 10.2 mln. tons) Talakanskoye (with recoverable reserves of 123.8 mln. tons). The existing oil resources are capable to sustain the initial operation of the oil industry while those of natural gas are capable to sustain the gas production for about 40 years at the maximum production rate of 35 billion cubic meters.

Coal. As to geological resources of coal, the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) takes the first place in the Russian Federation with more than 40 per cent of the total Russian coal reserves. By now only 44 deposits are enlisted in the State Balance totaling 9.6 billion tons. A considerable part of the reserves represents high-quality coking coals: Neryungrinskoye and Elginskoye are the deposits for open mining with respective reserves of 307.3 and 2047.8 mln. tons; Denisovskoye and Chulmanskoye are the deposits for underground production with respective reserves of 28.8 and 758.3 mln. tons.

Gold. The gold resources base is one of the largest in Russia (over 20 per cent of the total Russian reserves). Gold is widely spread over the entire territory of Yakutia but the industrial gold-bearing capacity is concentrated in the Eastern and South Yakutia, mainly, in the basins of the Indigirka, the Yana and the Aldan rivers. Conditional life of supplying gold producers with gold reserves is more than 50 years.

Silver and polymetals. The Republic has large resources of silver and polymetals. Being prepared are investment projects on development of large silver-complex ores deposits such as Sardana, Verkhneye Menkeche and Prognoz. Reserves of the deposits are prepared for industrial mining. It is planned to hold a tender of mining enterprise for a pilot operation on Sardana, Verkhne - Menkeche and Prognoz deposits in 2005.

Tin. As to tin reserves (about 50 per cent of the Russian total) and production (about 40 per cent of the Russian total) the Republic takes the first place in the Russian Federation. Small-scale exploration works are carried out only on the Churpunyinskoye deposit replenishing some 10 per cent of mined reserves.

Antimony. Explored and probable antimony reserves in the Republic makes over 90 per cent of the Russian total. A raw mineral base is represented by the large Sarylakhskoye and Sentachanskoye gold-antimony deposits as well as by the small Maltanskoye, Kimovskoye and Tanskoye gold-antimony deposits with low grade associated antimony. The reserves of Sarylakhskoe and Sentachanskoe deposits are estimated to be 210 th. tons of antimony. It is planned to develop a feasibility study to make a decision about a possible creation of a metallurgy plant for producing antimony as a final product.

Niobium, rare earth metals. The Tomtorskoye deposit situated in the north-west part of Yakutia is a promising and large source of rare metals, including niobium and yttrium. Developed is for industrial production a large raw mineral base containing niobium and rare elements of the yttrium group that is capable to satisfy the proper Russian needs for a long term. In 2005 it is planned to hold a tender of the Tomtorskoye deposit.

Iron. After survey works on iron ore deposits in the South Yakutia (Tayozhnoye, Desovskoye, Tarynnakhskoye) large iron ore mining base was prepared for developing the iron ore deposits. There will be a tender for the right of mining Tayozhnoye and Desovskoye deposits in 2005.

Apatite etc. In future a great role in social-economic development of the Republic will be played by deposits of apatite in the South Yakutia (for example, Seligdarskoye deposit), by deposits of piezooptic minerals (Perekatnoye, Pyat Paltsev (Five Fingers), Tabornoye and others), by deposits of gems (Inagli, Sirenevy Kamen (Purple Stone), Mustakh etc.), by those of construction materials, rock salt, mineral waters, zeolites and phlogopite. There will be a tender for the right of mining Seligdar deposit in 2005.