BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 24. Baku and Tashkent are cooking up a program of projects on the development of rare-earth metals in Uzbekistan, an informed source told Trend.
According to the information, these projects will total $500 million in the portfolio.
The Ministry of Mines and Geology of Uzbekistan has studied at this stage the possibilities of implementation of projects on the extraction and processing of kaolin. Besides, the association "Uzpromstroymaterialy,” with the involvement of the private sector, is ready to explore the possibility of implementing projects on the production of ceramics and special ceramic materials.
According to the source, there are also prospects of involving the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR) in the implementation of complex drilling projects in Uzbekistan and upgrading the skills of Uzbek specialists at the Baku Drilling School.
To note, in spite of Uzbekistan's mining output reaching approximately $11 billion, a vast amount of industry-critical minerals remain unexplored. A total of 32 such minerals have been discovered.
On the flip side, Azerbaijan has a treasure trove of over 1,100 mineral deposits. Based on data from the State Statistics Committee of Azerbaijan, the volume of fixed capital investment in the mining industry in 2023 amounted to approximately $400 million.
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