BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan, October 17. Kyrgyzstan's Kumtor Gold company plans to extract 14 tons of gold in 2023, the company's president, Almaz Baryktabasov, said, Trend reports.
Baryktabasov also mentioned that in 2021, the company extracted 14.5 tons, and in 2022, extraction increased to 17 tons.
He further informed that the production cost of one ounce of gold from Kumtor mine was $1,631 for the first nine months of 2023. Among the reasons for the increase in production costs, the president of Kumtor Gold named the rise in capital expenditures, the expansion of mining operations since the beginning of 2022, and the increase in equipment and material prices.
Additionally, today in Kara-Balta, the foundation was laid for the construction of the first-ever sovereign enterprise in Kyrgyzstan for the production of standard gold bars.
The facility, covering an area of 1,500 square meters, is scheduled to become operational in the first quarter of 2024. The construction of the building will be funded through the resources of Kyrgyzaltyn, Kyrgyzstan's national enterprise engaged in gold deposit development.
The Kumtor gold mine, one of the largest in Central Asia, yielded over 5.5 tons of precious metals, including gold, silver, and platinum, from January through June 2023. Kumtor Gold Company operates the Kumtor mine and is responsible for the entire production cycle.
