25th ANNIVERSARY WORLD MINING CONGRESS – a unique chance for the country to show its potential in the mining and metallurgical industry in the international arena

Two major international events will be held in Kazakhstan in two months of 2018. One of them is the Astana Economic Forum (May 17-18), at which a record number of guests and speakers - experts in the sphere of economy and politics, as well as co-founders of major international organizations was reported. The second event - no less large-scale in its sphere – the 25th Anniversary World Mining Congress (June 19 - 22). Such an event of world significance is held for the first time not only in Kazakhstan, but also in the territory of the CIS countries as a whole.

The World Mining Congress is the largest and most important event in the Mining and Metallurgical Industry (MMC). It was first held in 1958 in Warsaw (Poland) and ever since it has been held once every 2-3 years. WMC brings together specialists and scientists from different countries working in the sphere of development of deposits of solid minerals. Over its history the number of states – participants of the Congress has increased from 10 to 49 and continues to grow.

The 2018 Congress will be marked by three anniversary dates: 60 years since the foundation of the WMC, 25th Anniversary WMC and the 20th Anniversary of Astana city.

Kazakhstan was not chosen as a venue for holding the Anniversary Congress by accident - the resources of our country are a rich mineral and raw material base: 99 elements of the periodic table are found in Kazakhstan, 70 of which have been discovered, and more than 60 are already used in production. Kazakhstan is one of the top ten aluminum miners in the world, it ranks third in iron ore reserves among the CIS countries, in uranium mining is second only to Australia, it is firmly in the list of countries rich in copper ores. Annually in the country it is extracted over 100 million tons of coal. The products of MMC enterprises are exported to Japan, South Korea, the USA, Canada, Russia, China and the EU countries.

In accordance with the program of the 25th Anniversary World Mining Congress, a number of specialized sessions will be held, covering a range of topics relevant to MMC, dedicated to geological exploration, mining and enrichment technologies, ecology, industrial safety, training of specialists, attracting financing and forecasting the development of the world mining industry. Thus, for example, at the session “World Business” the general market trends in the global mining industry, through the example of the markets of Australia, Latin America, Africa, Canada and other countries; new opportunities for business process automation; issues of investment efficiency in the industry and 10 key business risks in the mining industry will be discussed. At the session “Innovations and Industry 4.0” the issues of digitalization and the use of robotics in mining will be reviewed, international experts will share successful examples and business cases in the global mining industry. At the session “Open Mining” we will talk about that the complication of mining and geological conditions, involvement in the development of poorer deposits, deepening of mining operations, deterioration of the ecological situation and the need to shift to a green economy raise a number of technological problems that can be systematically solved with a strong interrelation of science, production and the creation of innovations based on advanced technologies of the world level, investment and technology partnership.

To achieve maximum synergetic effect, in the framework of the 24th World Mining Congress the 24th International Exhibition “Mining Equipment, Extraction and Enrichment of Ores and Minerals” - MiningWorld Central Asia. This exhibition is not new for Kazakhstan - more than 200 companies of the world annually take part in it, demonstrate more than 300 brands. The participants of the exhibition have a unique opportunity to bring their products to the markets of Central Asia, expand the geography of sales, demonstrate new products and services. Due to the exhibitions, the exhibiting companies can establish successful business contacts, secure long-term cooperation with partners, open joint ventures, launch new projects and equip new production sites. In addition, the participants have the opportunity to get to know potential customers and identify their needs. This year 250 companies from 24 states expressed their desire to take part in the exhibition.

A series of excursions that will allow the participants of the WMC to get acquainted with the industrial enterprises and scientific institutions of Kazakhstan is scheduled for the period of work of the Congress. Currently, the list of sites to be visited includes the gold refinery “Tau-Ken Altyn” LLP (Astana), Vasylkov gold deposit Altyntau Kokshetau (Akmola region), the copper mine Bozshakol of KAZ Minerals (Pavlodar region), Kazakhstanskaya mine of “Arcelor Mittal Temirtau” JSC (Shakhtinsk, Karaganda region), Karaganda Metallurgical Combine of “ArcelorMittal Temirtau” JSC (Temirtau, Karaganda region).

Another important aspect is that the International Investment Conference Mines&Money Eurasia, the leading international series on attracting capital and investments in the mining sector, will be held within the framework of the WMC 2018. According to experts, Kazakhstan has the same extraction potential as Australia. The only difference is that most of the continent’s mineral deposits are already under development. In Kazakhstan, a large number of deposits are waiting to be discovered. The purpose of the Mines&Money Eurasia Conference is to demonstrate successful project opportunities in Kazakhstan’s market. The meetings with equity fund managers, private chambers of commerce, hedge funds and family offices, as well as with junior companies that are ready to work actively in Kazakhstan will be organized. The conference will raise issues on how to finance own mining project in Central Asia; how global financial markets and currency dynamics will affect gold prices in 2018 in future; which metals we should invest in; what will change for the current subsoil users with the entry into force of the Subsoil Law and many more.

For Kazakhstan the mining and metallurgical complex is one of the key spheres of the country’s economy. In the overall structure of industrial production MMC makes up 18%, and in terms of the total volume of solid minerals production, Kazakhstan ranks 13th in the world among 70 mining countries. According to experts, currently the area of promising subsurface sites of Kazakhstan for investment purposes is more than 1 million 138 thousand square meters. km, which shows our country in a rather attractive light as a partner in the mining sector. Fir this very reason the organizers expect an increase in the number of geological exploration and production projects following the results of the WMC.

The World Mining Congress 2018 will be held in Astana, in the Congress Center in the territory of EXPO 2017. Over 1,200 delegates from 50 countries, 368 speakers from 37 countries, 58 associations from 23 countries, 79 universities from 27 countries, including the delegations from Australia, Austria, Canada, Norway and France will take part in its work. Such honored guests as the Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland Mateusz Moravecki, the Minister of Mining of Mongolia Dolgorsurengiin Sumjabazar, the Executive Director of Zijin Mining Group Co. Top Mining (China) George Feng, the Head of Mining of the Stock Exchange of Toronto (Canada) Dean McPherson, Head of the Division of Mining Technology of ThyssenKrupp Industrial Solutions AG Torsten Gerlach (Germany) and many others are expected to attend the event.

Organizer of the WMC 2018:
The Ministry of Investments and Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan
Co-organizer of the WMC 2018:
The Republican Association of Mining and Mining and Metallurgical Enterprises
Slogan of the World Mining Congress:
“Innovative superiority - a Step Forward towards the Growth of the World Mining Industry”
Date and venue:
June 19-21, 2018, Astana (Kazakhstan), Congress Center “EXPO 2017”