DUSHANBE, February 6, Asia-Plus – Kazakhstan’s CA Minerals has suspended work to explore silver resources of the Akjilga deposit in the Murgab district of Gorno Badakhshan, Viktor Yurlov, the head of the branch of Kazakhstan’s limited liability company CA Minerals in Tajikistan, said in an interview with Asia-Plus.
According to him, geological prospecting works have been suspended due to cold weather that hit the Murgab district in the winter. “I think the work to explore reserves of the Akjilga deposit will be resumed in late spring,” Yurlov said.
The geological prospecting of Akjilga started in September 2006 and they have spent $333,000 over two months of work. “We have rehabilitated roads leading to the Akjilga deposit and specialists from Tajikistan’s Pamir Geological Prospecting Expedition have carried out preparatory work to explore the deposit’s reserves,” said Yurlov, “Samples of ore from the deposit have been submitted for examination to Tajikistan’s Main Geological Directorate.”
According to him, the Kazakh company plans to complete geological prospecting work in five years. In all, CA Minerals will invest $5 million in the geological prospecting of Akjilga.
After the work on estimation of the silver reserve of the Akjilga deposit is finished, CA minerals will begin to develop and process the deposit in a joint venture and an ore refinery will be built there.
According to Tajikistan’s main geological directorate, works to explore silver reserves of the Akjilga deposit were carried out in 1979 already. However, specialists that time failed to estimate the Akjilga silver resources.
Akjilga is located near the settlement of Alichour in the Murgab district of Gorno Badakhshan.
