DUSHANBE, January 14, 2015 Asia-Plus – Some 40 percent of precious metals produced in Tajikistan last year have been sold outside the country and the remaining part has been sold inside Tajikistan, according to the Ministry of Industry and New Technologies (MoINT).
In 2014, Tajikistan earned 1,306,138,600 somoni from selling precious metals and 1.0133 billion worth of precious metals were sold outside the country, an official source at a MoINT told Asia-Plus in an interview.
Over the first eleven months of 2014, Tajik mining enterprises reportedly produced a total of 1.6748 billion worth of goods, which was 182.9 million somoni more than in the same period of 2014.
“Tajikistan has overfulfilled the precious metals production target by 17 percent,” the source said, noting that Tajikistan produced more than 3 tons of gold in January-November 2014.
“In January-November 2014, an amount equal to 456.3 million somoni (97.1 million U.S. dollars) was invested in Tajikistan’s mining industry, which was 46.3 million somoni more than in 2013,” the source said.
Of this amount, 263.2 million somoni (equal to 56 million U.S. dollars) were invested in modernization of the Tajik-Chinese joint gold mining enterprise, Zeravshan Gold Company (ZGC).
Over the first half-year of 2014, Tajikistan’s gold mining companies produced 1,141.10 kilograms of gold, which was 57.6 kilogram more than in the same period of 2013.
Tajikistan produced 943.6 kilogram of silver over the same six-month period, which was 43.2 kilograms more than in January-June 2013.
