Phased restart announced for the Sary-Bulak Antimony Works and the Chatkal smelter
Speaking to residents and plant staff in Sary-Bulak, the Lieutenant Governor said idle lines will return in stages, with the first stage expected to create around 600 jobs.
Lieutenant Governor Aidar Maksat on Monday announced the phased return to production of idle lines at the Sary-Bulak Antimony Works and the Chatkal Chemical Smelting Complex, at a meeting with residents and plant staff in Sary-Bulak.
The first stage is expected to create around 600 jobs, with recruitment prioritised for workers from Lower Naryn and Chu districts, where seasonal farm work leaves many households short of winter income. The first stage is estimated at about US$25 million, financed from the works' own reserves, Talasbank credit and private partners, who will be named at signing.
“We will not pretend the export controls do not matter,” the Lieutenant Governor said. “Our answer is a wider customer list and more value added in Irad, not a larger pile of raw concentrate.”
The Minister of Natural Resources, Chingiz Asanov, said the programme includes tighter licensing of ore sourcing. “Ore that is weighed, papered and processed here brings wages and royalties home,” he said.
The Ministry of Natural Resources will publish the first hiring notices this month. The first Sary-Bulak lines are due to restart before the end of the year, with Chatkal to follow in spring.