Udokan field will help markets to cope with copper deficit

Copper deficiency in the post-shaped period and the rise in consumer resources are threatened by the scope of production of environmentally friendly energy. The current situation will lead to an influx of investment in projects that have once been considered inappropriate from a financial point of view, to expand the financing of mines, which will be the basis for tomorrow’s transition to renewable energy sources. It is reported by Forbes.

The publication results in an example of the Udroan field – the largest low-ended copper field in Russia, and the third worldwide in stocks. Despite the fact that the installed copper stocks on it are 26.7 million tons, this remote field in the Baikalier remained untouched from the very moment of its discovery in 1949 due to technical and logistics difficulties associated with its development.

For a long time, the main obstacle to the development of the Udokan field was that due to technical difficulties, the costs of prey were completely not justified from an economic point of view. Every time a project development initiative appeared, the economic risks scared investors. But today, according to Forbes, the high prices for copper and predictions of sustainable growth in demand in the coming decades finally led to the fact that the pendulum swung towards the development.

Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov received the right to develop a Udokan field for more than ten years ago, paying $ 500 million for the relevant license. For the development of the field, he created a “Baikal Mining Company”, later renamed Udokan Copper. Until the end of this year, installation and commissioning will be completed, and in 2022 the first phase of construction will be completed. It is expected that the Mining and Metallurgical Plant will process up to 12 million tons of copper ore and produce 125 thousand tons of copper annually. The Usmanov project for the first time among deposits will rely on the principles of ESG – environmental, social and corporate governance.

/Media reports.