Kazakhstan to spend $1 billion on geological exploration

Kazakhstan is planing to spend 164 billion tenge ($1.1 billion) on geological exploration works before 2019, Kazakhstan Prime-Minister’s official website writes citing the chairman of the Geology and Subsoil use Commission of Kazakhstan Ministry of Industry and New Technologis Bazarbai Nurabayev as saying at the round-table meeting called Technological Modernization and Development of Geological Industry held during the 9th KAZENERGY Eurasian Forum today, on October 8.“164 billion tenge will be allocated from the state budget for geological exploration before 2019,” Nurabayev said. According to him, Kazakhstan national companies will invest over 490 billion tenge ($3.3 billion) to fund geological exploration works at new promising areas.Starting from 2014 the authority will be focusing on the search for mineral deposits around single-industry cities. The works will be mainly held around Zhezkazgan, Balkhash, in Eastern Kazakhstan and other regions requiring additional mineral resources, he said.