First Deputy Governor of Kurgan Region V. Sukhnev Meets Head of Atomredmetzoloto JSC V. Verkhovtsev and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Dalur JSC A. Burutin

The working meeting was held in the Government of Zauralye District. Alexander Burutin said that over the first six months the enterprise manufactured 295.3 tons of uranium, which exceeds the planned figures by 3%. Before the end of the year a total of some 580 tons of strategic metal, or 20% of all uranium in Russia, will be recovered at the enterprise.

Strategic plans of the enterprise and the mining division of Rosatom State Corporation have been established for development project of Dobrovolny Uranium Deposit in Zverinogolovsky District of Kurgan Region. Dalur JSC obtained the right to use this section of the subsoil of federal significance pursuant to Order No. 1131-p of the Government of the Russian Federation. The Federal Agency for Subsurface Use has issued the corresponding license to Dalur JSC. “Development of this deposit will guarantee that the Russian nuclear industry gets the amount of uranium it needs at a competitive price over an extended period of time,” Vladimir Verkhovtsev said.

The participants of the working meeting paid special attention to discussing environmental safety issues in uranium mining. The impact on the environment during the deposit development, of course, makes the local population worry. In order to address many questions and concerns, Dalur JSC conducts all the events openly with the engagement of the public. In particular, environmental monitoring has been started in Zverinogolovsky District. An Information Center will open within the next several days in the district capital. The Center will provide all the necessary information to local residents upon their request.

Vladimir Verkhovtsev said that the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) has recognized the technology of in-situ leaching (ISL) used by Dalur JSC as the most environmentally-friendly and safe way of managing deposits. “If we compare this method with open or underground mining, considerable advantages are obvious. The geological conditions of the rock do not get changed since no ore is excavated. There are no cases of subsidence and disturbances of the earth's surface, dumping of off-balance ores, empty rocks, or tailing dumps. The natural radioactivity of the ore body remains deep underground,” Vladimir Verkhovtsev explained.

Dalur JSC uses this technology in Dalmatovskoe Deposit in the district of the same name, and Khokhlovskoe Deposit in Shumikhinsky District. No ecological problems were observed during operation.

It must be noted that activities of Dalur JSC are carried out in strict accordance with the requirements of the current legislation of the Russian Federation in the course of preparation for the deposit development, construction and operation of facilities. The enterprise expects to complete the design documentation development, including the EIA, by the end of 2017. After that, a Public Discussion of the project, including the EIA, will be held with the residents of Zverinogolovsky district in accordance with the legal requirements. If the Public Discussion terminates positively, the project will be forwarded to FAA Glavgosexpertiza (GGE) for conducting state expert review (including state ecological expert review). Only if this entire sequence is followed and the positive conclusion of GGE is received, JSC Dalur will start geological exploration followed by pilot operation.

Viktor Sukhnev congratulated managers of the Ore Mining Division of Rosatom State Corporation and the entire team of Dalur JSC on the start of scandium mining at the central production site in Uksyanskoe Settlement. The first batch of ready product in the amount of 5 kg was obtained on experimental production equipment. After the enterprise reaches full project capacity, up to 1.5 tons of the rare metal oxide, or up to 15% of the global volume will be produced at the facility. Vladimir Verkhovtsev extended an invitation to leadership of Kurgan Region to celebrate the opening of the new production facility after the assembly testing is over.

“Dalur JSC is one of the major hi-tech enterprises of our region that contributes significantly to the profits part of the budget and helps develop the social sphere of Dalmatovsky District. The enterprise boasts one of the highest salaries in the region. We are happy with the performance of Dalur and will be happy to provide the necessary support for further development of the enterprise,” Viktor Sukhnev said.

During the working meeting Viktor Sukhnev and Vladimir Verkhovtsev discussed the opportunities of cooperation between the region and Dalur JSC in case Dalmatovo becomes an advanced socio-economic development zone. Kurgan Region has submitted a corresponding application to the Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation.