Kazakhstan state-owned Kazatomprom and Tajikistan-owned Tajik Rare Metals announced a strategic partnership to develop rare earth and uranium projects.

The Kazakhstan state-owned atomic company, Kazatomprom, and Tajikistan-owned Tajik Rare Metals announced they would collaborate on the development mining and processing of rare earth elements, along with uranium and other rare metals. Under the agreement, Tajik Rare Metals will visit Kazatomprom’s existing processing facilities and further define targets for development. The deal follows on from the Tajik President calling for further development of lithium, tungsten, nickel and antimony resources within the country in December 2023.  

The mineral resources of Kazakhstan and Tajikistan have become a geopolitical battleground in recent years, with the countries located at a crossroads between Chinese, Russian and Western interests. Growing demand for rare earths along with other rare metals globally is expected to support the development of new projects. However, access to downstream processing capacity and equipment manufacturing supply chains remains a key barrier to development without assistance from major regional powers.

The development of rare earth projects within Kazakhstan is not new, with several rare earth projects undergoing exploration and development. The SARECO project in Stepnogorsk historically produced rare earth products, while DiNATRON restarted the ICMP rare earth and rare metal facility in 2020 ramping up production in subsequent year.