Astana (TDI): Kazakhstan has the potential to ensure a stable supply of critical minerals essential for the global energy transition and the expansion of the electric vehicle market, according to the Astana International Financial Center (AIFC).
An AIFC study underlines Kazakhstan’s competitive advantages in exporting copper, zinc, aluminum, silver, and lead.
Moreover, nickel, gold, lithium, and rare earth metals are considered as promising sectors for export expansion.
Kazakhstan holds a 5 percent share of the international zinc market, ranking seventh in reserves with 6.7 million tons.
In 2022, Turkiye, Russia, and China accounted for 70 percent of Kazakhstani zinc exports.
The country also controls nearly 4 percent of the international copper market, with 20 million tons in reserves, placing it eleventh globally.
Its main copper buyers in 2022 were China, Turkiye and the UAE.
Kazakhstan ranks eighth internationally in lead reserves (2 million tons) and 12th in production, with 40,000 tons mined in 2021.
Global lead demand is expected to rise from 11.6 million tons in 2022 to 13.4 million tons by 2031.
In the silver market, the country holds the third-largest reserves, accounting for 2.7 percent of international supply.
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In 2023, Kazakhstan ranked 11th in global bauxite reserves (160 million tons) and tenth in production (4.3 million tons), though its aluminum market share remains below 1 percent.
The primary destinations for aluminum exports are Turkiye, Italy, and Greece.
Meanwhile, Kazakhstan is among the world’s top wenty nickel-producing ations, holding reserves of about 1.5 million tons, or 2 percent of global reserves, though its market share remains small.
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The country is also actively exploring lithium deposits in cooperation with companies from Germany, the United Kingdom, and South Korea.
In March last year, South Korean specialists discovered a lithium deposit in East Kazakhstan with a content of 5.3 percent, valued at an estimated $15.7 billion.
