Uranium deposits of the world. Russian Federation, Asian Territory / Месторождения урана в мире. Российская Федерация. Азиатская территория

Uranium deposits and signifi cant occurrences are reported from ten regions of Asian Russia. Th ey include all signifi cant districts and present production centers in Russia (>Fig. 10.1).OECD-NEA/IAEA (2005) reports a total of 172 400 t U as remaining resources recoverable at <$80 per kg U, 131 750 t U of which are attributed to the RAR and 40 650 t U to the EAR-I category. Resources distribution by types of deposits amounts to 117 120 t U in volcanic-, 21 410 t U in sandstone-, and 33 870 t in vein-type deposits.
Th e Streltsovsk District in Transbaykalia is the prominent uranium district in Russia. In 2005, it had remaining reserves (RAR) of 117 120 t U in the <$80 per kg U category contained in volcanic-type deposits. Two other deposits with sandstone-type U mineralization in the Transural and Vitim/Transbaykalia Districts have cumulative resources of some 22 000 t U in the RAR + EAR-I, <$40 per kg U cost category. Other regions contain in excess of 450 000 t U that are defi ned as explored, non-balance sheet inferred resources. Deposits in these regions were discovered, explored and technically and  economically evaluated in the 1950s to 1980s, and require an upto-date calculation of their resource cost categories.

Russia’s cumulative uranium production from 1951 to end of 2005 is 123 000 t U. In 2005, active mining was restricted to the Streltsovsk (conventional underground) and Transural(ISL) districts while ISL production was planned to begin in 2006 in the Vitim District.
A mill at Krasnokamensk with a nominal production capacity of 3 500 t U yr−1 serves the Streltsovsk District. JSC “Priargunsky Mining and Chemical Production Association” (PPGHO) is the operator of this production center. JSC “Dalur” is the operator in the Transural (capacity 800 t U yr−1) and JSC “Khiagda” in the Vitim (capacity 1 000 t U yr−1) district. All mining enterprises belong to the state corporation “TVEL”.Since 2004, all uranium exploration is in the responsibility of the state-owned enterprise “Urangeologorazvedka” (formerly “Central Geological Exploration Division” or “Geologorazved- ka”), which is fi nanced by the federal “Ministry (or Committee) of Natural Resources” and, since 2004, by the “Federal Subsoil Resources Management Agency”. Mining is in the hands of regional subsidiaries under supervision of “Atomredmetzoloto”, a section of the “Ministry of Atomic Energy” (Minatom). All federal institutions related to uranium exploration and mining are based in Moscow. <...>