Gold mining data in Belarus. What are Belarusian mineral resources hiding? The situation is similar with diamonds.

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection discovered gold near Stolbtsy. And then it announced that it was ready to give up the “promising field” as a concession. A far-sighted and thoughtful step.

The news about the discovery of gold near Stolbtsy instantly became the most popular on the internet, even surpassing reports of corruption cases and the resignation of the Deputy Minister of Health, who was recently detained by the KGB on suspicion of bribery. Gold conquered everyone. Many readers have probably begun to imagine a golden and happy future for Belarus, which will affect all residents of the country. I myself immediately succumbed to euphoria, but then healthy journalistic skepticism sobered me up.

As stated by the Deputy Head of the Main Directorate of Natural Resources, Head of the Geology Department of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Vasily Kolb, a promising gold-bearing area has already been identified near Stolbtsy - Zuberovo, where gold lies at a depth of 300 to 500 meters.

A completely reasonable question immediately arises: if the site is so promising, then why are we going to give it away as a concession, why aren’t we developing it ourselves, with our own people? In addition, there are very serious doubts that there will be an investor in the world who will invest in further exploration and subsequent development. If I had a couple of extra billions, I wouldn’t invest even a ruble. Even if it suddenly turns out that the site is promising and large deposits of gold are discovered at a depth of about 300-500 meters, I very much doubt that the state will give it to me. As soon as those prospects really become clear, the state will take them under its wing by hook or by crook. He will find some minor violation in the contract and say: “Be healthy, dear comrade, then we will do it ourselves.” It’s good if the jail time costs nothing.

But what causes me the most doubt is the very prospects of the deposit. I wasn’t even lazy, went online and studied the issue as thoroughly as possible.

In the world, depending on the process of formation and localization of gold, primary (primary) deposits are divided into secondary (placer) deposits.

Primary deposits are the result of the movement of magma during an era of volcanic activity.

Secondary gold deposits arose as a result of long-term mechanical and chemical effects on primary deposits.

It is important to note that the gold content in the magmatic fluid is much higher than in the earth's crust. Therefore, secondary gold deposits account for only about 7% of total global production. Simply put, the bulk of gold is mined in bedrock, igneous deposits.

There were also volcanoes on the territory of Belarus, but a very, very long time ago - more than 350 million years ago. Therefore, they are buried under a very thick layer of earth. And, most importantly, they are not located under Columns. It turns out that the Zubarevo site is a typical secondary gold deposit. And what are the real chances of Belarus to wedge itself into that meager 7% of world gold production? How profitable is it really, and even in a concession, to mine gold at a depth of 300-500 meters?

For comparison, the main gold deposits in the Muruntau deposit (Uzbekistan), which today is recognized as the largest and one of the most promising in the world, also lay at such a depth. Now development is being carried out at 600 meters below sea level. Development here is really profitable, but this is the world’s largest deposit, which Belarus, even in its dreams, will not even come close to a tenth of.

In general, there are a lot of truly promising and explored deposits in the world with confirmed volumes of gold occurrence. At the same time, many deposits were explored 10, 20, 30 years ago, but their development is not underway. There are even the world's largest fields where development stopped for years, since this is a rather expensive undertaking that does not always pay off.

For example, in Eastern Siberia (Irkutsk region of Russia) there is the Sukhoi Log deposit, which is characterized by significant gold reserves. But the problem is that the ore content there is low. Commercial development of the subsoil was not carried out for several years, but in 2017, the largest deposit in Russia was purchased for 855 million Russian rubles ($13.5 million) by two Russian investors.

Natalka deposit (Magadan region), with an area of 42 square meters. kilometers is also the richest mine in Russia, which also has not been developed for several years. And only quite recently Russia took it up, as a result of which the plant now produces about 7 tons of gold per year.

These are the gold-bearing giants of Russia, where there are technologies and resources for mining, but they also stood idle for years. But in Russia there are still a large number of already fully explored and really promising deposits. In the Magadan region alone, two new mines are planned to be opened in the next five years.

In this regard, it is highly doubtful that, given the proven gold reserves that Russia has, any Russian investor will suddenly want to invest in a very dubious enterprise in Belarus. You can only count on Europeans, who have a very low level of trust in the Belarusian authorities, and, possibly, on your Chinese friends. We definitely won’t find a “prophet” in our own country, since Belarusian business is too broken.

But he is unlikely to get involved in gold mining in Belarus and China. They don't need it. The country has found its niche in the global economy and is confidently moving forward. In addition, the PRC has its own good mines, and if they want to expand production, the Chinese may well get involved in gold mining in Russia, with which they also have good relations. Given the confrontation between Russian deposits and the “promising” Belarusian one, there is hardly a single idiot who will bet on Belarus. Therefore, only the Europeans remain, who have not been getting along with Russia lately. But this is not their field of activity at all, and they are unlikely to go there. True, there are several global concerns in the field of gold mining, but they are so shabby that they won’t even look in the direction of Belarus. Therefore, Vasily Kolb will almost certainly repeat for a long time: “The concessionaire has not yet been found.” Until such time as this deposit, which excited the minds of Belarusians, is safely forgotten.

In recent years, it has been increasingly reported that geologists are looking for deposits of diamonds and precious metals in Belarus. The Belarusian Scientific Research Geological Prospecting Institute (BelNIGRI) told a TUT.BY correspondent how successful these searches are.

Gold, diamonds...

Experts have no doubt that there is gold in the depths of Belarus. Moreover, it can be found with us at almost every step! But in such negligible concentrations that there is no need to talk about its industrial production. “Gold is everywhere: in sand, in soil, in water, etc.,” explains the director of the institute Andrey Kovkhuto. - But what is a deposit? This is the accumulation of a mineral in such quantities that its extraction becomes economically profitable. Such deposits have not yet been found in Belarus.” Nevertheless, the head of BelNIGRI reported that samples with a high content of gold and other precious metals are periodically extracted in Belarus. Their scrupulous study can suggest in which direction to move next.

By the way, several years ago in Belarus, a technology was developed to obtain gold from sand and gravel material, from which an ingot weighing a kilogram was even cast. However, its cost turned out to be much higher than the market price, and this technology had to be abandoned. The search for a full-fledged gold deposit continues.

As for precious stones, their search has also not yet been successful. Nevertheless, scientists remain optimistic. According to them, the geological structure of the territory of Belarus is similar to the Kola Peninsula and Australia, which have diamond deposits. The search for them is carried out in the so-called explosion tubes, in which diamonds are formed. “An “explosion tube” is formed in places where the mantle rises sharply closer to the surface, where, as a result of a sharp change in temperature under high pressure, diamond-bearing rock is formed from carbon,” explains Andrei Kovkhuto. Such formations were discovered in Belarus, small diamonds were found in samples of some of them grains, but nothing more.

There is black gold, but not enough

How long the path is from the beginning of research in the geological industry to the receipt of the first practical results can be illustrated by the example of oil exploration. The theoretical possibility of its presence on the territory of Belarus was first discussed in the 40s of the 20th century. But the first oil field was discovered only in 1964. That is, more than 20 years have passed. Much here depends on the level of technology. If in the distant 60s a well with a depth of 200 m was considered deep, today three- and four-kilometer wells are commonplace for the modern oil industry.

The situation with black gold is better than with sparkling gold. In total, there are currently 75 oil fields in Belarus, with new ones being discovered almost every year. Thus, only in 2011, 2 oil fields were discovered: Shatilkovskoye (Svetlogorsk district) and Novo-Kazanskoye (Kalinkovichsky district) and 2 oil deposits at the Yuzhno-Vishanskoye field (Oktyabrsky district). The volume of black gold production is now about 1.7 million tons per year. However, Belarus has little potential here, and, as BelNIGRI Deputy Director Sergei Mamchik noted, the accumulated data allows us to state that its reserves are small. Geologists are already finding oil in smaller and smaller quantities. Moreover, the annual increase in its reserves is increasingly lagging behind the production volume. So, in 2011 it amounted to only 264 thousand tons.

“No matter how much we increase the volume of reserves, no matter how many new deposits we find, one day the moment will come when the costs of its extraction will exceed the expected profit,” the specialist emphasized.

Why is Belarus not the Klondike?

Geologists note that the search for precious stones and diamonds in Belarus is difficult due to the peculiarities of the structure of its subsoil. The ores, along with the “explosion tubes,” lie deep and still need to be reached. And developing deposits that come to the surface is always easier. “All our rocks, which, in fact, contain substances such as gold, copper or iron, are covered with a sedimentary cover. Only in the south of Belarus, in a place adjacent to the Ukrainian shield, is its layer somewhat smaller,” explains Andrei Kovkhuto. The formation of this cover is associated primarily with the activity of glaciers, when people still wore animal skins. During its movement, the glacier captured rocks of the underlying surface, processed and transported them over long distances. After his retreat, sediments covered the lowland areas of Europe, Asia and North America like a blanket.

By the way, it is precisely in this regard that Belarus experiences a shortage of not only precious, but also any other metals: iron, copper, etc. Our country has them, but developing them is quite expensive. Thus, Belarus is not able to develop two large iron ore deposits - Novoselkovskoye and Okolovskoye, which were discovered relatively recently, since their development requires large financial investments and such advanced technologies that, perhaps, only foreign investors can do.

“Everything that comes to the surface has already been almost completely explored. Now research is aimed mainly at finding what is hidden in the depths,” said the director of BelNIGRI.

In total, with the participation of foreign investors, it is planned to develop more than 20 fields, a map of which can be seen below. Among them, the most promising is the gypsum deposit in the Petrikovsky district of the Gomel region. Its preliminary explored reserves are about 182.5 million tons, and the total cost of the investment project is estimated at $250-260 million. It is worth noting that gypsum was not previously mined in Belarus.

What are the Belarusian mineral resources rich in?

However, it would be unfair to say that Belarusians were completely unlucky with the deposits. In terms of potassium salt reserves alone, the republic ranks third in the world. Belarus has more than enough of this resource to cover its own needs, and the surplus goes for export, which helps the country earn much-coveted foreign currency. In 2011, the increase in potassium salt reserves amounted to 602.64 million tons.

Belarus also has large reserves of rock salt. The contents of the Mozyr and Soligorsk salt mines would be enough to feed half the world, if there was such a need.

BelNIGRI employees also note that Belarus is almost completely supplied with construction raw materials. The retreating glacier not only reliably closed the ore deposits from us, but also brought with it a lot of useful things: clay, sand, crushed stone, stones. It would seem - what's the use of them? Just think, luck struck... However, without these resources, the production of cement, bricks and other concrete panels would be difficult. In many ways, it is thanks to this circumstance that Belarus can afford such a developed construction industry.

“This is great wealth,” says Sergei Mamchik. “The Baltic states, for example, envy us. They have no building stone at all. And they have to buy it abroad. We have a large reserve here, and it will last for a long time.”

Scientists hope to find gold, although until now its deposit has not been discovered. Belarus will spend 17.5 billion rubles in the next couple of years to find the precious metal. (more than 2 million dollars at the current exchange rate). The government has planned that by the end of 2015, deposits of the precious metal with reserves of about 150 tons will be discovered in the country.

Gold was found in Belarus only once, this happened in the mid-80s. A one-kilogram ingot lies in the State Fund of Belarus.

Belarusian geologists have established some prospects for the possible identification of deposits of the precious metal in crystalline basement rocks at a depth of 250 - 350 meters. These places are located within the Belarusian crystalline massif. Let me digress a little from the topic, I want to remind you of the site ktonanovenkogo.ru, where Firefox is presented to your attention in the best possible way.

Over the past 20 years, scientists have found out whether there are gold deposits in the country. Unfortunately, the results of the research work are not yet encouraging. But samples that were taken not very long ago in the Minsk region give hope for still finding deposits of the precious metal.

Anatoly Karpin, website editor
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Where does the equipment end up that has more than spent its entire service life allotted by the manufacturer? Usually the nearest landfill or trash can becomes a “computer heaven” if the “old man” could not be sold for spare parts. Larger and heavier equipment can gather dust for decades in the darkest corners of the apartment. Owners will tiptoe past rusty refrigerators and washing machines, terrified by the knowledge that sooner or later they will have to drag them to a landfill.

Few people know, but in Belarus there is a service that is ready to remove and dispose of any junk lying around for free, be it an outdated washing machine or a dot matrix printer. At the same time, the owner can take it all to a recycling center himself and earn a penny or two. However, not everyone agrees to do this.

How can you get rich from this in the literal sense of the word? Let's watch the report.

The BelVTI enterprise has existed for 40 years, but it began working closely with individuals only recently, a little over a year ago. “Previously, equipment was accepted only from legal entities; no suitable compensation mechanism was developed for working with ordinary users; there was no transport,”- Head of the company’s technical department Igor Gorbachev.

Igor Gorbachev

One of the cars was on the way out

By the end of last year, a dispatch service and three brand new cars appeared, which were specially decorated in a bright corporate orange color. These trucks are loaded with old equipment that residents have submitted a request for removal of. Every month the company deals with 800-900 calls. Each of the three vehicles serves its assigned areas. While there are enough bright orange “taxis”, no more than five days pass from the application to the removal of the equipment.

“Loaders come and help with loading. The service is especially in demand among pensioners,”- Igor clarified. Every month, trucks bring in about 60 tons of obsolete equipment. Almost a third of the total mass is made up of refrigerators, followed closely by televisions. They also bring a lot of stoves and washing machines.

Immediately after unloading, rough disassembly of the equipment takes place. Everything is divided into secondary resources: light and dark plastic, installation wires, non-ferrous and ferrous metals, as well as elements containing precious metals are stored separately. The resulting semi-finished product goes through different processing routes.

Plastic, for example, is pressed right here into cubes of 250 kilograms each. The installation operator ensures that no iron or glass gets into the receiver. To get one cube, you need to put four huge containers through the press. Every day, two or three “cubes” emerge from the depths of the installation.

A lot of plastic is exported almost immediately after pressing. The main consumer is China. According to Igor Gorbachev, phones or computers are not made from such recyclable materials; they are mainly used for the production of clothes hangers and other household items that do not require electronic filling. However, what to do with “recycled plastic” is a matter for the buyer, who rarely talks about his goals and plans.

Non-ferrous metals are sent for further processing to BelTsvetMet, ferrous metals are sent to Vtorchermet. But BelVTI first deals with precious metals. Wires, iron, and elements without precious metals are removed from the boards. Next, employees at one of the sites determine the amount of valuable materials in one or another element of an ancient computer or television.

“There is a group of workers who count element by element how many different precious metals are in a particular board. The work is sedentary, requiring attention and concentration, which is why women mostly work. The content of precious metals, accurate to four digits after zero, is determined using special reference books. Everything is sorted by type and name and weighed,”- noted our interlocutor.

In Belarus, it is impossible to smelt gold from circuit boards - the necessary equipment is too expensive and requires a large amount of raw materials, which the country simply does not have. Therefore, collected recyclable materials are sent to recycling centers in Germany and Switzerland. Every year 15-20 kilograms of gold are returned back to Minsk, which ultimately replenishes the state fund. “This only applies to the capital. However, we also work in Mogilev, Gomel, Polotsk. So on a national scale we get even more. Considering that there are no gold ores in the republic, this is a good source for the state to replenish its gold reserves,”- Igor is sure.

There are very few Belarusians who are ready to make money by scrapping old equipment. This is not surprising - you can count on only 750 Belarusian rubles per kilogram. That is, for a washing machine you can get 30 thousand, and for a computer even less. Nevertheless, there are still those who bring televisions, refrigerators, vacuum cleaners and other household appliances themselves. On average, ten people visit the reception point per day.

“Of course, the money is very, very small. Where does this amount come from - 750 rubles per kilogram? In fact, these are the costs of the work of one transportation team. That is, a person can choose - either call our “taxi”, which will pick up the equipment for free, or, saving on the work of our employees, bring everything himself and receive money that is spent on the work of the team,”- explained the head of the technical department of BelVTI.

Sometimes interesting and even rare things are scrapped. For example, there were cases when an enterprise had to “waste” records from the middle of the last century in perfect condition or typewriters that were almost a century old. It's a pity. But this is the specifics of the work.

According to Igor Gorbachev, working with private owners of outdated equipment is more of a social project, since it does not represent any commercial benefit for the enterprise, and is even unprofitable. The company can afford such experiments due to the fact that 85% of recycling is associated with equipment from legal entities that pay for the disposal of equipment.

Banks, universities and schools bring the most computers and office equipment to BelVTI. Operators receive towers that have expired and, less often, telephones. Recently they started accepting LCD panels for recycling.

“It is still difficult to collect the same phones from the population. We need special containers that will be installed in large stores. There is a corresponding draft resolution of the Council of Ministers.”- said Igor Gorbachev.

According to the head of the technical department, it is impossible to do without recycling equipment. For example, a kinescope contains a dangerous substance - lead oxide. Once in the ground, it contaminates the soil within a radius of several meters. “This is about the environment, not about making money,”- emphasized the representative of BelVTI.

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It instantly became the most popular on the internet, even surpassing reports of corruption cases and the resignation of the Deputy Minister of Health, who was recently detained by the KGB on suspicion of bribery. Gold conquered everyone. Many readers have probably begun to imagine a golden and happy future for Belarus, which will affect all residents of the country. I myself immediately succumbed to euphoria, but then the healthy critical gaze of the journalist sobered me up.

As stated by Vasily Kolb, Deputy Head of the Main Directorate of Natural Resources, Head of the Geology Department of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection, a promising gold-bearing area has already been identified near Stolbtsy - Zuberovo, where gold lies at a depth of 300 to 500 meters.

A completely reasonable question immediately arises: if the site is so promising, then why are we going to give it away as a concession, why aren’t we developing it ourselves, with our own people? In addition, there are very serious doubts that there will be an investor in the world who will invest in further exploration and subsequent development. If I had a couple of extra billions, I wouldn’t invest even a ruble. Even if it suddenly turns out that the site is promising and large deposits of gold are discovered at a depth of about 300-500 meters, I very much doubt that the state will give it to me. As soon as those very prospects really become clear, the state will take them under its wing by hook or by crook. He will find some minor violation in the contract and say: “Be healthy, dear comrade, then we will do it ourselves.” It’s good if the jail time costs nothing.

But what causes me the most doubt is the very prospects of the deposit. I wasn’t even lazy, went online and studied the issue as thoroughly as possible.

In the world, depending on the process of formation and localization of gold, primary (primary) deposits are divided into secondary (placer) deposits.

Primary deposits are the result of the movement of magma during an era of volcanic activity.

Secondary gold deposits arose as a result of long-term mechanical and chemical effects on primary deposits.