Non-ore minerals

Subsoil of Kyrgyzstan has various types of non-ore raw material used in the natural or processed condition in the domestic sphere and different branches of industry.

Raw base of cement industry is represented by the reserves of carbonate and clay rocks of the following deposits: Kurmentinskoye (limestones – over 53 million tonnes, loam – 3.7 million tonnes), Kuvasaiskoye (limestones – 27.6 million tonnes), Aksaiskoye (limestones – 378 million tonnes, loams – 33.6 million tonnes), Karagaily-Bulak (limestones – 220 million tonnes), Karachatyrskoye (shale rock – 13.3 million tonnes), Tashkumyrskoye (clay – 12.5 million tonnes) and other deposists.

Stone-working industry has reserves of highly decorative granites and granodiorites at the following deposits: Kaindinskoye (about 9 million m3) and Aralskoye (879 thousand m3); coloured marble: the Akart deposit (3.1 million m3), Arym (1.8 million m3), Bozbutoo (3.6 million m3), Gulderek (1.6 million m3), Tashkoro (1.2 million m3), Chaartash (2.4 million m3), limestones-shell rock of the Sary-Tash deposit (14.1 million m3).

For construction industry, a large number of deposits of sand and gravel mixture (501.6 million m3), gypsum (40.2 million m3), clay and loam for brick production (267.2 million m3) as well as numerous ragstone deposits were explored. Clay-slate and siltstone deposits (110.3 million m3) were explored for production of ceramsite products.

Rock-salt deposits were explored for food and chemical industry and cattle breeding, including the following deposits: Ketmen-Tube (6.6 million tonnes), Chon-Tuz (3.8 million tonnes), Chon-Alai (21.5 million tonnes), Tunuk-Tuz (0.6 million tonnes), etc.

Deposits of non-ore materials that are rare in other countries and specific regarding the sphere of their use are found in Kyrgyzstan: wollastonite (Kara-Korum II deposit in Chatkal district with the reserves of about 30 million tonnes), porcelain (Uchkurt, over 9million tonnes), rhodusite-asbestos (Karkara, 618 tonnes), basalt (Sulu-Tegerek, 1.4 million m3), etc.

The potential of raw gemstones is considerable as well. In addition to the explored deposits of amethyst (Kok-Mainok II and Kokpak Verkhnyi), irised feldspar (Ottuk), garnet (Makbal), onyx marble (Ulutoo and Khojigor), a large group of perspective occurrences of gem stones and ornamental stones was found in different regions of Kyrgyzstan. Special attention should be paid to ruby occurrences at Ormizan, Kokbeles, Akterek in the Sokh river basin. The northern slope of the Turkestan ridge is perspective regarding detection of commercial deposits of oriental blue sapphire.