The largest deposits of natural gold in Russia

Despite the fact that the Russian Federation is not the leader in the amount of gold mined in the world, it has great potential.

We are talking about the vast expanses of Siberia, which have been little or not explored at all, so in the future gold deposits in Russia have every chance of taking first place in terms of production of this precious metal.

Indigenous deposits

Experts distinguish two types of natural gold deposits: indigenous (primary) and alluvial (secondary).

The name “primary” explains the method of origin of the precious metal in them. The concentration of gold in the earth's crust is small, unlike magma - where its content is much higher. When a volcano erupts and magma spills over the earth's surface, it carries gold in its flows.

Magma is an alloy of different compounds that solidify when the lava cools. The first to solidify are refractory substances, which take the form of hard rocks when the lava is still hot. The cooling magmatic mass also contains fusible substances. They form veins that go deep into a distance of several kilometers. They contain gold-containing salt solutions. After they cool completely, the salt is destroyed, leaving pure gold crystals.

Primary gold veins with pure precious metal content are very rare. More often it is found together with other metals: copper, silver, platinum, zinc, lead and nickel.

Features of placer deposits

Gold deposits in Russia are located mainly in alluvial deposits. They are also called “secondary”, due to the peculiarities of the formation process. Under the influence of winds, temperature changes, precipitation, groundwater movement, and the activity of microorganisms and plants over a long period of time, the rock is gradually destroyed. Thus, the gold contained in it is released and falls from the mountains into the valley, forming a placer deposit.

Placers are formed due to:

• the impact of precipitation and groundwater - they destroy the mountain range and “lower” the gold-bearing rock to the foot;
• chemical properties of gold - the precious metal does not change when reacting with water;
• physical properties - the density of gold allows it to accumulate in places from which water has washed away lighter elements.

The size, territory and method of formation of gold deposits may vary. The earth's surface has changed over millions of years, often a placer deposit was formed instead of the primary one and was at the same time significantly removed from the initial point of magma reaching the surface.

Gold mining in placers is more accessible than in primary deposits, where it has to be extracted from ore.

Technology of mining and extraction of valuable metal

Gold is found everywhere (even sea water contains it), but often the amount of Au is so small that it is almost impossible to detect these particles, and mining is impractical. Previously, to obtain precious metals, the simplest method was used - washing the rock, but this did not allow increasing the scale of gold mining. Today, more technological methods are used. Examples of operating enterprises: the Yubileiny plant in Kolyma, the Vasilkovsky GOK in Kazakhstan, the Bogomolovsky mine in the Urals, etc. Each of them uses its own techniques for producing precious metals, taking into account natural conditions and the composition of the rock.

Industrial mining

There are above-ground and underground technologies for extracting precious metals; in the first case there are about 10, and in the second - up to 20 methods. The choice is made taking into account the work conditions and the environment. There are 2 main ways to organize the gold mining process:

• open or career;
• closed (mine).

In addition to the complexity of organizing the extraction of precious metals, the degree of harm caused by the derivative components that are released during the development of the deposit is also taken into account. The method of carrying out work also depends on the availability of gold in a given area. It depends on its purity whether purification from impurities is required, then the appropriate method is selected.

Placer development technology

Main stages step by step:

• diversion of the reservoir bed, which prevents further spread of precious metal particles;
• removal of the surface layer of rock, this work is called stripping;
• precious metal extraction;
• washing, removing impurities (sand, clay, etc.);
• enrichment.

When winter comes, work doesn't always stop. To remove frozen placers, the soil is first loosened. To do this, you will need to buy special equipment for implementation:

• hydraulic defrosting;
• drilling and blasting method.

Placer gold

Classification of gold-bearing subsoil

Gold is often discovered when exploring deposits of other metals. For this reason, many enterprises prefer to develop mixed fields to obtain double benefits . Judging by the gold reserves they contain, the primary deposits are classified as:

• unique - if their volume is more than 1000 tons;
• very large - with estimated reserves in the range of 400−1000 tons;
• large - with a potential of 100 to 400 tons;
• medium - with reserves in the range of 25-100 tons;
• small - with a maximum of 25 tons.

For secondary deposits, the production figures are much more modest: more than 50 tons for a unique one, 5−50 tons for a very large one, 1−5 tons for a large one, 05−1 tons for a medium one and less than 500 kg for a small one.

This difference in demands between bedrock and placer deposits is easy to explain. The development of secondary deposits is simpler and more economical in relation to primary ones, since the result of mining in them is almost pure gold-bearing sand. In primary deposits, in order to obtain gold, you need to process the ore. For example, if the gold content in one ton of ore does not exceed 250 mg, this can already be considered a good indicator.

To date, the level of new technologies has made it possible to significantly increase the industrial production of this precious metal. For comparison, the maximum annual production volume in the Roman Empire in the 2nd-3rd centuries was 8 tons, and today in the Russian Federation alone this figure exceeds 200 tons.

Moreover, the largest gold mining companies develop primary deposits; the development of secondary deposits accounts for only 5% of the total volume. In Russia, this figure is about 20%, which indicates outdated domestic technologies in the field of gold mining.

Riches of the Urals

In Russia, the Ural regions are one of the main places where the gold ore mining industry is developed. This is explained by the following reasons:

1. not very harsh climate;
2. there is no permafrost;
3. There is a developed infrastructure and industry, as a result of which mining can be carried out with relative ease.

In general, mineralized and vein deposits can be identified in the Ural region. The largest deposits are the Moss Bog Placer and Bolsheshaldinskaya. The development is based on the same ancient method – washing. However, for this purpose, modern technology and devices are used in Russia today. Also in Russia, small-scale mining is used, which is today more relevant than large-scale mining, because it can bring quite significant profits to prospectors.

World gold reserves

The largest gold deposits in the world are concentrated in 7 countries: the USA, Russia, Canada, Indonesia, Australia, Mongolia and China. Their total amount of gold ore amounts to billions of tons. But the first place belongs to the American Pebble Deposit (Alaska) with reserves of more than three thousand tons. At the same time, the concentration of gold in the ore is only 0.31 g/t. Today, industrial production at the site has been stopped.

The second gold mine is called Russian Natalka with a potential volume of precious metal of 2.59 thousand tons. This deposit, located 400 km from Magadan, is characterized by a high gold content in the ore - up to 1.68 grams per ton. But despite this, work at the mine is also not being carried out today.

The third is completed by the Grasberg deposit (Indonesia) with estimated reserves of 2.4 thousand tons. Here, only 0.56 grams of gold is concentrated in one ton of ore, while industrial mining is carried out at an active pace.

The South African Mponeng deposit is known for its highest gold content in the ore - 12.24 g/t. It is also the world's deepest gold mine. In 2015, the depth was almost 3800 m and continues to grow.

In the Kyzyl-Kum desert there are Uzbek gold deposits (Muruntau), discovered in 1958. They contain a gold concentration of 2.49 g/t, with the ore located almost on the surface. Muruntau is the largest modern open-pit gold mine.

Golden bins of Russia

The geography of domestic deposits of the precious yellow metal is represented by Yakutia, Eastern Siberia, the Far East and the Amur region. The majority of industrial production consists of primary deposits, work on which began during the Soviet era and continues actively to this day.

One of the largest gold deposits in Russia is Berezovskoye . The first mining there was carried out in the mid-18th century. The yellow metal is concentrated in the rock in thin inclusions or medium-sized clusters; there may be nuggets in the upper layers.

The second largest domestic deposit of precious metal is the Vorontsovsky mine in the Sverdlovsk region. Being relatively young, it is now being actively developed and, according to expert estimates, it contains about 65 tons of gold and 58 tons of silver. For a long time the mine did not function, this was due to the complexity of gold mining. But in 2000, work was intensified, and a few years later a special mining technology was used there for the first time, allowing work to be carried out in winter.

Several deposits are now idle, as gold miners prefer to work in areas with the highest concentration of gold in the ore. But the gradual reduction of precious metal reserves in them gives a second chance to well-explored but not accepted for development deposits. We are talking about both one of the largest fields in the world, the Natalka field, and Sukhoi Log.

The latter was discovered in 1961, but since then not a single kilogram of the precious metal has been mined, of which, according to preliminary estimates, there are more than 940 (with a concentration of 2.6 g/t).

What specialties are in demand when working as a shift worker at mines and approximate salaries?

The gold and diamond mining industry is a complex technological production that requires the interaction of workers from many professions.

In addition to positions related to mining itself, other specialties necessary to ensure basic production are also in demand.

There are plenty of such vacancies and, although professionals are preferred in this field, it is possible to find work on a rotational basis without experience, qualifications or specialization.

Most vacancies are in manufacturing, gold or diamond mining. Ranked by salary, the list of available positions looks something like this:

• managerial positions (salary from 80,000 to 150,000 rubles);
• “on-site” managers, foremen and foremen (70,000 - 100,000 rubles);
• engineering and technical positions (80,000 - 100,000 rubles);
• skilled workers for production (50,000 - 80,000 rubles).

In the video, the shift worker shares his many years of experience and warns newcomers against the mistakes he made in his time

Vacant positions for managers are quite rare and they are usually not related to shift work. Their applicants are subject to serious requirements for appropriate qualifications and many years of experience. Such vacancies could be:

1. Position of production director.
2. Vacancies for chief or leading engineers.
3. Positions of heads of various production departments.

Vacant positions for middle managers are more common ; such employees perform their job duties primarily on a rotational basis.

The largest number of fresh vacancies is always available for the last two categories, and these are rotational types of work. Qualified specialists in the following professions are in demand:

• process engineers of chemical and mining production;
• specialists in blasting and mining operations;
• electrical and energy engineers;
• engineers for the operation of wheeled and tracked vehicles;
• specialists in the operation of drilling and pumping equipment.

Working specialties for production needs are needed more than others , the most mentioned vacancies are:

• drivers of special equipment (excavators, all-terrain vehicles, tractors, bulldozers, loaders, mining dump trucks);
• operators of mining, drilling and pumping equipment;
• chemists and laboratory technicians;
• truck drivers;
• electricians;
• gas and electric welders;
• mechanics for repairing various equipment;
• operators of sorting complexes;
• crushing section foremen;
• installers of various structures, other working specialties.

There are a few vacancies for general workers ; those who want to get these jobs must be prepared for hard work. The salary for such work is promised to be around 50,000 rubles. The same category includes the following shift vacancies for women:

• cooks;
• cleaners;
• inspectors of sorting areas.

Famous mines

In addition to the above, Russian gold deposits are represented by 12 mines:

1. Nezhdaninsky is the second largest gold reserve in Russia. Currently it is not functioning, but is engaged in a feasibility study of the project for its development.
2. Olimpiadinsky - operating since the 80s of the 20th century. Its peculiarity is the difficult conditions for ore mining. To extract 1 ton of the latter, it is necessary to remove about 40 tons of waste rock. But this is compensated by the very high gold content in the ore - up to 98%.
3. Gracious - opened in the 70s of the 20th century. The deposit was assigned the 2nd difficulty group due to the special form of gold occurrence in the ore zone.
4. Maysky, located in Chukotka and opened in 1972. It is a hard-to-reach tundra area with undeveloped infrastructure.
5. Kyuchus, located in Yakutia in the north of the Sakha Republic. Gold mining has been carried out since 1983.
6. A dome opened in an undeveloped area of ​​the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. The deposit was discovered in 1995, but explored for the first time only in 2003. The mine is considered a large object with rich ores.
7. Kuranakhsky - discovered in 1947 near the Bolshoi Kuranakh River.
8. Pioneer is an island of Severnaya Zemlya, 90% consisting of polar desert.
9. Svetlinsky, located in the city of Plast, Chelyabinsk region.
10. Darasunsky, operating in the Chita region since 1911.
11. Multivertex, located 100 kilometers from Nikolaevsk-on-Amur, Khabarovsk Territory. The mine has been in operation since 1911.
12. Veduginsky - located near the village of Veduga, Krasnoyarsk Territory. Since 2009, there has been no gold mining here.

Major gold mining companies

There are many gold mining enterprises operating in Russia. But the largest are four companies:

1. OJSC Polyus Gold is also one of the world's largest gold mining enterprises. The geography of development of the company's fields includes the Amur, Magadan, Krasnoyarsk and Irkutsk regions.
2. Kinross Gold - the authorized capital of the enterprise is Canadian, and the territory of operation is the mines of Yakutia.
3. OJSC Yuzhuralzoloto - the company's assets are shared by the Chelyabinsk, Krasnoyarsk Territories and the Republic of Khakassia. Here, the extraction of yellow metal is carried out using open and closed techniques.
4. OJSC Severstal is a Russian giant in the metallurgical industry, but is also involved in the extraction of precious metals. Branches of this company operate in many countries of the former USSR, as well as European countries.

If we talk about individual entrepreneurship in the field of gold mining, it is practically not developed in the Russian Federation. The reason for this is the difficulty and high costs of obtaining a license, which is why shadow gold mining is thriving in the country.

Today, a person caught in its illegal production faces a fine of 3 to 5 thousand rubles. If the violator is caught in possession of precious metal worth more than 1 million rubles, criminal liability arises.

Russia is a state that will always be on the list of leading countries in industrial gold mining. This statement is supported by both rich reserves of the yellow metal, as well as the constant exploration of new gold mining sites and the improvement of specialized technologies.

Search reserve

Analyzing the data on geological exploration carried out, TsNIGRI specialists come to a disappointing conclusion: the number of objects being studied is steadily decreasing. Table 3 shows the distribution of the number of gold exploration projects by constituent entities of the Russian Federation in the period 2003-2022. Yes, DSO and SFO are still leaders. But how the number of objects has decreased! If in 2005-2007 in the Far Eastern Federal District we were talking about 50-60 objects, now there are only 15-20.

Why is this happening? First of all, Anatoly Ivanov associates the decrease in the number of objects being studied with a decrease in funding for geological exploration work from the federal budget. Since 2014, the volume of allocated funds has been increasingly decreasing - this is typical for geological exploration for all solid mineral deposits. On the other hand, the cost of preparing predicted gold resources is growing and today is about 40 million rubles per 1 ton of gold.