From 22 to 23 August 2024, Tashkent is hosting the International Scientific and Practical Conference on ‘Geology and Mineralogy of Mineral Deposits, Innovative Directions of Mining, Processing and Technologies for Extraction of Valuable Components’

The conference is attended by experts from Russia, China, Korea, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Azerbaijan, India, and Germany.

The Karpinsky Institute takes an active part in the conference for the second year in a row. This year two presentations were made in the section "Mineralogy, geochemistry, genesis, structural architecture, tectonic structure and other predictive criteria of mineral deposits".

Tatiana Zubova, Deputy Director General for Geological Exploration, presented results of the application of innovative technologies in isotope-geochemical mapping of intrusive complexes aimed at the assessment of their ore-bearing potential for gold-copper porphyry mineralisation. Extensive use of the bank of isotope-geochemical data accumulated during the implementation of the State Programme of Regional Geological Investigation of the Subsoil and additional studies of the concentration of rare and rare-earth elements in zircons - according to the methodology of Yu. Lu (2016) and J. Pizarro (2020) - made it possible to start solving the problems of forecasting porphyry mineralisation in 166 studied targets and to identify 14 promising prospects.

The presentation 'Localisation of hydrothermal metasomatic rock zones as indicators of promising areas based on spectral analysis of hyperspectral data' by Alexander Kirsanov, Director of the Centre for Remote Sensing Methods, aroused great interest among Uzbek experts. The event confirmed the intention of further cooperation on the introduction of this technology for studying hard-to-reach high mountain areas of the republic in order to identify promising areas. Colleagues from Uzbekistan are ready to use the experience and methodological developments of our institute in their studies, creation of a spectral library and data interpretation. A training programme for specialists from the Institute of Mineral Resources of the Republic of Uzbekistan is also planned for this November.

The innovative technologies presented by the Karpinskiy Institute, touching on the issues of prediction and exploration for solid minerals, attracted the interest of many leaders of the industry and the Ministry of Education.

In his welcoming speech, Bobir Islamov, Minister of Mining and Geology of Uzbekistan, noted the importance of increasing the mineral resource potential of the republic: prediction of new areas as well as reassessment of already known ore fields. In particular, the following indicators were noted: increase in copper production by a factor of 5, gold production by a factor of 4 (up to 150 thousand tonnes per year), and uranium production by a factor of 3. The role of research institutions, the exchange of professional experience in achieving the planned goals and the need for closer integration of science and industry were also highlighted.