Kinross opens Russian gold processing plant

Canadian miner, Kinross Gold Corporation, has opened a new gold processing plant in the Far East of Russia.

Work on Kupol plant, which is located in the Anadyr district of the Chukotka Peninsula, has been undertaken by Chukotka Mining and Geological Company, which is 75% owned by Kinross.

The $750 million facility is expected to produce 13.8 to 14.6 metric tons of gold in 2008.

It will process ore from the Kupol field with an initial output of around 1,500 metric tonnes of gold ore per day. However, from October this should increase to 3,000 metric tons.

The company has estimated that gold production at Kupol could reach 550,000 ounces per year from 2009, equating to 10.5% of Russian gold output for 2007.

The project therefore has the potential to turn Kinross into the second-largest gold miner in Russia, after Polyus Gold

Precious metal mining is central to the economy of the Chukotka region, which lies across the Bering Strait from Alaska.

In 2007, annual gold production stood at five tonnes and this is expected to rise to between 17 and 19 tonnes in 2008.