MOSCOW, June 9. /TASS/. Turkish construction giant, the Onur Group holding, has refused to continue investing in gold mining in Ukraine after the data on its reserves turned out to be unreliable, the company's general manager in Ukraine, Emre Karaahmetoglu, announced.
According to him, the company invested a significant amount in gold mining at the Zheltovodskaya gold ore field in the Dnepropetrovsk region in southeastern Ukraine. But the prospects of the deposit turned out to be significantly lower than stated. In accordance with the design documents of the State Geological Service of Ukraine, the company expected about 4.5 grams of gold per ton of ore, but the actual figures were only 1.4 grams per ton.
"This does not provide economic viability for production. Therefore, we do not see prospects for this site and do not plan to invest further," Karaahmetoglu said as quoted by the Ukrainian publication Liga.net. At the same time, the company still hopes for a graphite deposit in the Khmelnytsky region in western Ukraine, where it plans to begin industrial production from 2026.
Back in December 2020, the State Geology and Mineral Resources Service announced the first sale of a gold-bearing site in the history of Ukraine, which was the Zheltovodskaya area in the Dnepropetrovsk region, through an electronic auction. At that time, it was noted that the 1,000-hectare site had proven reserves of gold and niobium sufficient for industrial production. In July 2021, Onur Group acquired a stake from a Ukrainian company that won the tender to develop the deposit.
On April 30 of this year, the United States and Ukraine signed an agreement on mineral resources, and on May 8, the Verkhovna Rada voted to ratify it. Kiev reported that it would contribute 50% of all revenues from new rent and new licenses for mineral extraction to a bilateral investment fund. However, Rada deputy Nina Yuzhanina later admitted that she feared a harsh reaction from US President Donald Trump when it turns out that Ukraine does not have rich mineral resources that would interest Washington. According to her, geological maps were compiled back in Soviet times. If they do not correspond to reality, Kiev could completely lose Washington's support, she said.