Privatization

After more than 20 years as a National Company owned solely by Kazakhstan's National Wealth Fund, Samruk-Kazyna, Kazatomprom was taken public with an IPO in November 2018 that placed 15% of the company's outstanding shares in free float on the Astana International Exchange (AIX) and on the London Stock Exchange (LSE).^[8] With the IPO, Kazatomprom became the first portfolio company of Samruk-Kazyna JSC to have shares offered on the international capital market as part of the Comprehensive Privatization Plan for 2016-2020 announced by the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan.^[9][10] This program is aimed at generating a free and competitive economy in Kazakhstan, creating and developing national platforms for attracting international capital, stimulating private business initiatives, and creating a favorable business climate. To attain this objective, the stated goal of the Kazakh Government is to reduce the State’s substantial share in gross value added to GDP to 15% in the medium- and long-term, which is better aligned with OECD countries.

After Samruk-Kazyna sold an additional 3.8% of the company's outstanding share capital in September 2019, and another 6.2% sold in June 2020,^[11] Samruk-Kazyna JSC remains the majority shareholder holding 75% of the outstanding share capital of Kazatomprom,^[12] while 25% are in free circulation and held by minority shareholders from around the world.

Mineral assets^[18]

Kazakhstan has the largest uranium reserves in the world, with the first commercial deposit in the country (Kordayskoye) discovered and explored in 1951. With continued exploration through the late 1960s, uranium discoveries in the Shu-Sarysu and Ili provinces in southern Kazakhstan became the world's largest reserves of uranium. With these discoveries, Kazakhstan became the world leader in explored uranium reserves suitable in-situ recovery.

There are currently 56 identified deposits in the Republic of Kazakhstan that host reserves and resources in excess of 450,000 tonnes of uranium. Kazatomprom’s operations currently mine uranium from 14 of those deposits, of which one deposit has been fully depleted and is now in the decommissioning stage, while the remaining 13 deposits are being actively  developed and mined. Those 13 active deposits are further subdivided into 24 areas grouped into the 13 uranium-mining subsidiaries with varying ownership structures. Four additional deposits are at the advanced exploration stage and the remaining 42 deposits are yet to be fully delineated.

Each of Kazakhstan's uranium deposits differ in terms of certain geological features, depth, and value. However, based on common geological settings, genetic traits, and territorial isolation, all are generally considered to be sandstone-hosted roll-front uranium deposits occurring in six provinces: Shu-Sarysu, Syrdariya, North Kazakhstan, the Caspian, Balkhash, Ili.^{[citation needed]}

Over 65% of the world's proven uranium reserves that are suitable for ISR extraction are located in Kazakhstan, and all uranium resources developed by Kazatomprom will be recovered using the in-situ recovery method.

In-situ recovery mining

Using ISR technology, mining is carried out without blasting or sending people underground to bring the uranium ore to the surface. A low-pH production solution is pumped down “injection wells” into the ore body and as the production solution passes through the uranium-bearing rock layers (ore horizon), it dissolves natural uranium compounds. With the solution now containing the dissolved uranium, it is brought back to the surface through “production wells”. The solution is processed on surface using conventional processing techniques to extract the uranium, before being pumped back to the wellfields to extract more uranium.  

Unlike the underground shaft mining or open-pit mining methods, the development of uranium deposits by ISR does not have a negative effect on the surface: there is no soil subsidence and disturbance, and no surface storage of low-grade ores or waste rocks. In addition, ISR in Kazakhstan does not require liquid waste or tailings management facilities. The major processing steps to extract the uranium take place deep underground (hence the term “in-situ”), resulting in lower production costs and an inherently higher level of health and safety performance due to lower mining risks. Upon depletion of the resource and completion of mining activities, Kazatomprom's remote mine site locations are restored to their pre-mining state, both above and below ground.^{[citation needed]}

Uranium mining assets

Kazatomprom operates through its subsidiaries, JVs and Associates, 24 deposit areas grouped into 13 asset clusters ("subsidiaries"), all of which are located in Kazakhstan and utilize the in-situ recovery (ISR) mining method. Benefits of ISR over conventional mining methods include lower cost of extraction, smaller environmental footprint and inherently better health and safety performance.

ISR uranium extraction was first used in 1960s and by 2017, its application was providing more than 50% of global uranium production. However, the ISR mining method can only be employed under specific geological conditions: a porous uranium ore horizon is required, through which the production solution can be pumped to dissolve the uranium, and dense, non-porous “confining” layers must be present above and below the ore horizon to ensure the production solution is well controlled between the injection and production wells.

All of Kazatomprom's production is carried out via ISR extraction. Eight of the ten largest ISR mines in the world are operated by Kazatomprom.^{[citation needed]}

Uranium processing

Kazatomprom's Subsidiary, Ulba Metallurgical Plant JSC, provides services for final processing, reconversion, and production of fuel pellets for light water nuclear reactors, which it has done for nearly 40 years. The facility can process a wide range of uranium-containing materials for the production of ceramic-grade uranium dioxide powders with up to 5% enrichment (U235). In addition to fuel pellets, Kazatomprom and China General Nuclear Power Corporation (CGNPC) are jointly implementing a project to construct a fuel assembly production facility at Ulba, serving future Chinese needs for finished nuclear fuel assemblies.