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Uzbekistan
Mineral Resources
One of Uzbekistan's most abundant and strategic resources is
gold. Before 1992, Uzbekistan accounted for about one-third of
Soviet gold production, at a time when the Soviet Union ranked
third in world gold production. The Muruntau Gold Mine, about
400 kilometers northwest of Tashkent in the Qizilqum Desert, is
estimated to be the largest gold mine in the world, and other
gold reserves are located in the Chadaq area of the Fergana Valley,
on the southern slopes of the Qurama Mountains. In 1992, a reported
80 tons of gold were mined in Uzbekistan, making it the eighth
largest producer of gold in the world. Fluorospar, the most important
source of fluorine, is mined at Tuytepa between Olmaliq and Tashkent.
In the region of Olmaliq, southeast of Tashkent, are deposits
of copper, zinc, lead, tungsten, and molybdenum that are used
in the well-developed metallurgical processing industries centered
in northeastern Uzbekistan. Uranium is mined and processed on
the slopes of the Chatkal and Qurama ranges that surround the
Fergana Valley.
Data as of March 1996
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