OREANDA-NEWS. July 22, 2008. Lunnoye CJSC, a company founded by Atomredmetzoloto OJSC (ARMZ) and Seligdar OJSC, has began to build a gold and uranium ore processing plant in Yakutia, reports a representatives of the Industry Ministry of Yakutia.

The plant is supposed to process 400,000 tons of ore a year and produce almost 1.5 tons of gold and 120 tons of uranium a year.

The pilot launch is scheduled for 2009 with the first ton of gold to be produced in late 2009-early 2010.

In 2011 the plant will reach its full capacity and will produce its first ton of uranium.

250–300 people (mostly residents of Aldansky ulus) will work at the plant on a rotational basis.

“The development of Lonnoye and other deposits of Elkon group is essential for the further growth of the defense and nuclear power industries of Russia,” President of Yakutia Vyacheslav Shtyrov said during a press-conference in Aldansky Ulus on Tuesday.

“This is a very big and complex project but this is also a very promising direction – almost as promising as the oil and gas sector of Yakutia.” Shtyrov pointed out that the Elkon project was an excellent example of partnership between the government and private sectors.

“This is a pilot project to attract an investor for our uranium industry, whose task is to triple its output by 2015. The key principle of this project and all subsequent projects will be participation of private investors in projects to develop the national uranium industry with Atomenergoprom and Rosatom State Corporation holding controlling stakes in relevant joint ventures,” Director general of ARMZ Vadim Zhivov said earlier.