OREANDA-NEWS. December 23, 2010. Olcon (the Olenegorsk Iron Ore Complex, a business unit within Severstal’s mining division) obtained a license for the right to use subsoils for geological studies at the Svintsovye Tundry (Lead Tundry) area, in the Murmansk Region in north-west Russia.

The deposit spans 36.6 sq. kilometers and contains an estimated 91 million tonnes of iron ore, according to Russian standards. The area is characterised by high iron content (30.6%) and complex geology in comparison to Olcon’s other deposits. The Svintsovye Tundry area is 10 kilometers away from the Kurkenpahk deposit and 16 kilometers away from the Kirovogorsky deposit, both of which are also currently being developed by Olcon. The Svintsovye Tundry is located near to another reserve deposit, the Volchiye Tundry (Lupine Tundry), which also has potential for development.

Vasily Chernykh, CEO of Olcon, said: “We consider this new license for geological studies at the Svintsovye Tundry to be another step in our strategy to develop our mineral resource base, thereby ensuring and improving the efficiency of our long-term operations.”
The level of investment in the Svintsovye Tundry deposit will be dependent upon the results of the geological studies.

Earlier this year, Olcon received exploration and mining licenses for the Kurkenpahk iron ore deposit and for the East area of the South-Kakhozersk deposit in the Murmansk Region.

Olcon (Olenegorsk Iron Ore Complex) is part of the mining division of Severstal, one of the world’s leading steel and mining companies. The Cherepovets Steel Mill is the principal consumer of Olcon’s iron ore concentrate. In 2009 Olenegorsk Iron Ore Complex shipped 4.8 mln metric tonnes of iron ore concentrate to its customers.