Russia's Polyus claims gold mine in Siberia as world's largest

Russian mining company Polyus has claimed that its undeveloped Sukhoi Log gold deposit in Siberia is the biggest in the world, with proven reserves of 40 million ounces.

The deposit accounts for 25% of Russia's known unmined gold, making Polyus the second-largest gold miner in the world, the company said.

“We are pleased with the results . . . The publication of the maiden ore reserve estimate represents a significant milestone for Polyus’ long-term development strategy, and confirms Sukhoi Log’s position as one of the world's highest-calibre gold deposits,” Pavel Grachev, chief executive, said in a statement.

The announcement comes a month after the company accelerated the buyout of its partner in Sukhoi Log, Russian state defence group Rostec, with a $128.2 million (€108.2 million) payout, which gave Polyus control of the 22% stake that it did not own.

Polyus saw its shares rise by 1.4% in Moscow yesterday morning, against a slight drop in the overall market.

The company also announced that its total gold production in Q3 has risen by 2% on the same period to the previous year to 771,000 ounces, with forecasted gold sales up 36% to $1.44 billion (€1.22 billion).

Sukhoi Log lies nearly 6,000 km (3,728 miles) westwards from Moscow in Siberia's far east. 

Production and development plans for the site have yet to be announced, though a pre-feasibility study is expected by the end of this year.

The company has already begun construction of a local airport to serve the remote site and has previously said development costs would be around $2.5 billion (€2.11 billion).

The Sukhoi Log deposit contains 540 million tonnes of ore with an average grade of 2.3 grammes of gold per tonne, according to the estimate, the first it had done under international JORC standards.

If estimates are accurate, this makes it the largest gold deposit in the world among greenfield and developed mines, Polyus claims.

The value of the company's Moscow-listed shares has more than tripled this year due to a surge in gold prices to a record high in August.

According to Forbes, this price surge has made Suleiman Kerimov, the majority owner of Polyus through his family, the richest man in Russia.

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