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Founder and Head of CREON Group, RIAC Member
The Second Eurasian Forum “Mining Industry 2025,” organized by CREON Group, took place on December 10, 2025. The event brought together leading representatives from mining corporations in Russia and Kazakhstan, the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC), diplomatic missions from Mongolia and Kyrgyzstan, the financial sector, research institutes, and international organizations.
Fares Kilzie, founder and chairman of CREON Group, opened the forum with an analysis of the strategic role of metals and minerals from CIS and EAEU countries for SCO, APEC, and ASEAN states amid the new global energy landscape, data center (DC) development, and artificial intelligence.
The Second Eurasian Forum “Mining Industry 2025,” organized by CREON Group, took place on December 10, 2025. The event brought together leading representatives from mining corporations in Russia and Kazakhstan, the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC), diplomatic missions from Mongolia and Kyrgyzstan, the financial sector, research institutes, and international organizations.
Fares Kilzie, founder and chairman of CREON Group, opened the forum with an analysis of the strategic role of metals and minerals from CIS and EAEU countries for SCO, APEC, and ASEAN states amid the new global energy landscape, data center (DC) development, and artificial intelligence.
Russia’s mining and metallurgical sectors, along with those of the CIS and EAEU, are entering the strategic arena amid sweeping changes—transformations in the global energy, technological, digital, and geopolitical landscapes. It is crucial to emphasize that industrial regionalization is becoming a key factor shaping the production and consumption of all types of minerals alongside energy across any global development scenarios.
According to the International Energy Agency forecast, global energy investments will reach $3.3 trillion in 2025—a colossal sum reflecting the scale and speed of fragmentation and change.
Key Investment Directions
- In nuclear energy, investments will total around $72 billion, soon unlocking new opportunities and driving significant growth in uranium ore production, including in Russia.
- Electric grids will attract $400 billion, with copper and aluminum as key raw materials.
- Solar energy, with $450 billion in investments, will require rare metals like silicon, tellurium, cadmium, indium, gallium, and selenium.
· Most impressively, investments in low-emission fuels—including energy storage and other clean technologies—will hit $2.2 trillion, necessitating rare metals such as lithium, cobalt, and nickel.
Notably, this amount doubles investments in traditional sources—oil, gas, and coal combined—at $1.1 trillion.
The accuracy of this investment distribution will only be proven by time.
We discussed this in March at our event on rare earth elements: the dawn of a “new era in energy generation, data centers, and artificial intelligence”—and the situation is evolving and accelerating in precisely this direction.
Raw Material Dependencies
Could Small Modular Reactors Soon Power Data Centers?
To meet growing demand for metals and minerals for AI and data centers by 2030, the world will need to boost annual copper production by 1 million tons—from 22.5 to 27.2 million tons.
Rare earth element production—neodymium, dysprosium, terbium, praseodymium—must increase 1.5–4-fold. This is based on real assets, such as the Tomtor deposit core in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia).
Equipment and server production relies heavily on silicon, copper, gold, silver, and tin, while magnets and motors need rare earths like tantalum and tungsten. The data center chip market alone will exceed $1 trillion by 2030, tripling from 2024.
Transportation, robotics, chemicals, medicine, and defense sectors will add steady demand, boosting consumption of these resources. New alloys and compounds will be essential for aerospace and robotics.
In 2025, power sector investments will hit a record $1.5 trillion, with over $900 billion from China. Energy and data are solidifying as the foundation of human development. Without simultaneous supply of all 34 critical metals and minerals, plus stable energy, growth and innovation are simply impossible.
Notably, SCO and ASEAN countries—led by China—are pioneering these strategic goals, leaving “Golden Billion” nations behind.
Consequently, our mining and metallurgical sectors stand on the cusp of epochal change, poised to lead investments over traditional sectors.
Success hinges on tight financial, scientific, human capital, and technical integration of EAEU and CIS potentials with Central Asian countries. Managerial agility and decision-making speed will determine the industries’ fate.
The key lesson of the last four years: it matters less who extracts energy carriers and more who can guarantee their safe storage and delivery. This strategic edge will endure for generations.
Emerging steady demand in EAEU, CIS, SCO, and ASEAN—especially China and India—creates a robust platform for long-term investments in unique raw material niches and sector solutions.
Delay risks losing competitive advantages and slowing growth.
Russia’s unique resources in Siberia, the Far East, and the Arctic enable deeper integration, logistics strengthening, and economic ties.
Industrial-trade cooperation reduces risks and draws joint capital for innovation.
Exports to EAEU and CIS are viable with surpluses; imports with deficits—fostering balanced, resilient systems in this macroregion.
Recent copper examples stand out, with prices exceeding $11,700 per ton, highlighting huge coordination potential.
In Russia, over 175 mining projects are underway in the Far East and Arctic, with ~4 trillion rubles in investments. Over 2 trillion has already been invested in sites like Baimskoye, Udokanskoye, Malmyzh, Ozernoye, Kultuminskoye, and others.
US Semiconductor Reindustrialization: Implications for the World
In Kazakhstan, copper deposits like Aydarly, Koksai, and Benkala are advancing, with ore output doubling to 300 million tons in five years and copper production rising from 500,000 to 1.2 million tons by 2030.
Lead production will grow 100%, aluminum 50%, zinc 11%. Kazakhstan will lead regional graphite alongside Russia’s “Soyuznoye” project.
Of 384 critical mineral sites in Central Asia, 160 are in Kazakhstan.
Uzbekistan has invested nearly $10 billion in 15 projects over five years, doubling copper output from 250,000 to 500,000 tons annually.
Kyrgyzstan boasts over 1,000 deposits and 51 mineral types, with ~400 in active development—including 11 rare earth sites like Kutesay-2 and Kalesay.
The mining sector is becoming an economic engine and regional growth driver.
These achievements underscore the need for a coordination plan among EAEU and CIS countries with Central Asia.
Only industrial cooperation and integration can avert excessive competition, cut risks, boost efficiency, and enable tech exchange.
Dear friends, only swift, comprehensive strategic solutions will open the gates to a new, powerful Industrial Era.
Our shared success depends on synergizing knowledge, resources, and ambition to lead globally.
(votes: 14, rating: 4.21) |
(14 votes) |
The future balance of power — both technological and geopolitical — among the key global actors will be shaped by the development trajectory of the US semiconductor industry
