Police in East Kazakhstan have opened a pre-trial investigation under Part 3 of Article 334 of the Criminal Code (unauthorised use of subsoil) over works by Central Asia Kaisheng Minerals & Energy International Group Ltd. in the village of Sharavka near Ridder (unconfirmed).
Kazinform reported on October 18 that the checks followed complaints from residents. Villagers said they were first told a Chinese company would repair the local road; instead heavy machinery arrived, topsoil was stripped from fields and industrial equipment was installed.
The Ridder city administration said the company originally approached it about improving the road near Sharavka and setting up a site for equipment. The company holds a permit from the relevant ministry to explore for precious metals but has not obtained the right to mine them. Exploration was planned on a different plot, with Sharavka meant to serve as a base for machinery and materials, and this year was supposed to involve preparation only. According to the administration, the company went beyond the agreed works and levelled a site on agricultural land, where it had no right to remove the fertile layer. The city has referred the matter to prosecutors, the regional department and the ecology department.
The East Kazakhstan ecology department carried out an unscheduled inspection. Inbusiness.kz reported on October 12 that liability applies under Part 2 of Article 344 (storing waste outside designated places), Part 1 of Article 324 and Part 1 of Article 327-1 of the Code of Administrative Offences. Fines have been imposed and are not yet due, and the company has been ordered to restore the damaged land.
Regional police said expert examinations have been ordered and investigative steps are under way (unconfirmed); no further details are being released. Part 3 of Article 334 covers unauthorised subsoil use by a criminal group, in specially protected natural areas, or causing especially large damage, and carries three to seven years in prison. Police did not say which of these grounds applies. Opening a case is not a conviction; the investigation is ongoing.
Accounts of the stoppage differ slightly: Kazinform said the company has fully suspended operations and its machinery is idle, while Inbusiness.kz, citing the city administration, said the prosecutor's office halted the work.
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[Unconfirmed] Inbusiness.kz also quoted a Ridder activist who said the company is arranging a land contract near Konovalovka and drilling near the Kharyuzovka river. This comes from a single source and has not been addressed officially.
According to the Ministry of Industry and Construction, as quoted by LS on October 12, Central Asia Kaisheng holds subsoil use rights under two exploration licences issued this year, with a commitment of at least KZT 275 million over six years. Kursiv reported in September that the company had received a licence for 22 blocks (47.52 sq km) at the Perspektivny-2 site near Zholymbet in Akmola region, was registered at the Astana International Financial Centre in November 2025, and is co-owned by Lu Fan and Lu Hang. [Unconfirmed] The registration and ownership details come only from Kursiv. The ministry did not say whether either licence covers the Ridder area; linking them is an inference.
In the newsroom's view, the case underlines that an exploration licence is not a mining right and that land for equipment yards needs its own legal basis. The final legal assessment rests with the investigation.
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Sources:
- Kazinform, Oct 18, 2026: https://www.inform.kz/ru/inostrannuyu-kompaniyu-zapodozrili-vnezakonnom-nedropolzovanii-podridderom-46992b82
- Inbusiness.kz, Oct 12, 2026: https://www.inbusiness.kz/ru/last/v-riddere-ostanovili-rabotu-kitajskoj-kompanii-za-narushenie-zakona
- LS, Oct 12, 2026 (Ministry of Industry and Construction reply): https://lsm.kz/v-kazahstane-ishut-novye-zapasy-zolota
- Kursiv, Sep 18, 2026: https://kz.kursiv.media/2026-09-18/zhnb-prinadlezhashhaya-kitaiczam-kompaniya-nachnet-iskat-zoloto-vozle-mestorozhdeniya-altynalmasa/
- Criminal Code of Kazakhstan, Art. 334 (adilet K1400000226): https://adilet.zan.kz/rus/docs/K1400000226
- Code of Administrative Offences, Arts. 324, 327-1, 344 (adilet K1400000235): https://adilet.zan.kz/rus/docs/K1400000235
(This article was prepared with AI assistance and reviewed by an editor; the illustration is AI-generated and is not a photograph.)