KAZ Minerals and NFC, the engineering and mining arm of Chinese state group CNMC, signed a memorandum of understanding on geological exploration in Kazakhstan in Almaty on October 19. The two plan to apply remote sensing, geophysical and geochemical surveys, artificial intelligence and 3D geological modelling, starting with a fresh look at historical data, picking drill targets and assessing resources. No investment figure or timetable was disclosed.
The deal moves NFC further upstream. It was lead contractor on KAZ Minerals' Bozshakol, Aktogay and Bozymchak projects, building the sulphide and clay ore concentrators at Bozshakol and the sulphide concentrator at Aktogay. For more than a decade the Chinese side built plants for KAZ Minerals. This agreement is about finding the ore.
What the memorandum covers
According to KAZ Minerals, the document covers studying joint exploration and resource assessment with modern methods and digital tools, analysing historical geological records to identify promising drilling areas, and training, knowledge exchange, joint research and education programmes. A joint working group and a cooperation roadmap are planned.
On the day of signing, CNMC chairman Wen Gang led a delegation to KAZ Minerals' headquarters for talks with board chairman Oleg Novachuk. CNMC's website described the trip as following up on what the two sides agreed at a meeting in Beijing on September 2. At the ceremony Novachuk recalled the Aktogay and Bozshakol builds: "We built the best enterprises in the world together with CNMC." Wen called Kazakhstan his company's most important country in the region and KAZ Minerals its most important strategic partner, saying the sides would develop exploration together and look at joint investment in mining.
The same day the CNMC delegation visited NFC's Kazakh subsidiary. CNMC's account lists instructions that include paying attention to secondary resources and exploring a "resources for projects" model. Which projects that might involve was not stated.
What already exists
The companies already share one equity stake and one large construction project in Kazakhstan, both documented publicly.
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A Shenzhen Stock Exchange filing by NFC from October 2019 shows its wholly owned unit NFC Kazakhstan paid $70 million for 19.39% of KAZ Minerals Koksay B.V., with the deal closing on July 3, 2019. That company holds the Koksay copper project. It is a reasonable guess, though only a guess, that this undeveloped deposit will be among the first discussed once exploration work starts; the memorandum names no deposits.
On June 3, 2024, the Kazakh government announced an agreement to build a copper smelter near Aktogay village in Abay region: 300,000 tonnes of copper a year, a preliminary cost of $1.5 billion and more than 1,000 jobs, fed with concentrate from Bozshakol and Aktogay. KAZ Minerals Smelting LLP is the customer, NFC supplies design and process equipment procurement, and NFC Kazakhstan LLP handles construction and commissioning. Start-up was then scheduled for the end of 2028.
Why exploration matters
A smelter needs a steady stream of concentrate, and only new reserves extend mine life. The memorandum puts old data at the centre: run existing records through AI and 3D models first, then decide where to drill.
Two points for Chinese companies watching this. The memorandum is a statement of intent; with no working group or roadmap yet, there are no contracts to talk about. And moving from contracting into exploration and joint investment means going through Kazakhstan's exploration licensing and subsoil rights procedures, so how that works will only become clear from later announcements.
Open questions: when the working group will be formed; whether the roadmap will name specific areas; how joint investments would be structured; and where construction of the Aktogay smelter stands now.
(The cover is an AI-generated illustration and does not depict the events described.)
Sources:
Kazinform, https://www.inform.kz/ru/kaz-minerals-ikitayskaya-nfc-dogovorilis-osotrudnichestve-vgeologorazvedke-921ed29c
Bizmedia.kz, https://bizmedia.kz/2026-10-20-kaz-minerals-i-nfc-dogovorilis-o-sotrudnichestve-v-geologorazvedke/
CNMC official website (Chinese), https://pgma.cnmc.com.cn/cnmc/xwzx/jtxw/2026/10/I1562047785962831872.html
CNMC official website (Chinese), https://cnmim.cnmc.com.cn/cnmc/xwzx/jtxw/2026/9/I1545009561100877824.html
NFC filing (CNINFO, Chinese), https://static.cninfo.com.cn/finalpage/2019-10-19/1206994540.PDF
Office of the Prime Minister of Kazakhstan, https://primeminister.kz/en/news/agreement-for-construction-of-a-15bn-copper-smelter-signed-in-kazakhstan-government-28564