Kazatomprom updated its full-year outlook with its first-half 2026 results, keeping production and sales volume guidance unchanged while revising all of its financial guidance.
Production guidance for 2026 on a 100% basis stays at 27,500 to 29,000 tU, or 71.49 to 75.39 million pounds of U3O8 (unconfirmed). The company said it is keeping it "at this time".
Attributable C1 cash cost guidance rises to US$25.50–27.00 per pound from US$23.50–25.00 (unconfirmed). First-half attributable C1 was US$24.48 per pound, against US$17.86 a year earlier. On its results call, the company said C1 cash costs rose 37% year on year, driven mainly by a higher mineral extraction tax rate (unconfirmed), higher sulphuric acid prices and the tenge's appreciation against the dollar. Chief executive Meirzhan Yussupov said the era of "cheap" uranium is fading away.
(unconfirmed) According to the company's operating and financial review, all-in sustaining cash cost guidance (attributable C1 plus capital cost) rises to US$39.00–40.50 per pound from US$35.00–36.50, and consolidated revenue guidance falls to KZT 2,100–2,200 billion from KZT 2,200–2,300 billion.
(unconfirmed) The same review shows the group's weighted average cost of sulphuric acid rose 38.7% in the first half to KZT 97,312 per tonne, accounting for about 15.3% of uranium production costs.
Sulphuric acid is a key reagent in in-situ recovery mining, and the Taiqonyr Qyshqyl Zauyty (TQZ) plant was meant to be one of the new sources easing domestic shortages. The contractor notified the company that it had encountered potential paleontological specimens during earthworks. Under the law on national historical and cultural heritage, construction in the affected area has been suspended pending an official permit from the relevant state authorities, and specialised excavations will be carried out (unconfirmed).
Rules related to this news
As a result, TQZ commissioning, originally targeted for the first quarter of 2027, is now projected for between the third quarter of 2027 and the first quarter of 2028. At this stage the company does not expect a material impact on its uranium mining, but will assess the effect against existing acid sources and factor it into its 2027 production guidance. If further specimens are found or the excavation zone expands, the project design may need revising to move infrastructure outside the affected area (unconfirmed).
In the newsroom's view, sulphuric acid is a variable worth watching: it shapes uranium costs and production pace, as well as supply and demand in chemicals and non-ferrous smelting.
Check the sources behind the policy, and let us connect you with the right people on the ground – ask tumah.kz for details
Sources:
- Kazatomprom, Operating and Financial Review, six months ended 30 June 2026: https://www.kazatomprom.kz/storage/9f/6m_2026_ofr_eng.pdf
- Kazatomprom announces 1H2026 Financial Results: https://www.kazatomprom.kz/en/media/view/Kazatomprom%20announces%201H2026%20Financial%20Results
- Kazatomprom, 1H2026 results conference call transcript, Aug 21, 2026: https://www.kazatomprom.kz/storage/00/TransEng.pdf
- The Mining Dispatch, Oct 6, 2026: https://miningdispatch.com/2026/10/kazatomprom-holds-2026-output-guidance/
- Law on the Protection and Use of Historical and Cultural Heritage Sites (adilet Z1900000288): https://adilet.zan.kz/rus/docs/Z1900000288
(This article was prepared with AI assistance and reviewed by an editor; the illustration is AI-generated and is not a photograph.)