From ancient times until now, gold has been an attractive thing, it is a currency that can circulate across borders in all countries. However, with the massive exploitation of humans, gold reserves in the world are becoming less and less. Based on the principle of “rare and hard to find”, gold has also become extremely expensive. But due to extremely harsh geographical conditions, there actually exists the “loneliest” gold mine in the world, very few people dare to come here to exploit.
That is the Kupol gold mine, located in the furthest northeast and is the only part of Russia’s territory in the Western Hemisphere.
First discovered in the 1940s in northeastern Russia, Kupol gold mine is one of the places with rare and abundant gold reserves, its gold reserves are very rich, up to 4500 tons of gold.
Why is Kupol gold mine difficult to exploit?
Because it is located in the northern polar circle, Kupol is one of the places with the harshest climate on earth with snow and ice all year round and temperatures can drop to -50 degrees Celsius. “Located in the middle of a land without a shadow of a human being, The entire mining area looks like a base on the Moon,” said photographer Chernyshova.
Kupol gold mine is located 220km from the nearest town. The surface is permanently frozen all year round, even in summer it is bone-chilling cold. Getting there was difficult. Staying there is even harder. This is the reason why Kupol is one of the most difficult gold mines in the world to exploit.
People discovered the Kupol gold mine in the 1930s. The gold seams buried under the ice in this remote region of Russia were once mined by prisoners. Many people tried to access gold mining here, however, due to extremely harsh weather, they were forced to give up gold mining.
After nearly 7 decades of “loneliness”, there is finally a human figure
Nowadays people are increasingly dependent on gold. Gold remains one of our most valuable resources. More than just jewelry that represents wealth, gold is also an essential ingredient in everything. That means, no matter how cold it is, even at the end of the world, people still have to go to those “frozen hells” to meet their needs.
There are 2 ways to reach Kupol gold mine. One is the air route (Kupol Airport is 12 km north of it) and the temporary road, 360 km long, can only be used from January to April every year (summer months to avoid excessive cold temperatures). ). This road is also known as the winter road – the only land access to Kupol from the port town of Pevek.
Equipment, supplies and fuel needed during the winter months had to be ordered two years in advance and shipped to the port of Pevek, which was only open for three months in the summer.
In 2008, the winter road served 1,944 truck trips to transport 3,000 container units, 60,000 tons of supplies and 25,000 tons of diesel fuel.
At all other times of the year, the Kupol gold mine is accessible only by helicopter and fixed-wing aircraft.
If in the 1930s, people could not access Kupol gold mine, then up to now (21st century), Kupol gold mine is proud to be the most advanced mine in the world. Workers mine about 21 tons of gold each year.
To do that, people had to build very complete facilities for Kupol, creating favorable conditions for workers to work. Workers’ salaries are 25% higher than the regional average.
Work in the deepest underground levels of the mine is controlled and monitored remotely.
Some miners need to go underground to load ore and reinforce walls.
The worker camp must have full facilities and amenities to ensure total living, including a full-sized gym, sports hall, billiards table, music room, library, and living room. prayer, TV and video library. The cost of this place is up to 40 million USD.
In addition to accommodation, the housing area also has amenities such as a gym, library, music room, TV viewing room…
A sealed tunnel, 900 meters long, dubbed the “Arctic Corridor”, allows workers to travel between the camp and the mine without having to endure the cold in winter. About 1,200 people were present at the mine to work continuously for 4 weeks, then take 4 weeks off and then return to work. For those who live further away, the cycle is 6 weeks.
The output of the Kupol mine is about 21 tons of gold per year, in semi-refined form. The gold mine is exploited by Kinross company based in Toronto, Canada.
Last year, Kinross Gold Corp. – the owner of the Kupol gold mine, decided to sell this place and divest all other assets in Russia due to concerns about the impact of political fluctuations.
Since being mined by Kinross, the Kupol mine has produced 481,108 gold equivalent ounces, including the value of both gold and silver produced in 2021. The mine represents approximately 23% of the gold produced by the company last year.
(Summary, miningnewsnorth…)
