en.Wedoany.com Reported - Kazakhstan's Satbayev University, in collaboration with the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology (KITECH) and the Korea Rare Metals Institute, will jointly establish the Kazakhstan-South Korea Rare and Rare Earth Metals Center in Almaty.
The center aims to promote the extension of critical minerals from resource development to technological research and industrialization. It plans to build a modern laboratory to conduct research and development, experimental verification, technology transfer, and talent training for rare metals, creating Kazakhstan's first full-process technology platform covering R&D to industrialization.
Official data shows that Kazakhstan has over 9,500 mineral deposits, more than 100 of which contain rare and rare earth metals. It can supply 19 of the 50 critical minerals identified by the United States and 21 of the 34 critical raw materials listed by the European Union.
Meanwhile, industrial cooperation in Central Asia is further expanding into high value-added fields. Tajikistan's President Emomali Rahmon recently met with representatives of several Chinese metallurgical enterprises to discuss cooperation in industries such as steel, cement, lime, and glass, as well as the application of advanced technologies. Fujian Metallurgical Industry Design Institute signed a design project for a production line with an annual output of 1.5 million tons of high-quality steel in Kazakhstan, leveraging China's metallurgical engineering technology and standard systems to promote the upgrading of the local steel industry.
With the growing global demand for critical minerals, Central Asian countries are shifting from resource exports to deep processing and high-end manufacturing. Kazakhstan is leveraging South Korea to enhance its rare earth processing technology, while Tajikistan and Kazakhstan continue to introduce Chinese manufacturing capabilities and engineering technologies. Regional competition is extending from mineral resource development to materials research, metallurgical manufacturing, and industrial chain upgrading.
