Remediation of former uranium mining sites in Uzbekistan

In September 2021, the executive management of the State Committee for Ecology of the Republic of Uzbekistan (since 01.01.2023 "Ministry of Nature of the Republic of Uzbekistan") and the management of G.E.O.S. signed a contract for the cooperation in the remediation of the former uranium mining sites Yangiabad and Kharkesar in the Republic of Uzbekistan.

Yangiabad and Kharkesar are sites where the former Soviet Union mined uranium until the late 1960s. Since the end of mining activities, the sites have been idle and are now to be permanently remediated in accordance with the principle of "international best practice". The three-year remediation project is financed by the Environmental Remediation Account for Central Asia (ERA) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).

The experts of the Chemnitz G.E.O.S. branch WISUTEC take over the project management as well as the construction supervision of the remediation works. WISUTEC's decades of experience in the field of uranium mine rehabilitation will be used in the management activities, in the implementation planning, in the tender management and in the construction supervision.

The WISUTEC engineers are particularly familiar with the Central Asian region. With their expertise, they support the Uzbek partners on site and in a hands-on manner. The work is being carried out in close cooperation with the EBRD Head Office in London and the Uzbek partners.

After the implementation planning was prepared in spring 2022 and the building permits were obtained, an international call for tenders was issued in autumn 2022. After the evaluation of the bids and the determination of the winner of the tender, the construction contract was signed.

The remediation works started in March 2023, with the experts of the Chemnitz G.E.O.S. branch WISUTEC in charge of the construction management together with Uzbek experts. The completion of the rehabilitation, worth approximately EUR 6 million, is planned for the end of 2024.

G.E.O.S. Services

• Heading and organising the Project Management Unit, project control
• Tender procedures for the construction works, role of a "procurement expert"
• Construction supervision, contract and cost control
• Supervision of occupational health and safety, environmental protection and radiation protection
• Stakeholder management