Putin asks for Tomtor niobium and rare earth metals deposit to be developed either by current owner or by other means

MOSCOW. Nov 20 (Interfax) - Russian President Vladimir Putin has asked First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov to ensure that the Tomtor niobium and rare earth metals deposit in Yakutia is developed either by its current owner or by other means.

"Those businesses that took these deposits many years ago are not investing. We need somehow to talk to them and resolve this issue: either they invest, or they somehow build relations with other companies, with the state. This is a strategic resource that the state needs now," Putin said.

Manturov promised to fulfill the president's request.

The Tomtor project used to belong to the ICT group, with Polymetal a minority shareholder with a 9.09% stake. According to the Unified State Register of Legal Entities, 90.91% of the project operator has been controlled by ICT group managers Vladislav Resin and Alexei Aleshin since April 2022, and the Polymetal stake was transferred to the operator itself in the summer of 2024.

Kommersant reported in November, citing sources, that Tomtor could be put under the management of the state-owned Rosneftegaz holding, and its development financed by offsetting costs incurred in the construction of the Zvezda shipbuilding complex and related metallurgical facilities.

Tomtor is one of the world's three biggest rare earth metal deposits and is one of the richest in the world in terms of rare earth metal content in ore, as well as the largest non-producing niobium project. The deposit's Buranny section holds an estimated 11.4 million tonnes of ore containing 0.7 million tonnes of niobium oxide and 1.7 million tonnes of rare earth oxides.