13 November 2023, Brussels - This week, as part of the annual Raw Materials Week 2023 event organized by the European Commission in Brussels, the National Geological Survey of Kazakhstan and Xcalibur Multiphysics Group announced a strategic partnership in natural resource mapping by signing a Memorandum of Understanding.
The event was attended by senior officials of the Government of Kazakhstan and the European Union, including the Minister of Industry and Construction of Kazakhstan Mr. Sharlapaev Kanat Bisimbaevich, and Vice-President of the European Commission Mr. Maroš Ševčovič.
The subject of the Memorandum signed between JSC National Geological Survey and Xcalibur Multiphysics Group is the establishment of partnership relations and the development of long-term, effective, and mutually beneficial cooperation in the field of mapping and search for natural resources using advanced methods of airborne geophysics. The signing of the Memorandum of Understanding is an important step towards unlocking the significant potential of Kazakhstan's natural resources, including the potential of critical metals and groundwater.
Also, international experience proves that airborne geophysical mapping is an effective tool for attracting investment in exploration, especially when such work is carried out on a regional scale. Availability of up-to-date, high-quality, and accessible geophysical data in the country is one of the key aspects in making investment decisions in the sphere of subsoil use and mineral exploration.
Xcalibur Multiphysics is the most experienced company performing regional country-wide airborne geophysical mapping. The company's customers are governments of Australia, the USA, Canada, India, Japan, Brazil, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Saudi Arabia and others. At the moment the company is carrying out 12 regional mapping projects worldwide.
Combining the experience and knowledge of regional geology of the National Geological Survey of Kazakhstan, as well as the expertise and advanced airborne geophysical technologies of Xcalibur Multiphysics, we believe that this partnership will lead to significant results and achieve the strategic goal of replenishing the mineral resource base of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
November 16, 2023, Astana – the First International Forum "Kazakhstan-Produced 2.0" was held, which brought together more than 2,000 participants and was marked by the participation of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Smailov Alikhan Askhanovich. The forum served as a platform for discussing initiatives to support domestic producers and reorientation of subsoil user enterprises to develop local content value.
Andres Blanco, CEO of Xcalibur Multiphysics Group, was invited to the event as a plenary session speaker, Kaisar Kozhamuratov, CEO of Aurora Minerals Group, also participated in the event.
In his speech at the plenary session, Mr. Andres Blanco highlighted the company's strategic commitment to developing local content in Kazakhstan. Mr. Andres Blanco highlighted not only the importance of training and development of local personnel but also provided specific details of ongoing training for geophysicists, operators, pilots, data processors, and interpreters. Equally important is that at Xcalibur Kazakhstan, professional development takes place in a real-world environment, on airborne geophysical survey projects.
The culmination of the Kazakhstan-Produced 2.0 Forum for Xcalibur Multiphysics was a meeting with the Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Alikhan Askhanovich Smailov. The meeting discussed the prospects of regional airborne geophysics as a key tool in the development and exploitation of natural resources. The company shared its experience in the use of airborne geophysics data to improve the efficiency of exploration and attract investment in the prospecting and mapping of mineral resources.
During the meeting participants reviewed the successful experience of Geoscience Australia, which has implemented a systematic collection of regional airborne geophysics data. The Explore for the Future program was launched in 2016 at a total cost of $225 million. In four years of exploration, from 2016 to 2020, the Geological Survey managed to cover more than 3 million square kilometers of Australia.
According to an independent assessment by Deloitte, the impact of this program on the Australian economy has been impressive. Between 2021 and 2022, the use of the generated data contributed to $76 billion of the country's GDP and supported more than 80,000 jobs across the country.
