Tuva deposits, Tuva

The U.S. Bureau of Mines' Minerals Yearbook for 1961, drawing on Mineral Trade Notes, reported that the "Tuvaasbestos Trust was established for large-scale development of newly discovered chrysotile and amphibole deposits in Tuva, where some unusually long spinning-grade fiber was reported."⁸

The Tuvaasbest Combine

Asbestos, the industry's trade journal, placed the Tuvaasbest Combine "at Ak-Dovurak near Krasnoyarsk in South Central Siberia" and gave its "current annual capability" in December 1975 as "35,000 tons"; a year later it reported "a production capacity of 205,000 tons."^1,3 The Minerals Yearbook for 1975 said that "the high quality, long fiber, deposit at Aktourak in Tuva A.S.S.R. produced about 38,000 tons of asbestos in 1975."² The trade journal's tables of estimates and projections of Soviet production gave the combine 205,000 tons for 1975 and 100,000 for 1976 in December 1977, and 205,000 for 1975 and 240,000 for 1977 in December 1978.^4,6 A Minerals Yearbook table "based on planned production data supplied by the Johns-Manville Corp." listed Tuvaasbest at 100 thousand short tons for 1976.⁵ In December 1978 Asbestos reported that "output in 1977 was 60,000 tons from Mill No. 1 and 180,000 tons from Mill No. 2," and that "by 1980 total production should reach 265,000 tons."⁶ In December 1979 it estimated output "at 250,000 tons in 1979, 265,000 tons by 1981 and 300,000 tons by 1986"; in January 1981 it called Tuvaasbest "the third largest Russian asbestos complex" and said its first mill "produced over 60,000 tonnes in 1979 and a second an estimated 200,000 tonnes," with total output "to be increased to 265,000 tonnes in 1981 and 300,000 tonnes by 1986."^9,10

The V. I. Lenin Combine

In April 1979 Asbestos, citing the Mining Journal and Moscow radio, reported that "the V. I. Lenin Combine in the Tuva ASSR has begun asbestos production" and "should produce some 120,000 metric tonnes of asbestos fiber this year"; in December the journal repeated the report, listing the Lenin combine separately from the Tuvaasbest Combine.^7,9 The Minerals Yearbook said the new V. I. Lenin combine in the Tuva A.S.S.R. "commenced production in 1979, and probably produced 120,000 tons in that year."¹¹ For 1981 the yearbook reported that "the second stage of the Lenin asbestos plant in the Tuva Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic reached full production," with a design capacity of "120,000 tons per year"; none of these reports on the Lenin combine names Ak-Dovurak.¹²

The documents report this mine producing asbestos fiber for sale.²

Location

Output the documents report

Figures as printed, in the units each document uses (short tons before about 1990, metric tons after, in most U.S. chapters). Some are a year's output, some a daily rate or a capacity, some a company's total rather than this mine's alone; the statement for that year below says which.

Year by year

Every statement about this mine in the documents, in each document's own words, by the year it is about.

1961

• Exploration: “Tuvaasbestos Trust was established for large-scale development of newly discovered chrysotile and amphibole deposits in Tuva” (Tuvaasbestos Trust), as reported by Mineral Trade Notes, p. 10⁸
• Fiber: “chrysotile and amphibole deposits” (Tuvaasbestos Trust), p. 10⁸

1975

• Output: “the current annual capability is 35,000 tons” (Tuvaasbest Combine), p. 38¹
• Output: “produced about 38,000 tons of asbestos in 1975”, p. 10²

1976

• Mill: “A production capacity of 205,000 tons is reported at the Tuvaasbest Combine” (Tuvaasbest Combine), p. 37³
• Output: “Tuvaasbest Combine 1975 205,000; 1976 100,000” (Tuvaasbest Combine), p. 31⁴
• Output: “Tuvaasbest 100 (1976), 250 (1981), 250 (1986)” (Tuvaasbest), p. 10⁵

1977

• Output: “Output in 1977 was 60,000 tons from Mill No. 1 and 180,000 tons from Mill No. 2. By 1980 total production should reach 265,000 tons” (Tuvaasbest Combine), p. 42⁶
• Output: “Tuvaasbest 1975 205,000; 1977 240,000” (Tuvaasbest Combine), p. 40⁶

1979

• Opened: “the V. I. Lenin Combine in the Tuva ASSR has begun asbestos production; should produce some 120,000 metric tonnes of asbestos fiber this year” (V. I. Lenin Combine), as reported by Mining Journal, p. 36⁷
• Output: “Output is estimated at 250,000 tons in 1979” (Tuvaasbest Combine), p. 36⁹
• Opened: “the V. I. Lenin Combine in the Tuva ASSR has begun asbestos production” (V. I. Lenin Combine), as reported by Moscow radio, p. 36⁹
• Output: “probably produced 120,000 tons in that year”, p. 13¹¹
• Opened: “The new V. I. Lenin combine in the Tuva A.S.S.R. commenced production in 1979”, p. 13¹¹
• Output: “Its first mill produced over 60,000 tonnes in 1979 and a second an estimated 200,000 tonnes” (Tuvaasbest Combine), p. 28¹⁰

1981

• Mill: “the second stage of the Lenin asbestos plant ... reached full production. Design capacity was 120,000 tons per year”, p. 8¹²

Other names

Documents call this mine “newly discovered chrysotile and amphibole deposits in Tuva”, “Aktourak”, “Tuvaasbest”, “V. I. Lenin combine”, “Lenin asbestos plant”, “Tuvaasbest Combine”, “V. I. Lenin Combine”, “Lenin complex”.

References

1. Asbestos Magazine, 1975, December 1975 (December 1, 1975), p. 38.
2. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1975 (January 1, 1976), p. 10.
3. Asbestos Magazine, 1976, December 1976 (December 1, 1976), p. 37.
4. Asbestos Magazine, 1977, December 1977 (December 1, 1977), p. 31.
5. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1977 (January 1, 1978), p. 10.
6. Asbestos Magazine, 1978, December 1978 (December 1, 1978), pp. 40, 42.
7. Asbestos Magazine, 1979, April 1979 (April 1, 1979), p. 36.
8. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1961 (January 1, 1962), p. 10.
9. Asbestos Magazine, 1979, December 1979 (December 1, 1979), p. 36.
10. Asbestos Magazine, 1981, January 1981 (January 1, 1981), p. 28.
11. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1978–79 (January 1, 1980), p. 13.
12. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1981 (January 1, 1982), p. 8.