Kazakhstan launches $1 billion tungsten project with US company

Kazakhstan has launched a $1 billion tungsten project in partnership with US-based Cove Capital, marking the country’s largest project of its kind.

The project’s co-owners include sons of US President Donald Trump, who acquired a stake in Skyline Builders in August 2025. The company later agreed to merge with a subsidiary of Cove Capital, according to the Financial Times (FT). Trump’s sons are passive investors and have no operational influence over the company, their representative said.

The Northern Katpar and Upper Kairakty deposits are expected to produce around 12,000 tons of tungsten products annually — roughly 15% of global tungsten output. The project includes plans to build two processing plants and a metallurgical facility, with major construction scheduled to begin in 2028. The deposits’ combined reserves were estimated at 410,000 tons in 2025.

Tungsten is used in microelectronics as well as the defence industry, including armour-piercing projectile cores, protective components and drone production. The metal is also widely used in the aerospace industry, where heat-resistant components are required.

By Jeyhun Aghazada