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Metal concentrates produced in Armenia include rare metals but it is difficult to find buyers for them, General Director of Zangezur Copper Molybdenum Combine, Mher Poloskov, told Armenian News – NEWS.am on Wednesday during the WCFDavos/Yerevan forum entitled “From Crisis to Development – Powered by Communication.”

Kajaran copper molybdenum deposit, which is operated by Zangezur Copper Molybdenum Combine, contains rare metals (rhenium, selenium, tellurium, etc.) but their amount is so little that the international companies buying metal concentrate are not willing to make expenses for their extraction. 

Now the Armenian suppliers are only paid for the gold and silver in the metal concentrate but only in case of exceeding the minimum fixed amount (In international practice, the minimum amount is 1 gram of gold per ton of copper concentrate. The Armenian minerals and concentrate usually contain such amount).

Molybdenum concentrate is processed and turned into ferromolybdenum by Yerevan Clear Iron Plant and Armenian Molybdenum Production. The former occasionally extracts rhenium (in case of sufficient amount) from the concentrate, receiving a byproduct—potassium perrhenates—therefrom. 

''But selling not even ready metal but this byproduct requires to pass long certification procedure. No Armenian metallurgic plant can yet afford this. Therefore, there is unfortunately no guaranteed sale of this product,'' Poloskov noted.

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