MINERAL RESOURCES OF THE REPUBLIC OF KOMI
Mineral resources of the Republic of Komi include fuels, metals, nonferrous minerals and underground waters.
The republican explored fields contain about 3% of all-Russia oil stock, 4.5% of coal, 13% of barites, 30% of bauxites, 50% of titanium and 80% of quartz fibers. The most significant resources in the Republic of Komi are fuel and energy resources. Due to them the republic is considered to be the major source of fuel of the European North of Russia.
Pechora Coal Basin is the second largest by stock coal basin in Russia and a major and long term source for developing chemical industry, energy production and methane extraction. 30 coal fields are found up to now, including 10 fields with the proved stocks. The total estimated stock of Pechora Coal Basin is 242 bln tons. The quality coal stock amounts to 58.4 bln tons. 3.99 bln tons of coal are ready for extraction.
Timan-Pechora Oil and Gas Province contains over 120 oil, gas, oil-and-gas and condensate fields. The extracted stock of hydro carbons exceeds 800 mln tons, ¾ of them is crude oil. 40 oil fields are under development now. There are 35 fields with the estimated gas stock. 16 of them are purely gas fields.
Oil-shales can be regarded as a raw material of the future. There are three shale regions in the republic with the stock exceeding 62 bln tons. More than 6 bln tons are estimated reserves.
There are 4.84 thousand peat bogs on the territory of the Republic of Komi with the total stock of 8.4 bln tons including the forecast resources; the tested stock is 452.9 mln tons (nearly 200 peat bogs).
As for metallic mineral deposits there are ferrous metals (titanium, manganese, chrome), non-ferrous metals (aluminum, copper, led, zink), rare metals (niobium, tantalum, tungsten, molibdenum), disperse metals (gallium, scandium), rare-earth metals (cerium, yttrium) and precious metals (mainly gold). There are sights of silver, platinum and diamonds as well.
The Republic of Komi has the largest and most prospective bauxite stock in Russia. Within the Timan Ridge there are two bauxite areas being explored: Middle Timan (68% of the stock) and South Timan (32%). Middle Timan is known for its three large lateritic bauxite fields. They constitute the Vorykva Group that contains over 30% of all- Russia bauxite stocks.
Titanium ore stocks of the Republic of Komi are the largest in Russia and the CIS. Yarega Oil and Titanium Field concentrates about 50% of all-Russia stocks. The project "A Full-Field Development of Yarega Oil and Titanium Field" is being implemented in the republic under which titanium ore extraction and processing will be combined with heavy oil extraction.
Manganese ores are the scarcest nowadays. Parnokskoye Iron and Manganese Field located in the Republic of Komi is the most promising and prepared for exploitation. It is located on the western slope of the Pre-Polar Urals. Peroxide manganese ores of a very high quality can be extracted there
There are a number of chrome ore deposits on the Pre-Polar Ural territory. They are the largest in Russia with the stock of approximately 40 mln tons.
There are developed gold placers in the Republic of Komi as well, mainly in Kozhim Ore Alluvial District. Total commercial reserves of alluvial and vein gold amount to nearly 50 tons. The inferred resources constitute over 200 tons.
The Republic of Komi is known for its non-metal minerals that can be used as mining chemical raw materials (barites, kitchen and potassium salts, phosphorites, carbonates for a chemical industry), mining technical raw materials (gyps, glass sands, zeolites, bentonites), piezo opticals and quarts (vein quarts, piezo quarts, mount crystal). There are metallurgy raw materials as well such as fireproof glues, flux dolomites, lime stone and moulding materials; jewelry and precious stones (amethysts, jades, nephrites, etc.); mineral and construction materials (lime stone, dolomites, marbles, quarzite, sands, gravel).
Barite resources are estimated to be 80-100 mln tons. Khoylinskoye barite field is the largest and best explored one with the stock of over 2 mln tons. There is no similar deposit in Russia and in the CIS. The forecast resources of barite ores amount to more than 9 mln tons.
Pre-Polar quarts stocks are the most promising in Russia. There are 5 quarts fields in the Republic of Komi. Zhelannoye field is the largest one and the only deposit being mined.
Komi halite and potash-magnesium salt stocks are quite significant. The stock of Seregovo halite field is estimated to be 2.6 bln tons. Its forecast resources amount to 5 bln tons.
Construction raw materials are represented by multiple deposits of carbonates, construction and decoration stones, construction and glass sands, clays for bricks and ceramics, cement raw materials, gypsum. There are more than 500 fields of the construction raw materials. Most of them have been developed.
There are considerable resources of fresh and mineral water in the Republic of Komi. Useful fresh groundwater resources are estimated to be over 62 mln cubic meters per 24 hours.
The Republic of Komi is also rich in industrial groundwater resources, mainly Timan-Pechora Oil and Gas Province. Underground waters of the oil fields contain brome, iodine, lithium, magnesium, strontium, etc.
WATER RESOURCES
There are two large rivers in the Republic of Komi: the Pechora River and the Vychegda River. Both the rivers originate in the republic. The length of the rivers on the republican territory is 1570 km and 920 km, respectively. The Pechora River originates in Troitsko-Pechorsk District and flows through 6 administrative regions.
The Republic of Komi is rich in lakes. There are nearly 70 lakes in the republic with the total area of 4.3 thousand square km (0.5% of the whole territory). The largest lakes are the Yamozero (31.1 square km), the Sindorskoe (28.5 square km) and the Kosminskoe (12.6 square km).
There are many bogs and swamp lands in the republic as well. Ocean Bog (1790 square km) and Usinskoe Bog (1570 square km) are the largest ones in Europe.
TIMBER RESOURCES
The Republic of Komi is one of the leading timber regions in Russia. The total forestry area is 38.9 mln hectares. 30 mln hectares are covered by forest (3.5% of all Russian forests and about 50% of the forest area of the European North of Russia). Forests and shrub vegetation occupy 78% of the republican territory. Three fourths of the forest reserves (3 bln cubic meters) can be exploited. There is a high proportion of mature and over mature forests (72.3%). The shares of coniferous and soft-wooded broadleaf species amount to 84 % and 15.9 % of the forest land, respectively.
FAUNA OF THE REPUBLIC OF KOMI
The fauna of the Republic of Komi numbers over 4400 species. There are over 3 thousand species of insects and 315 species of terrestrial vertebral animals (5 species of amphibians, 247 species of birds and 58 species of mammals).
In the southern part of the republic such rare mammals as polecats, badgers and brown hares can be found. As for the birds, there can be found ospreys, peregrines and golden eagles. Such rare species of fish as the Arctic grayling, Siberian white salmon and taimen habitat the republican rivers and lakes.
Elks, reindeer, bears, beavers, otters, sables, squirrels, martens, foxes, ermines, minks, lynxes, gluttons, mountain hares and muskrats are of great worth from the economic point of view.
There are 47 fish species in the Republic of Komi. 15-17 species of the most valuable and spread fish are commercial ones. Among valuable fish species there is the Pechora salmon, Arctic and common grayling, sterlet and Siberian white salmon. A commercial production of valuable migratory fish species such as salmon and whitefish takes place in the Republic of Komi. Fishermen usually catch ordinary fish (ides, pikes, perches, roaches, burbots, breams, etc).
