Central Asia's tungsten reserves draw US, China, South Korea, EU interest

September 12, 2026 at 12:00 PM2 min

This digest was compiled by AI from multiple sources — links to the originals are below.

Central Asia holds an estimated 28.52% of global tungsten reserves, according to Chinese researchers. The region's deposits are attracting interest from the United States, China, South Korea, and the European Union amid rising demand and export restrictions from China, the dominant producer.

Key Facts

Chinese researchers Qiu Wang and Yonghao Wang estimate Central Asia holds 28.52% of global tungsten reserves, published in the Chinese Journal of International Review.
The USGS estimates global tungsten reserves at over 4.7 million tonnes, with China holding 2.5 million tonnes, Australia 570,000 tonnes, and Russia 400,000 tonnes.
In 2025, China accounted for nearly 79% of global tungsten mine production, extracting 67,000 of 85,000 tonnes, according to USGS.
The price of 65% tungsten concentrate rose from $266 to $551 per 10 kg of contained tungsten trioxide (WO₃) in 2025, while ammonium paratungstate (APT) rose from $331 to $675 per 10 kg WO₃.
On August 12, 2026, the first Tajik-Korean critical minerals forum was held in Seoul, discussing joint exploration, development, investment, and supply chain creation.

Reserve Estimates

The 28.52% figure for Central Asia's share of global tungsten reserves comes from Chinese researchers Qiu Wang and Yonghao Wang, published in the Chinese Journal of International Review. The same researchers note the region also holds significant shares of global manganese, chromium, lead, antimony, and uranium reserves. The USGS estimates global tungsten reserves at more than 4.7 million tonnes, with China at 2.5 million tonnes, Australia at 570,000 tonnes, and Russia at 400,000 tonnes. Kazakhstan's reserves are not listed in the USGS table, but the OECD reports 2 million tonnes for Kazakhstan, 123,160 tonnes for Kyrgyzstan, and 2,600 tonnes for Uzbekistan. Kazakhstan's Geology Committee estimates the country's mineral resource base at 2.4 million tonnes of tungsten.

Market Dynamics

The global tungsten market is heavily dependent on China, which accounted for nearly 79% of world mine production in 2025, extracting 67,000 of 85,000 tonnes. In February 2025, Beijing restricted exports of some tungsten products, triggering rapid price increases. Tungsten is used in high-strength alloys, cutting tools, electronics, aviation, and defense industries, with few substitutes in many applications, according to USGS. In 2025, the price of 65% tungsten concentrate rose from $266 to $551 per 10 kg of contained WO₃, while APT rose from $331 to $675 per 10 kg WO₃. On August 13, 2026, the European APT price reached $2,900–3,275 per 10 kg WO₃, more than triple the level at the start of the year, according to China Tungsten Industry News Center.

Tajik-Korean Cooperation

On August 12, 2026, the first Tajik-Korean critical minerals forum was held in Seoul. The forum covered joint geological exploration, deposit development, investment, project financing, and supply chain creation. A separate session focused on creating a Korean-Tajik tungsten supply chain. South Korea's GB Innovation, together with TALCO, is developing the Maykhura deposit, which contains about 1.92 million tonnes of ore with an average tungsten content of around 0.95%. The project plans to produce about 1,400 tonnes of tungsten concentrate per year.