Category: Russian Energy sector

Translation. Region: Russian Federation –

Source: Phosagro – Phosagro – An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

Kirovsk (Murmansk Region). December 12, 2025. The first apatite-nepheline ore was mined at the new Rasvumchorr Plateau underground mine of JSC Apatit's Kirovsk branch (PhosAgro Group). The first stage of commissioning at the new Rasvumchorr Plateau underground mine was completed at the Kirovsk branch of JSC Apatit. The first apatite-nepheline ore was mined there in early December.

The decision to build a new mine was made in 2016. Its purpose is to develop underground reserves from the Central Mine, where Apatit miners have extracted over 720 million tons of apatite-nepheline ore in harsh climatic conditions using open-pit mining since 1964.

The full range of design and survey work for the construction of the Rasvumchorr Plateau mine was carried out by the Ya.V. Samoilov Research Institute for Fertilizers and Insectofungicides (PhosAgro Group), the only research institute in Russia specializing in research into phosphate processing technologies and the production of phosphoric and sulfuric acids, phosphorus- and nitrogen-containing mineral fertilizers, and the design of chemical, mining, and beneficiation facilities.

Mining operations commenced in 2018. To date, capital mining operations have been completed to construct opening, transport, and ventilation workings at the 430-meter level, covering a total length of approximately 20 km and a volume of excavation exceeding 450,000 cubic meters. The level is fully equipped with utilities, including communication lines, positioning systems, fire-fighting and sprinkler pipelines, high-voltage and low-voltage power lines, and lighting.

"The Rasvumchorr Plateau mine is scheduled to produce 150,000 tons of ore this year. Next year, we'll increase this figure by more than 2.5 times, planning to extract 390,000 tons of ore. The new mine will reach its design capacity of 6 million tons in 2034," says Viktor Melnik, Director of the Mining Department at the Kirov branch of Apatit JSC.

Development work at the Rasvumchorr Plateau mine is currently ongoing. Specifically, shaft development is underway to open the 310-meter horizon. Further work is planned to construct crushing and haulage complex No. 6, with its commissioning scheduled for 2029. Locomotive haulage is scheduled to begin in 2031, and mining of the 310-meter horizon is expected to begin.

PhosAgro's total investment in the mine's construction and equipment will exceed 38 billion rubles.

"Developing the ore and raw material base of the Apatit Mining and Processing Plant is a key focus of PhosAgro's investment policy. We annually utilize up to a third of the company's investment budget, and the results of this work are annually reflected in our production results. This year, we have already set records for daily and monthly shipments of finished products, and by the end of the year, we plan to produce the largest volume of apatite concentrate since the post-Soviet era," emphasized Andrey Abrashitov, Director of the Kirov branch of Apatit JSC.

Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source. It represents an accurate account of the source's assertions and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

Translation. Region: Russian Federation –

Source: Phosagro – Phosagro – An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

Moscow. December 11, 2025. PhosAgro entered the top group of the "Corporate Philanthropy Leaders – 2025" rating, ranking companies with the most effective social programs. The "Corporate Philanthropy Leaders" project includes a rating of companies' social and charitable activities and a competition for corporate programs in specific categories. It has been implemented since 2006 by the Donors Forum association and its partners, including the Ministry of Economic Development, the Accounts Chamber of the Russian Federation, the Presidential Grants Fund, and the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs. The project's goal is to support, develop, and promote corporate philanthropy and social investment.

"The project has been running for 20 years and has become somewhat of a tradition. I know that participation is truly important for many companies as a sign of the quality of their social investment activities. We are very proud of our partners, who allow us to objectively assess the state of corporate philanthropy in a particular topic (in the nomination competition) and overall (in the company performance rankings). The competition nominations always reflect what we want to highlight and see relevant examples and interesting practices," noted Alexandra Boldyreva, Executive Director of the Association of Grant-Giving Organizations "Donors Forum."

In 2025, 78 companies participated in the "Corporate Philanthropy Leaders" project. A distinguished jury analyzed the businesses' approaches to social and charitable activities, their organizational aspects, and stakeholder engagement. The experts also examined the methods companies use to evaluate the effectiveness of social programs and identify ways to improve their efficiency.

The "A Leaders" group included 17 Russian companies that demonstrated the highest effectiveness of their charitable activities, including PhosAgro, Biocad, Kept, FESCO Transportation Group, AFK Sistema, Gazprom Neft, Metalloinvest, Norilsk Nickel, Protek Group, Rosatom, VTB Bank, and others. The scores earned by the leading companies for each assessed aspect amounted to at least 75% of the maximum. The corporate social programs competition determined winners in ten categories.

PhosAgro's "Promoting Improved Quality and Accessibility of Medical Care in the Murmansk Region" program won the "Best Program (Project) Implemented with the Support of Government Institutions" category. With its support, the company significantly upgraded the facilities of the Apatity-Kirov Central District Hospital. Today, it is a large medical complex, comprising two children's and two adult clinics, two women's clinics, a dental clinic, an emergency and urgent care department, paramedic and obstetric stations in the villages of Koashva and Titan, day hospitals, and numerous auxiliary units and services. Highly qualified specialists provide diagnosis and treatment here. More than 1,300 employees work across all departments of the clinic. PhosAgro funds the purchase of state-of-the-art medical equipment and allocates additional funds to attract medical personnel to the Arctic cities of Kirovsk and Apatity.

Apatit JSC (part of the PhosAgro Group) was also awarded a special diploma in the category "Best Corporate Social Investment Program in Territories in the Context of Sustainable Development and Business Strategy" for creating modern urban and tourist infrastructure in the Far North.

PhosAgro CEO Alexander Gilgenberg thanked the expert jury of the "Corporate Philanthropy Leaders – 2025" rating for their thorough and comprehensive analysis of the company's social and charitable activities.

"Caring for our workforce and all residents of the regions where we operate has been a strategic and consistent priority for PhosAgro since its inception. Over the past three years alone, the company has invested a total of 40 billion rubles in supporting our social and charitable projects, including creating a comfortable urban environment in the regions. To this end, we make anchor investments that serve as a launchpad for small businesses and the service sector. The best example is the development of the Khibiny mountain tourism cluster in the Arctic city of Kirovsk. This is one of the key projects in the comprehensive socioeconomic partnership between the company and the Government of the Murmansk Region, in which we have already invested 25 billion rubles.

"The high praise for this work by the Donor Forum experts is a reputable endorsement of the company's direction, effectiveness, and relevance of its social projects supporting education, healthcare, sports, and the creation of a comfortable urban environment," noted Alexander Gilgenberg.

Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source. It represents an accurate account of the source's assertions and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

Translation. Region: Russian Federation –

Source: Phosagro – Phosagro – An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

Moscow. December 11, 2025. Sergey Krivovichev, Director General of the Kola Science Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences (KSC RAS), was awarded the Sber Scientific Prize in the Physical World category.

The awards ceremony was held in Moscow. It was attended by Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Dmitry Chernyshenko, Minister of Healthcare of the Russian Federation Mikhail Murashko, Minister of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation Valery Falkov, President and Chairman of the Executive Board of Sberbank Herman Gref, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences and Rector of the Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology Alexander Kuleshov, and others.

In 2025, the Sber Science Prize received 290 applications—almost triple the number from the previous year. The majority of the works—214—were in three main categories: "Physical World," "Life Sciences," and "Digital Universe." The "AI in Science" category for young scientists received 76 applications. Most of the applications came from Moscow, St. Petersburg, Novosibirsk, Nizhny Novgorod, Samara, Tomsk, and Kazan.

The 2025 prize fund exceeded 100 million rubles. Each laureate in the main categories received 30 million rubles. Young scientists using artificial intelligence in their research received 5 million rubles in the "AI in Science" category, as well as 1 million rubles for cloud computing for their future work.

"Our scientific award is a way to say thank you to people who have dedicated themselves to science. It's a way to inspire the many young scientists who have embarked on this important path. I know of no more meaningful work than that of a scientist. Science is a very complex endeavor. It requires remarkable talent, but most importantly, perseverance. You have to try 99 times and not give up, so that the hundredth attempt succeeds. Our award is a way to support these people in this hard work and show that we believe in them," emphasized Herman Gref, President and Chairman of the Executive Board of Sberbank.

For the development of fundamentally new approaches in Earth sciences, including the theory of anion-centered complexes and methods of information-entropy analysis for understanding mineral-forming processes and creating new mineral-like materials, Professor Sergei Krivovichev, Director General of the Federal Research Center Kola Science Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences and Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, was recognized as the best in the Physical World category.

These studies address both fundamental questions of mineralogy—such as the relationship between the composition, crystal structure, and properties of minerals—and applied problems related to the creation of new mineral-like materials. The use of information theory has provided new insights into the mechanisms governing the formation and transformation of minerals throughout Earth's history, the diversity of mineral species, and their chemical and structural complexity.

The award was presented to the head of the Kola Science Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences by the Minister of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation, Valery Falkov.

"First of all, I would like to thank the Sber team and German Oskarovich for such a wonderful gift to Russian scientists. I would also like to thank the members of the scientific award committee for choosing me as this year's laureate in the Physical World category. This underscores the importance of mineralogy and geochemistry for our country," noted Sergey Krivovichev, accepting the award. "The Kola Peninsula is an amazing place, home to numerous rich mineral deposits and a number of outstanding mining companies, with whom we have very strong ties. But I would especially like to single out and thank PhosAgro, our center's main industrial partner, with whom we are implementing a number of very important scientific, industrial, and educational projects."

The creation of a Research Center for the detailed study of the material composition of mineral raw materials and further improvement of the efficiency of apatite-nepheline ore processing at the Kola Science Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences, funded by PhosAgro, significantly expanded research capabilities in the field of technological mineralogy. Opened in the Akademgorodok of the Kola Science Center in March 2024, the company invested over 500 million rubles in its construction and equipment.

The development of the Kola Science Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences, which celebrated its 95th anniversary this year, has historically been closely linked to the Apatit Mining and Processing Plant. The company, now part of the PhosAgro Group, traditionally utilizes cutting-edge developments from KSC researchers. For example, in recent years, scientists from the KSC Mining Institute have developed a unique seismicity monitoring and rock burst warning system, the SIGMA GT, for Apatit. They are also working on the design of Apatit's mine workings, optimizing quarry walls, and solving surveying problems related to ensuring the most complete extraction of minerals from the ore body. A significant portion of their work is related to beneficiation—KSC scientists are constantly testing new flotation reagents. Environmental issues are also a significant focus of the joint work between KSC scientists and Apatit specialists.

"On behalf of PhosAgro, I congratulate Sergey Vladimirovich on this well-deserved award. This is a prestigious recognition of the contributions of the team at the Kola Science Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences to the development of mining, geology, and geochemistry—critical scientific disciplines that underpin the development of the domestic chemical industry. We are proud that our joint projects are a significant part of this extensive and important work, and we are confident that it will continue," noted Alexander Gilgenberg, CEO of PhosAgro.

Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source. It represents an accurate account of the source's assertions and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.