Kazakhstan-South Korea ties deepen through critical minerals and technology

Its timing may be particularly valuable. South Korea is still building some of the rare earth separation capabilities it needs, giving Kazakhstan an opportunity to enter the emerging production chain as a development partner rather than joining later as a supplier of raw materials.

The proposal was announced at the first Central Asia-Republic of Korea Summit in Seoul on September 16, following Tokayev’s talks with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung. The two countries elevated their relations to a future-oriented comprehensive strategic partnership, with economic security, advanced industries, science and technology among its priorities.

Tokayev called for bilateral trade to double and shift toward higher-value goods. Around 80 commercial agreements worth approximately $19 billion were signed during the visit, including a memorandum between Kazakhstan’s national mining company Tau-Ken Samruk and POSCO Holdings.

The memorandum covers cooperation on technologies for processing, separating and refining rare earth materials, as well as producing higher-value goods. Tokayev placed it within a broader objective: creating a full production cycle for critical materials, extending from research and extraction to deep processing.

He also welcomed plans for a joint rare and rare earth metals center in Almaty with the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology and proposed a Comprehensive Program for Trade, Economic and Investment Cooperation for 2027-2030.

Taken together, these initiatives indicate that Kazakhstan is seeking more than another foreign-funded extraction project. The emerging model would connect the country’s resources with Korean research, technology, industrial management and manufacturing demand.

Why the joint company matters

Kazakhstan’s traditional advantage in minerals lies in its resource base. Yet the largest share of value is not necessarily created where minerals are extracted.

Rare earth materials must pass through several stages before they can be used in advanced manufacturing. Separation divides mixed concentrates into individual elements such as neodymium and dysprosium. These are then processed into materials used in permanent magnets for electric motors, electronics and other advanced products.

Moving into these stages can generate higher-value exports, skilled employment and technical expertise. It can also give Kazakhstan a more durable position in international supply chains than the export of unprocessed resources alone.

Tokayev’s proposed joint company reflects this logic. A joint structure could bring research, processing and commercialization into a single partnership, giving Kazakhstan a direct institutional role in decisions about investment, technology and production.

That approach is especially relevant because the global rare earth industry remains highly concentrated. China accounted for approximately 91% of global separation and refining output for magnet rare earths in 2024, according to the International Energy Agency. Industrial-scale refining capacity elsewhere remains limited, while China also restricts exports of certain rare earth processing technologies.

South Korea has strong demand for these materials through its automotive, electronics, battery and advanced manufacturing industries. It is now working to develop more processing capability of its own.

Kazakhstan is entering that effort while it is still taking shape.

Joining at the development stage

In May 2026, the Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources, or KIGAM, presented a five-year program known as K-Plant. It aims to develop Korean processes and equipment for separating and refining neodymium, praseodymium and dysprosium.

Process design is targeted for 2030, with Korea Zinc and POSCO Holdings identified as commercialization partners. POSCO Holdings is therefore participating both in South Korea’s domestic technology program and in the new rare earth cooperation with Tau-Ken Samruk.

No official announcement directly links the Kazakhstan memorandum to K-Plant. The two initiatives nevertheless form part of the same strategic context: South Korea is assembling the technology, industrial partnerships and sources of raw materials needed for a more independent rare earth supply chain.

Kazakhstan could have joined such a system after its technology and commercial structure had already been established. Instead, the agreements place it in the relationship while South Korea is still developing that system.

Early participation can create a broader role. Kazakhstan can contribute mineral resources, materials for testing, sites for scaling production and engineers for joint technical work. In return, cooperation could extend beyond access to finished equipment and include participation in research, adaptation and industrial operation.

This makes South Korea’s current stage of development a potential advantage for Kazakhstan. The two countries have complementary needs, but neither side alone provides the entire production chain. South Korea needs reliable resources and places where new processes can be applied at scale. Kazakhstan seeks technology, manufacturing connections and greater value from its mineral base.

The relationship therefore has the potential to develop through co-creation rather than a conventional exchange between a raw-material supplier and a technology vendor.

Building a technological network

South Korea’s rare earth strategy also shows how such capability can be assembled through a network of companies and research institutions.

In May 2026, POSCO International joined U.S.-based ReElement Technologies in a $200 million rare earth project in the United States. POSCO International holds operational control, while ReElement contributes the central separation and purification technology.

The project does not indicate which process might eventually be used in Kazakhstan. It illustrates how a Korean industrial group can organize production by combining its own operational capacity with specialist technology from a partner.

A Kazakh project could similarly bring together several participants while keeping Tau-Ken Samruk and POSCO at its center. Research institutes, technology developers, equipment suppliers and eventual buyers could contribute different parts of the production chain.

Institutional links created during the Seoul visit provide a foundation for that model. Alongside the POSCO memorandum, KIGAM signed a framework agreement with Tau-Ken Samruk on lithium research. The planned Almaty center could support joint technical work, specialist training and the adaptation of processing methods to Kazakhstan’s mineral resources.

At the launch of K-Plant, KIGAM said it planned to obtain raw materials from Malaysia and the Philippines. Kazakhstan, which Tokayev says possesses all 10 minerals South Korea classifies as strategic, can offer an additional resource base and a possible location for industrial development.

For South Korea, cooperation with Kazakhstan could support diversification and connect new processing capacity with long-term mineral supplies. For Kazakhstan, the same partnership could create a route into the technological and manufacturing stages of the industry.

Turning participation into capability

The remaining question concerns the depth of Kazakhstan’s participation.

Technology can enter a joint project through research, licensing, specialist partners, equipment purchases or processes developed within the venture itself. These arrangements determine who can operate the technology, adapt it to new materials and use the resulting expertise in future projects.

The published details of the Tau-Ken Samruk - POSCO memorandum do not specify those terms. Their eventual design will determine whether Kazakhstan primarily hosts production or develops technical capability of its own.

Tokayev’s proposed joint company could give Kazakhstan a stronger position in defining responsibilities and ownership. Participation in the company would provide a formal basis for Kazakh institutions and specialists to become involved in the development and operation of the production chain.

The proposed Almaty center could reinforce that role if its research and training are tied directly to industrial work. Testing Kazakh materials, adapting processes and involving local engineers in pilot projects would allow expertise to accumulate inside the country before commercial production begins.

This would make Kazakhstan more than a destination for imported technology. It would allow the country to develop alongside South Korea’s processing industry and gain experience that could be applied to future projects.

Kazakhstan’s relationships with other partners add to this position. Tau-Ken Samruk has cooperated with the United States on assessing rare metal resources, while North American company REalloys announced non-binding offtake agreements with AltynGroup Kazakhstan in February 2026. Interest from several directions gives Kazakhstan opportunities to connect its resources with more than one emerging supply chain.

From mineral potential to industrial partnership

The proposal for a joint Kazakh-Korean company gives the Seoul agreements a wider strategic meaning. It suggests that Kazakhstan’s critical minerals policy is moving toward institutional participation in processing, technology and commercialization.

South Korea is an especially relevant partner for this approach. It combines strong industrial demand with an active effort to build rare earth processing capacity outside the existing dominant supply chain. Because that effort is still developing, Kazakhstan has an opportunity to join before its structure and relationships become fixed.

The approximately $19 billion in agreements signed in Seoul shows the scale of the bilateral commercial agenda. The longer - term measure of success will be the industrial position Kazakhstan establishes within it.

If joint research, technical training and investment lead to domestic processing capacity, Kazakhstan could take part in building the emerging rare earth supply chain rather than entering it only after the technology has been completed elsewhere.

Tokayev’s joint company proposal is therefore more than an individual investment initiative. It represents an attempt to turn Kazakhstan’s mineral resources into a basis for technological partnership - and to secure the country a role in shaping the industry at the stage of its formation.

Earlier, Qazinform reported that Kazakhstan’s Minister of Industry and Construction, Yersaiyn Nagaspayev, visited Tianjin, China, where he attended the Ministerial Forum on International Mining Cooperation and the 28th China Mining Conference and Exhibition.