Panagyurishte Region Ore – Mining
Ore Mining in the Region of Panagyurishte
The ore region of Panagyurishte covers the southern slopes of the Sashtinska Sredna Gora Mountain and occupies an area of 600 square meters. The Assarel-Medet ore field where the biggest reserves in Bulgaria of copper and copper-pyrite ores are concentrated is a part of it.
The region of Panagyurishte was included in the geological studies in 1900-1907. In 1922 studies were carried out along the valley of Elshishka river in the Gradishteto site and the famous whitesmith Ivan Dimitrov Trenchev from the village of Banya found the deposit in the Strazhite site.
During the 30s of the 20th century ore-seekers set off to the Srednogorie mountain massif to the north of Panagyurishte. On July 7, 1931 by the virtue of a letter sent by the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Labor, the ore deposit interests along with all associated rights and obligations possessed by Ivan Trenchev were transferred to Nikola Petrov Bakardjiev from the town of Panagyurishte.
The region of Panagyurishte as subject to geological studies was established on January 1, 1954
The first studied deposits were Elshitza and Radka.
By the middle of the 50s of the 20th century only a few pyrite and copper mineralization areas were known in the region of the village of Panagyurski Kolonii and they were underestimated as deposits of industrial significance. Their first evaluation was made by Anton Ushev, Stoyka Chipanova and Krum Angelakov who justified the necessity for geological study activities in the region of the Medet river in 1995.
The detailed study of the Medet deposit was carried out during the period 1956-1962 and the Medet Mining and Processing Complex was created (1964-1994) being the largest open pit copper mine in Europe and the third largest in the world. In the late 1968 the Assarel copper deposit was discovered and it was studied by 1976. The Assarel-Medet Technological Mining and Processing Complex was created in 1986 on the basis of Medet Mining and Processing Complex and the Assarel Mining and Processing Complex (December 6, 1989) being the largest Bulgarian company for open pit copper ore mining and processing at that time.
History of Ore-mining in Panagyurishte District
Copper Ore Deposit of "Assarel"