Iletsksol Subdivision

About us

Russol is the largest salt compan in Russia and the CIS countries. We believe that the only way to create the best is to do the job perfectly.

 Iletsksol Subdivision

Explored reserves of over
560 million tons of salt
Production of up to
1,7 million tons of salt per year
530 Employees
 Iletsksol Subdivision

Nature has generously endowed Orenburg region with precious gifts. One of them is countless deposits of the purest rock salt near the city of Sol-Iletsk.

Deposit Features

The Iletsk salt deposit is a salt dome with a salt core brought to the surface. In the horizontal, the salt body has a shape close to an ellipse. Its dimensions according to geological exploration work are 1850 m along the long axis at 160 m horizon, 825 m along the short one; at 215 m horizon, the dimensions are 1920 m along the long axis, and 840 m along the short one. Up to a depth of 600 m, the dimensions of the main deposit increase to 2150 m x 880 m.

Contact us

1/1 South Street, 461504 Sol-Iletsk, Orenburg Region

+7 (35336) 3-69-00

info@russalt.ru

Today the salt mines at the Iletsk salt mine resemble a veritable underground town. One of the mine’s employees, the sinker Mikhail Drozdov, mastered the art of creating salt figures and created a chapel in one of the mines dedicated to St Barbara, the miners’ patron saint. In January 2014, the chapel was consecrated and several icons were donated to the chapel by priests.

Method of Salt Extraction and Processing

The Iletsk rock salt deposit is mined underground. According to mining and geological conditions, mining of rock salt reserves is carried out by a chamber mining system at a depth of about 300 m from the surface. The chambers are worked out in layers with the help of tunneling combines that beat off salt. Delivery of salt to saline wells within the cleaning chamber is carried out by self-propelled cars, then the broken salt is transported to the shaft through the system of main conveyors.

The spent chambers are voids thirty meters high, up to 30 m wide and up to 450 m long, on the sides of which the combine cuts a pattern with a beautiful convex pattern. The issuance of salt from the mine is carried out along a vertical mine shaft, which is equipped with two vessels (skips) with a volume of 7 m3. Further, the extracted salt is transported by conveyor transport to the factory for further processing.

Iletsk salt does not require additional purification. Its processing consists in crushing on special roller machines and sorting by screening to separate the raw materials into fractions. Screens also perform the function of dedusting salt, which provides additional protection of the product from caking during storage.

In the spring of 2007, on the territory of the Iletsk deposit, Russalt launched a new, unparalleled plant for the processing of rock salt with full automation of the technological process. Most of the factory equipment is custom-made at the leading factories of the country and the world.

History

The first news about Iletsk salt dates back to the reign of Ivan the Terrible, when they compiled the famous map of the Russian state “The Big Drawing”. It is also mentioned in the First Complete Collection of Russian Laws (1723).

But the scientific study of Iletsk salt was first conducted by M.V. Lomonosov, he wrote: “Iletsk natural salt is harder than all other salts and, when crushed, it gets a very white color and does not absorb moisture from the air. For such properties it is necessary to prefer this salt to other salts”.

Until 1889, the Iletsk rock salt deposit was mined in an open pit, manually. The labor of settlers, working people and convicts was widely used. The work in the field was very hard. The convicts broke salt blocks with picks and “leopards” – logs with ironed ends. Salt was dragged in tubs, stretchers, transported on wheelbarrows. The convicts knew well the real price of salt. They came here shackled, their hands and feet were corroded. There was no properly organized fishing at that time.

From 1889 to 1926, salt was mined underground in the “Old Chamber” at a depth of 140 m from the surface of the earth. During this time, 60 million pounds (or 960 thousand tons of salt) were mined.

From 1924, the excavation of the reserves of Mine No. 1 was carried out until its flooding in 1979. During its operation, 12 million tons of salt were mined.

In 1939, an engineering section was established at the salt mine.

Since 1964, along with the developed mine No. 1, the extraction of reserves of mine No. 2 began at a depth of 280 m. Already in a year of operation, the mine produced 235 thousand tons of salt, and in 1970 its productivity reached 600 thousand tons.

Since 2004, Russalt has begun work on the extraction of salt at a depth of about 300 m.

Salt Characteristics and Composition

Iletsk salt is a natural crystalline mineral of the early stage of drying up of ancient seas. That is why it does not require enrichment. In addition, the salt mined in the Iletsk mine is also rich in the beneficial mineral selenium, a powerful antioxidant.

Iletsk salt itself is of ancient origin. A very long time ago, there was a huge Perm Sea on the territory of the Orenburg Region, which dried up after many millennia. As a result, a very valuable and useful product “Iletsk Salt” was obtained, consisting of environmentally friendly crystalline minerals over 270 million years old. Salt contains biologically active macro- and microelements in a balanced ratio. Russalt even has a product in the line with the same name – “Sea salt”.

Production

Every year, up to 1.7 million tons of edible and technical salt is mined and produced here, which is used in all industries in 80 regions of Russia, as well as in the CIS countries and far abroad.

Iletsk salt is the best in the world

The high quality of the Iletsk salt was repeatedly awarded with medals at industrial exhibitions: at the Paris World in 1867, the All-Russian in 1882, the Siberian-Urals in 1887, the Kazan in 1890, the Nizhny Novgorod in 1896. Thus, the Iletsk salt has earned universal recognition in Russia and abroad border as the best salt in the world.

And later, in 1996, Iletsk salt was awarded the tenth European gold prize for quality by the Club of Professional Managers from 112 countries of the world in Paris.

Range

The company produces top grade edible ground salt of the top grade. The line also includes iodized salt, edible ground sea salt (Sea salt), mineral concentrate – halite, briquetted salt for animal husbandry, etc.

Deposit Reserves

The deposit is currently being developed by Mine 2, which currently has a production capacity of up to 1.7 million tonnes per year.

Explored reserves exceed 560 million tonnes of salt.

The first achievements in the extraction of salt