THE BUKHOVO URANIUM MINES

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP82-00457R009200380007-6
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: November 9, 2016
• Document Release Date: March 29, 1999
• Sequence Number: 7
• Publication Date: November 9, 1951
• Content Type: REPORT

pp oved For Release 19- P82-00457R00920038g~71
d ON c FFICI 13 CPdi i
EPORT NO.
IMENfRAL EEC'E REPORT'
00 NOT GL I .. . FOR ATI REPORT CD NO.
COUNTRY Bulgaria
COUNT
SUBJECT The Bukhovo Uranium Mines
PLACE
ACQUIRE
DATE OF
INFO.
mine shafts. In approximately July 1949, following the completion of 29 r:hafts,
the mines were put into operation.
DATE DISTR.,
9 'f ovh 1951
NO. OF PAGES
2
NO. OF ENCLS.
(LISTED BELOW)
SUPPLEMENT TO
REPORT NO.
1. Engineers selected the area to be mined by means of a special instrument. Sl
sequently, holes 200 to 300 meters deep were drilled and enlarged to form the
2. In the Bukhovo area uranium ore is being mined in the following three districts:
a. Borchevo District 22 pits;
b, Seslavtsi District : 29 pits; and
c. Kremikovtsi District : Unknown number of newly opened pits,
3. The mine shafts are dug to a depth of from 200 to 1,000 meters, and galleries
15 to 20 meters long are extended to the right and left. The mines work on
three 8 hour shifts. The pits are narrow and can accormodate only four workers
at one time. Two men extract the ore and two more load the ore on hard a,-arts
and dump it on stockpiles within the mine area.
4. Ore extracted from these pits resembles lignite coal except for its grey Color
and the fact that it is heavier than coal. Only that ore which contains white
spots is of value, and the reriainder is thrown away. }3y means.. of an instrument
called a compass, Soviet engineers separate the ore into three catapories,, This
instrument has a face and a hand like a clock, and is operated by I snrinc
mechanism. The instrument is wound and left on a pile of raw ore. After
making several revolutions, the hand indicates the percenta?-o of uranium in the
ore. Ore of the first category is indicated when the hand points to 13 or 14;
of the second category when the hand registers 9 to 13; and of the third cate-
gory when numbers below 9 are registered. Ore of the first and second categories
is taken directly to the railroad stc=tion at Yana without being; refined. and is
packed in paper sacks tied with hemp and sealed. with wax. The ore is thew"',
transported directly to the Soviet Union. Informant learned from. a friend that
third category ore is sent to the refinery in BWhovo where the impurities are
ONFIDENTI
CLASSIFICATION S 'r/CO JTitOL - U. a. A%M&Il3 MI:LY
STATE
(ARMY
a l--
Ctass. CI; r..,~ d Tc: TS S
Date:
Approved For Release 1999/09/09 : CIA-RDP
 -`` Approved For Release 1999/09/09 : CIA-RDP82-00457R009200380007-6
CONFIDENTIAL
'T/CONTROI, - U.S. OFFICIALS ONLY
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
25X1A
separated. The ore is crushed, placed in boilers, and a nitric acid solution
poured over it,
5. A Trudovak battalion is employed in these mines, one company being assigned
to each of the three sections. Each company numbers 250 to 300 workers. Each
Trudovak working in the pits is required to extract four small hand carts of
ore per eight hour shift. There are two sizes of hand carts. One holds 4/5
of a cubic meter (1,500 to 1,700 pounds), and the other 1 2/5 cubic meters
(3,000 to 3,300 pounds). If he fails to attain his quota, he must continue
working on the next shift and cannot have any food until he does attain his
quota. In each pit, 12 men work an average of 14 hours. There is a total
number of 600 to 700 men working in all the pits, and 2,500 to 2,600 small
cart loads of ore are produced daily, i.e., approximately 2,000 tons of ore.
Regul':rly, two trains, each having 35 to 40 freight cars loaded with ore, leave
the Yana railroad station; the first train leaves at 1600 hours and the second
at 0430.2
6. In the outskirts of Bukhovo, 3 kilometers from the Yana railroad station and
250 to 300 meters from the processing plant, there is a four-story concrete
building in which approximately 400 Soviet men and women are quartered. All
the engineers and officials working in the mines are Soviet nationals.
7. Security in the mine area is enforced by 120 uniformed Bulgarian 11i.litiamen,
comrianded by a captain. Any stranger entering this area is arrested. Not
even the residents of Bukhovo can approach. The entrance gate to the mine
area is surveilled by Soviet guards. No one is allowed to enter this area
'without first obtaining a permit. Observation posts manned by Militia are
located around the wine area, and anyone attempting to enter this area illegally
is shot.
25X1A
2. Possibly informant means that the trains depart daily.
25X1A
It is not clear whether this compass is used to grade ore
which has already been extracted or whether it is used prior to the ex-
traction,or both. Informant stated at another point that when the grade
has been determined by the compass, approximately 9 holes are drilled to
a depth of approximately one and one half meters at marked daces, and
dynamite is used to extract the ore.
P1
OL-U.S. OFF
Approved For Release 1999/09/09 : CIA-RDP82-00457R009200380007-6