In 2004 132 licenses for deposits exploitation were issued in Irkutsk region and 144 licensees were cancelled. On January 1, 2005, 875 licenses are in force including 388 for precious metals mining.

In 2004 the right to explore and exploit was licensed fro 55 gold deposits in Irkutsk region. Now over 200 mining companies are working in the region, the largest being Lena Gold.