The relevance of the study is caused by the need to improve the technology of drilling exploration wells in conditions of natural curvature of their trunks, which will significantly reduce the irrational material and energy costs of drilling wells, optimize the technical and economic indicators of drilling operations, as well as improve the quality of core testing of workings. Objective: to increase the efficiency of geological exploration in difficult mining and geological conditions. Objects: drilling well, core set, stabilizing layout, drill string, borehole curvature, borehole trajectory. Methods: analysis of literature sources on the research topic, data processing of production organizations, graphoanalytic method. Results. The main requirements for stabilizing core arrangements of the lower part of the drill string, which are the main criterion for the selection and calculation of optimal parameters of core sets, are formulated and justified. The main requirements for the stabilizing column layout are the following: the length of the column layout should not exceed a critical value in order to avoid the formation of a spiral shape of its elastic equilibrium when working in the wellbore; the rigidity of the column layout should be the maximum possible for these drilling conditions; the angle of deviation of the axis of the column layout from the axis of the wellbore should be minimized in order to reduce the deflection boom; the force of pressing the rock-crushing tool to the well wall should be minimized; the most optimal type of movement of the core set is rotation around the axis of the borehole with continuous contact of the crest of the half-wave with the wall of the well during the entire drilling time of rock contact. These requirements are the main criterion for the selection and calculation of optimal parameters of column sets. Conclusions. The proposed criterion for the selection and calculation of optimal parameters of stabilizing column layouts makes it possible to correlate with each other through their geometric dimensions, as well as the design parameters of the drill shaft, all the main factors influencing the intensity of curvature of boreholes drilled in anisotropic rocks.