The Erdenet copper-molybdenum mine, commissioned in the 1970s, is Mongolia’s largest enterprise and a key pillar of its economy. It ranks among the world’s top ten copper mines, with an annual output of approximately 400,000 tons of copper concentrate and around 4,000 tons of molybdenum concentrate. In addition, Mongolia also owns the Oyu Tolgoi copper mine and the Tsagaan Suvarga copper mine. Among these, the Oyu Tolgoi copper mine is located about 80 kilometers from the Chinese border, with estimated copper reserves of 20.9 million tons and gold reserves of 740 tons. Mongolia’s proven coal reserves amount to 4.6 billion tons, with total reserves estimated at 27 billion tons; however, the current annual production from the 17 coal mines being exploited totals only 5 million tons. Proven oil reserves are less than 10 million tons, primarily concentrated in the provinces bordering China—namely Eastern Province, East Gobi, South Gobi, Bayanhongor, Gobi Altai, Khovd, and Khentii. Iron ore deposits are mainly located in three mining areas in the Darkhan region and Selenge Province: Tumurtolgoi, Tumurte, and Bayangol, as well as in four mining areas in the Bajin Dundur region: Eren, Huhger, Duluuren, and Bajigenglet, with total reserves estimated at about 730 million tons.

2. Australia – Western Australia

Key minerals: diamonds, bauxite, iron ore, gold, nickel, cobalt, and more.
Policy Stability: ★★★★★
Investment cost: ★★★★★
Possibility of Zhejiang business participation: ☆☆☆☆☆
Safety factor: ★★★★★

Western Australia is one of the world’s regions with enormous mineral resource potential, earning it the nickname “the Mineral State.” The first minerals discovered in the region during the 1890s were gold, and gold mining continues to this day. Iron ore reserves account for 90% of the nation’s total reserves, and most of these deposits are high-grade ores with a品位 exceeding 60%. Western Australia is home to what is currently the world’s largest diamond mine. Proven natural gas reserves stand at 112.8 trillion cubic feet. With the development of major offshore gas fields along its northwest coast, Western Australia has become one of the primary suppliers of liquefied petroleum gas to North Asia. Western Australia’s liquefied natural gas production accounts for 7% of the global total, and by 2015, its annual output could reach 50 million tons. Seventy-four percent of its oil and gas production is exported to overseas markets, generating export revenues of 6.1 billion U.S. dollars. Western Australia is a sister province/state of Zhejiang Province. Among all Australian exports to China, Western Australia accounts for more than 50% of sales. Western Australia is also home to the Balla Balla mine, which boasts one of the world’s largest vanadium-titanium magnetite deposits. The mine holds reserves of 303 million tons of ore, with average ore grades of 0.65% vanadium pentoxide, 43% iron, and 13% titanium dioxide.

3. Ontario, Canada

Key minerals: nickel, copper, zinc, gold
Policy Stability: ☆☆☆☆☆
Investment cost: ★★★★★
Possibility of Zhejiang business participation: ☆☆☆☆☆
Safety factor: ★★★★★

Sixty percent of Ontario’s bedrock consists of the Precambrian Shield, which is rich in metallic mineral deposits. Ontario accounts for slightly more than one-third of Canada’s copper production, and the nickel mined from the Sudbury Basin represents about 13% of the world’s total nickel output. Ontario boasts the largest gold reserves in Canada; just a few gold mines in the Timmins region alone contribute over 1% of the world’s total gold production. Canada is one of the world’s leading producers and exporters of zinc, with Ontario accounting for 10% of Canada’s total zinc output. Currently, Ontario ranks third globally in nickel and cobalt production, seventh in gold production, twelfth in copper production, fifteenth in silver production, and seventeenth in zinc production. The province’s mining industry generates annual revenues exceeding CAD 5 billion.

4. Russia

Key minerals: potash, iron ore, petroleum, natural gas
Policy Stability: ★★★★
Investment cost: ★★★★
Possibility of Zhejiang business participation: ☆☆☆☆☆
Safety factor: ★★★★★

Siberia holds one-third of the world’s energy reserves. Its potash reserves rank first in the world, tied with Canada. The continental shelves and continental slopes of Russia’s inland and offshore waters are rich in minerals such as tin, titanium, and zircon. Russia’s proven remaining recoverable oil reserves amount to 6.6 billion tons, while its natural gas reserves stand at 50 trillion cubic meters. Russia’s major coalfields include the Kuzbass region in Kemerovo Oblast in western Siberia—among the world’s largest coalfields, with predicted reserves of 733 billion tons and proven reserves of 87 billion tons—as well as the Vorkuta coalfield in the Republic of Komi and the Tula coalfield. The total predicted coal reserves in these regions reach 5.3 trillion tons, accounting for one-third of the world’s projected resources. Actual proven reserves amount to 202 billion tons, making Russia the world’s third-largest coal reserve holder, behind only the United States (4,450 billion tons) and China (2,720 billion tons). Western Siberia is also home to the world’s largest deposit of Kursk-type magnetite ore, a quartz-vein type deposit, with mineral resources exceeding 290 billion tons at depths greater than 600 meters.

5 Indonesia

Major minerals: petroleum, natural gas, coal, tin, copper, gold
Policy Stability: ☆☆☆
Investment cost: ★★★★
Possibility of Zhejiang business participation: ☆☆☆☆☆
Safety factor: ☆☆☆☆

Indonesia is the world’s sixth-largest producer of natural gas, the third-largest exporter of coal, and the third-largest producer of tin. Its proven oil reserves amount to 700 million tons, and its coal reserves stand at 36 billion tons; natural gas reserves total 73 trillion cubic meters, concentrated primarily in Kalimantan. Indonesia’s national revenue and expenditure budget is formulated based on the output and prices of oil and natural gas. According to data from the American Association of Petroleum Geologists in 2000, Indonesia accounted for two of the world’s 12 newly discovered giant gas fields. Indonesia boasts high-quality bauxite reserves totaling 35 million tons, with a grade ranging from 45% to 55%, and total resources reaching 1 billion tons. Indonesia is also rich in copper resources; over the past decade, it has continuously discovered three world-class copper deposits, each exceeding one million tons—and even some reaching tens of millions of tons—demonstrating that copper exploration in Indonesia holds great promise. Tin deposits are mainly concentrated on islands such as the Riau Archipelago.

6. South Africa:

Key minerals: gold, diamonds, coal, platinum group metals, copper
Policy Stability: ★★★★★
Investment cost: ★★★★★
Possibility of Zhejiang business participation: ☆☆☆☆☆
Safety factor: ★★★★★

South Africa is the world’s largest exporter of gold. The Witwatersrand Basin boasts the world’s largest gold ore belt, with gold reserves totaling 19,000 tons—accounting for 38% of the global total. The gold-bearing conglomerates in this basin also contain uranium reserves exceeding 500,000 tons. Additionally, South Africa holds diamond reserves of 70 million carats, making it the world’s fourth-largest diamond producer. Most of these diamonds are concentrated in the Kimberley region of the Northern Cape Province, a globally renowned diamond mining belt. South Africa is rich in coal resources, with total recoverable coal reserves amounting to 115.53 billion tons, of which 55 billion tons have been proven and can sustain mining operations for 150 years. These reserves are primarily located in the waterless subclay grassland basins of Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natal, and the Northern Province. In South Africa’s Bushveld Complex, platinum-group metal reserves reach 63,000 tons, representing 89% of the world’s total reserves; chromite reserves stand at 3 billion tons, accounting for 83% of the global total; and vanadium reserves amount to 3 million tons, placing South Africa second worldwide, with a share of 30% of the global total. Reserves of iron, nickel, titanium, manganese, lead, zinc, copper, silver, fluorite, and several silicate minerals are also abundant. Phosphate reserves, at 1.5 billion tons, rank third globally.

7. Chile:

Main minerals: copper, gold, molybdenum, etc.;
Policy Stability: ★★★★★
Investment cost: ★★★★★
Possibility of Zhejiang business participation: ☆☆☆☆☆
Safety factor: ★★★★★

Chile boasts abundant mineral resources, particularly copper, with reserves reaching 160 million tons—placing it first in the world. Molybdenum, which often occurs alongside copper, totals 2.5 million tons, ranking it second globally. The porphyry-type copper-molybdenum ore belt is located within the Chile-Peru copper-molybdenum concentration zone. Over the past few decades, nearly every four to five years, a large or extra-large copper (and molybdenum) deposit has been discovered in this region. The Chilean copper-molybdenum ore belt stretches from the northern border along the Andes Mountains southward to the Coastal Range just south of central Santiago, and then extends eastward toward the Argentine border. To date, more than 400 deposits of various sizes—large, medium, and small—have been identified in this belt, including 10 major deposits such as the world-famous Chuquicamata, El Teniente, Salvador, and Andina mines, as well as the exceptionally large and large-scale copper deposits of Blanco, Escondida, Andacollo, Río Blanco, Los Bronces, and Disputada. Chile’s gold reserves amount to approximately 400 tons, and its silver reserves reach 18,000 tons, both placing it among the world’s top producers. Primary gold deposits are mainly concentrated in the Marquigua and Indio gold belts. In addition, Chile holds the world’s largest reserves of lithium from salt lakes, totaling 30 million tons, and its nitrate reserves stand at 50 million tons, also ranking first globally.

8. Kazakhstan

Major minerals: copper, lead, zinc, chromium, manganese, gold, iron, boron, and others;
Policy Stability: ★★★
Investment cost: ☆☆☆
Possibility of Zhejiang business participation: ☆☆☆☆
Safety factor: ☆☆☆☆☆

Kazakhstan ranks first among the CIS countries in reserves of copper, lead, zinc, and chromium. In addition, it also boasts deposits of aluminum, manganese, molybdenum, titanium, antimony, mercury, and gold. Proven copper reserves amount to approximately 14 million tons, lead reserves to 11 million tons, and zinc reserves to about 14 million tons. Iron ore reserves stand at 8 billion tons, and chromite reserves at 320 million tons. Deposits of non-ferrous metals, rare metals, and precious metals are mainly concentrated in central Kazakhstan, the Altai Mountains in eastern Kazakhstan, and the mountainous regions of southern Kazakhstan. Iron ore deposits are primarily located in the Kostanay and Turgay regions of northern Kazakhstan. Coal reserves total 51 billion tons, mostly found in central and northern Kazakhstan. Recoverable oil reserves amount to 1.1 billion tons, and natural gas reserves to 184 million tons, with the majority concentrated in the Caspian Sea region. In southern Kazakhstan, rich phosphate-rich soils are found near the Karatau and Aktyubinsk areas, while the Ural and Emba river basins are abundant in potash deposits. The Zhylyan potash deposit alone holds potash reserves of 380 million tons. Furthermore, deposits of mirabilite and sulfur are also relatively plentiful.

9. Vietnam

Main minerals: coal, iron, bauxite, etc.;
Policy Stability: ☆☆☆☆☆
Investment cost: ☆☆☆
Possibility of Zhejiang business participation: ☆☆☆☆☆
Safety factor: ★★★★★

Vietnam’s mineral resources exhibit certain complementarities with those of China. Currently, the proven coal reserves amount to approximately 3.8 billion tons (including about 3.4 billion tons of high-quality anthracite); proven oil reserves stand at 250 million tons, with prospective resources estimated at around 500 million tons; natural gas reserves are roughly 300 billion cubic meters, with prospective resources projected at about 910 billion cubic meters; proven iron ore reserves total approximately 1.3 billion tons, with prospective resources reaching around 2.3 billion tons—among which the Thach Tay iron ore deposit holds reserves of 544 million tons, with an average grade of 61%, suitable for open-pit mining; bauxite reserves are about 4.5 billion tons, with prospective resources ranging from 6 to 7 billion tons. The bauxite deposits boast excellent quality and are primarily located in the Central Highlands region, forming lateritic weathering crusts with an average grade of 36% to 39%; after beneficiation, the alumina content can reach as high as 47.5%. The northern region of Vietnam is rich in manganese resources, particularly in the Ha Lang area, where three large, high-grade manganese deposits contain 38% to 40% manganese. Some of these manganese deposits even contain gold at concentrations as high as 2.4 grams per ton.

10. Brazil: Minas Gerais State

Main minerals: iron, niobium, aluminum, bauxite, gold, zinc, and others;
Policy Stability: ★★★★
Investment cost: ★★★★
Possibility of Zhejiang business participation: ☆☆☆☆☆
Safety factor: ★★★★★

Minas Gerais is the Brazilian state with the greatest variety, highest quality, and largest reserves and production of mineral resources. The state holds deposits of 50 types of metallic, non-metallic, gemstone, and diamond minerals, accounting for 62.5% of Brazil’s 80 known mineral species and 33% of Brazil’s total mineral resources (excluding coal, natural gas, and petroleum). Among these, iron ore reserves amount to 34 billion tons, with an iron content of 60%, representing 65% of Brazil’s total iron ore reserves; bauxite reserves total 429 million tons (with 21% being alumina-rich bauxite and 62.4% being refractory bauxite); limestone reserves reach 14 billion tons, accounting for 17% of Brazil’s total; lead reserves stand at 20 million tons, representing 89%; phosphate reserves total 2 billion tons, equivalent to 68% of Brazil’s total; additionally, zinc reserves account for 100%, niobium for 82%, gold for 25.9%, graphite for 94%, and lithium for 100%. The iron-rich mineral resources in Minas Gerais’ “Iron Quadrangle” are world-renowned and currently rank among the two largest iron ore production bases globally.
 
Note: The lower the investment cost, the better.

(Originally published in Zhejiang Business—Issue 2, 2007—pages 31–33)