Focusing on the nation’s strategic resource security and the needs of building “nine major industrial clusters,” Xinjiang has strengthened its basic geological work, aiming to develop large-scale resource bases. It is making every effort to deepen and solidify geological exploration efforts. Building on the 12 large-scale resource bases newly established and consolidated last year, Xinjiang has already identified six additional large-scale resource bases this year. Since the nation fully launched the new round of mineral exploration breakthrough strategy in 2023, Xinjiang—leveraging its endowment of resources and geographic advantages—has focused on strategic and bulk minerals such as iron, manganese, gold, copper, nickel, lead-zinc, and lithium. Through concerted efforts by geological survey units both within and outside the region, as well as mining enterprises, Xinjiang has newly established and consolidated 12 large-scale resource bases in 2023, including the Bachu-Atush billion-ton-level iron deposit and the tens-of-millions-ton-level titanium deposit. In 2024, Xinjiang has further identified six new large-scale resource bases: the Hami Weiya-Niumaoquan billion-ton-level iron deposit and tens-of-millions-ton-level titanium deposit; the Shanshan Nanhu Gobi-Queiling million-ton-level copper-molybdenum deposit; the Yumin Su’ouhe 500,000-ton-level molybdenum deposit; the Atush Puchang-Kalajun billion-ton-level iron deposit and tens-of-millions-ton-level titanium deposit; the Qiemo-Ruoqiang hundred-billion-cubic-meter-level shale gas deposit; and the Yingjisha-Yecheng hundred-billion-cubic-meter-level shale gas (oil and gas) deposit. Meanwhile, the Qinghe Jin Ge Le-Fuhai Kek copper large-scale resource base has begun to take shape.

Meanwhile, the reserves of Xinjiang’s key mineral resources have significantly increased. Since last year, a number of large-scale ore deposits have undergone intensive exploration and evaluation. As of now, Xinjiang has already exceeded the “14th Five-Year Plan” mineral exploration targets set by the Ministry of Natural Resources by a factor of 1.5 to 4.6 for six mineral types: iron (high-grade iron), gold, potash salt, antimony, lithium, and vanadium. Exploration targets for four other mineral types—beryllium, manganese, cobalt, and copper—have already been met. Additionally, exploration targets for four more mineral types—niobium, nickel, molybdenum, and fluorite—are expected to be largely achieved by the end of this year.

Energy and mineral exploration in Xinjiang has also achieved new progress under the new round of strategic initiatives aimed at breakthroughs in mineral exploration. Since last year, oil-and-gas exploration projects funded by the autonomous region’s fiscal budget have yielded remarkable results. Oil-and-gas enterprises have continued to increase reserves and boost production, achieving significant advances in 12 oil-and-gas fields—including the Mahu field in the Junggar Basin and the Shunbei field in the Tarim Basin—where a new batch of petroleum and natural gas geological reserves has been discovered. Moreover, major oil-and-gas discoveries have been made in 10 exploration blocks, including the Jimusar Sag in the Junggar Basin and the Baozidong area in the Tarim Basin, which hold promise for adding substantial additional resource volumes. To date, Xinjiang has added 540 million tons of new petroleum resources and 536.7 billion cubic meters of new natural gas resources.

It is reported that, in order to further promote breakthroughs in mineral exploration, Xinjiang is also accelerating the advancement of basic geological work and significantly enhancing the level of research. To date, the 1:250,000 regional geological survey covering the entire autonomous region has been completed over an area of 692,300 square kilometers, accounting for 79.6% of the surveyable area. The cumulative area covered by the 1:50,000 regional geological (mineral) surveys has reached 724,500 square kilometers, representing 83.3% of the surveyable area. Since the beginning of this year, Xinjiang has focused particularly on key metallogenic belts and large-scale resource bases, further strengthening the deployment and implementation of basic geological survey projects. Specifically, 15,600 square kilometers have been surveyed under the 1:50,000 mineral geological survey, 2,935 square kilometers under the 1:50,000 stream sediment measurement program, and 16,000 square kilometers under the 1:50,000 remote sensing geological interpretation. As a result, 441 geochemical and geophysical anomalies and 76 prospective mineral exploration targets have been delineated, and 42 new mineral (or alteration) occurrences have been discovered.