China has announced a significant increase in the reserves of 12 types of co-mineral or associated minerals, including gold, gallium, germanium, indium and nickel, effectively enhancing the country's resource security, the China Geological Survey said on Saturday.
Co-minerals are resources within the same deposit that, upon economic and technical evaluation, reach concentrations suitable for industrial use, according to the CGS.
Associated minerals are those present in primary minerals that do not meet industrial standards but can be comprehensively reused after processing, it said.
The CGS, a division of the Ministry of Natural Resources, has collaborated with over 100 divisions across 27 provincial regions since 2021 to reassess 703 active mines and 1,148 medium and large-sized mining areas, significantly increasing the reserves of co-mineral or associated mineral low-grade resources.
Compared to previous reserves, cobalt and rhenium increased by over 100 percent, nickel and indium by over 30 percent, and gallium, germanium, vanadium and potash increased by more than 10 percent, the CGS said.
The growth in gold, tantalum, rare earths and zirconium is also notable. New gold reserves exceed 1,200 tons, vanadium over 12 million tons, and potash over 160 million tons, the CGS added.
