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Meredith Chen

China added major gains to its critical mineral reserves and discovered more mineral deposits last year as it ramped up efforts to boost self-reliance and energy security, according to the Ministry of Natural Resources.
Increased investment had led to “significant breakthroughs” in oil and gas exploration, while “substantial progress” was made in mineral resources, resulting in 124 new mineral deposits discovered last year, the ministry said in a report on Tuesday.
In the past year, China saw considerable growth in reserves of strategic minerals such as fluorite and crystalline graphite, the report indicated.
The full annual 2023 assessment of China’s mineral resources has not been made public, but a few details have been released by the ministry and media.


Critical minerals are commodities found in a wide variety of ore deposits that are considered vital to economic or national security and are vulnerable to supply disruption.
In 2021, Beijing launched a 15-year strategy to make “breakthroughs” in mining exploration, aiming to increase reserves and production to boost self-reliance and ensure domestic energy security.
“China is focused on strategically important minerals that are in short supply … vigorously advancing technological innovations, and continuously seeking large, high-quality, and urgently needed mineral deposits,” the ministry said in an article it posted on social media in September.
Reserves of fluorite, also called fluorspar, rose by 24.4 per cent to around 107 million tonnes in 2023, the report on Tuesday said. The mineral – considered critical in several countries including the United States, Australia, and Japan – can be used in the production of semiconductors and electric vehicle batteries.
China’s crystalline graphite reserves grew by 23.9 per cent to more than 100 million tonnes. The raw mineral is essential in several industries including new energy, nuclear energy, military defence, aerospace and photovoltaics.
Chinese investment in mineral exploration grew for a third consecutive year last year, with more than 110 billion yuan (US$15.5 billion) allotted for 2023, according to the report.
In 2023, four new oilfields were discovered in China, each estimated to have more than 100 million tonnes (746 million barrels) of capacity, in addition to four gas fields with a capacity of over 100 billion cubic metres each, the ministry said in September.
Large mineral deposits recently discovered have “further consolidated China’s advantageous position” in antimony, crystalline graphite, tungsten, and molybdenum, “enhancing the resource security necessary for the development of strategic emerging industries”, according to the ministry.
China has also been expanding geological surveys of maritime and oceanic zones, the ministry said on Tuesday.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has repeatedly stressed that the domestic hunt for resources is vital to “the national economy, people’s livelihoods, and national security”. China is a major producer, consumer and trader of mineral-based products.
China aimed to improve its capabilities “to rapidly expand production in extreme situations”, the ministry said.
Reserves of sylvite, commonly used for producing a chemical fertiliser to boost crop quality and yields, and thus considered crucial for food security, grew by 15.3 per cent to more than 332 million tonnes last year.
Over the last year, Beijing has also tightened its grip on critical mineral shipments, including antimony, gallium, germanium and graphite, raising concerns in industries such as semiconductors, electric vehicles and defence, which rely heavily on the materials.
By the end of 2023, reserves of 173 minerals had been discovered in China. According to the ministry, China’s reserves of 45 of those minerals ranked among the highest globally.


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Beijing says drive for self-reliance has led to ‘breakthroughs’ in oil and gas exploration, and progress in ‘urgently needed’ mineral deposits


Beijing says drive for self-reliance has led to ‘breakthroughs’ in oil and gas exploration, and progress in ‘urgently needed’ mineral deposits.
