Mineral superpowers[]
A mineralogical superpower is a state that has a monopoly on a valuable mineral resource like copper, nickel, gold or phosphorus, to the extent that an energy superpower has over energy sources, such as oil, gas, coal, oil shale and uranium. Australia has the world's largest Uranium reserves at 22% and is the world's largest Coal exporter by short tonnes.
Chile is the world's leading copper producer (30%), but the USA, Peru, Zambia, Indonesia and the People's Republic Of China also have major reserves. 21 of the 28 largest copper mines in the world are not amenable to expansion. Many large copper mines will be exhausted between 2010 and 2015. The Sudbury region of Ontario, Canada, produces about 30% of the world's supply of nickel, while Russia contains about 40% of the world's known resources at the Norilsk deposit in Siberia. Other major producers are the French colony of New Caledonia, France it‘s self, Australia, Cuba, and Indonesia. Both New Caledonia, Indonesia and China have sizable untapped reserves. Australia is an major producer of nickel and copper as well as being the world's leading exporter of uranium (22%). Both China, South Africa, Russia and the USA are also major producer of gold.
A threat to end or the guarantee to supply these minerals could prove politically influential in the future, just like oil has done in the late 20th and in to the 21st century.
Mineral production maps[]
Tungsten[]
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Worldwide amounts of Tungsten produced by country in 2012.
Zinc[]
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World Zinc production in 2006.
Manganese[]
World Manganese production, 2006.
Iron[]
World iron ore production, 2014.
Gold[]
Map of gold production, 2012.
Links[]
- Woomera Test Range
- 1970s energy crises
- Deutsches Institut für Normung
- Energy and resources
- European Union
- Oil shale
- Oil sand
- Manganese nodules
- Yom Kippur War
- Six-Day War
- Useful metals
- 1970s energy crises
- Energy and resources
- Energy industry
- Iranian Revolution
- Middle East
- Time line of Iraq
- 1970s energy crises
- Energy and resources
- Energy industry
- Iranian Revolution
- Middle East
- Minerals and fuel in central Africa
- Neftegorsk (Sakhalin Oblast) May 28, 1995, Earthquake
- Time line of Iraq
- Companies
- Energy and resources
- Mineral mining, smelting, processing and shipping videos!
- Today's OTL types of economies, societies and regimes
- Mirny Diamond Mine
- Useful metals
- Energy and resources
- Energy industry
- Iranian Revolution
- Middle East
- Time line of Iraq
- Companies
- Ebbw Vale Steelworks
- Energy and resources
- Mineral mining, smelting and shipping videos
- Minerals and fuel in central Africa
- Woomera Test Range
- Energy and resources
- Mineral mining, smelting and shipping videos
- Nickel
- Useful metals
- Energy and resources
- Minerals and fuel in central Africa
- Useful metals
- Woomera Test Range
- 1970s energy crises
- Energy and resources
- Energy industry
- 1966 Aberfan disaster
- July 16, 1979, Church Rock, New Mexico, accidental release of radioactive mine tailings
Sources[]
- https://minerals.usgs.gov/minerals/pubs/commodity/nickel/mcs-2012-nicke.pdf
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uranium_reserves
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coal_reserves
- http://minerals.usgs.gov/minerals/pubs/commodity/copper/coppemcs04.pdf
- http://minerals.usgs.gov/minerals/pubs/commodity/copper/coppemcs06.pdf
- http://minerals.usgs.gov/minerals/pubs/commodity/copper/mcs-2008-coppe.pdf
- http://spectrum.ieee.org/mar08/6007
- http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/china-now-worlds-largest-gold/story.aspx?guid=%7B8C528CE8%2D0262%2D485D%2DACEB%2D2247D18282CB%7D
- http://spectrum.ieee.org/mar08/6007
- https://www.msn.com/en-gb/money/technology/a-tiny-african-island-nation-will-run-on-100percent-renewable-energy-in-less-than-a-decade/ar-AAuwNX2?li=AAmiR2Z&ocid=spartandhp
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mineralogy
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mineral
- https://qz.com/1129087/chinas-coal-demand-is-causing-a-massive-traffic-jam-in-inner-mongolia/?yptr=yahoo