Ore is natural rock or sediment that contains one or more valuable minerals concentrated above background levels, typically containing metals, that can be mined, treated and sold at a profit. The grade of ore refers to the concentration of the desired material it contains. The value of the metals or minerals a rock contains must be weighed against the cost of extraction to determine whether it is of sufficiently high grade to be worth mining and is therefore considered an ore. A complex ore is one containing more than one valuable mineral.
Iron ores are rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be economically extracted. The ores are usually rich in iron oxides and vary in color from dark grey, bright yellow, or deep purple to rusty red. The iron is usually found in the form of magnetite (Fe
3O
4, 72.4% Fe), hematite (Fe
2O
3, 69.9% Fe), goethite (FeO(OH), 62.9% Fe), limonite (FeO(OH)·n(H2O), 55% Fe) or siderite (FeCO3, 48.2% Fe).
ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih is Ukraine's largest integrated steel company, founded in 1934 and located in Kryvyi Rih, in central Ukraine.
Ferrexpo plc is a Swiss-based commodity trading and mining company which is the third largest exporter of iron ore pellets in the world. Ferrexpo's operating base is in central Ukraine, where it operates three iron-ore mines and an iron ore pellet production facility. The company's trading office is located in London where it is listed on the London Stock Exchange and it is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index and FTSE4Good Index.
The mineral industry of Russia is one of the world's leading mineral industries and accounts for a large percentage of the Commonwealth of Independent States' production of a range of mineral products, including metals, industrial minerals, and mineral fuels. In 2005, Russia ranked among the leading world producers or was a significant producer of a vast range of mineral commodities, including aluminum, arsenic, cement, copper, magnesium compounds and metals, nitrogen, palladium, silicon, nickel and vanadium.
Mining in the United Kingdom produces a wide variety of fossil fuels, metals, and industrial minerals due to its complex geology. In 2013, there were over 2,000 active mines, quarries, and offshore drilling sites on the continental land mass of the United Kingdom producing £34bn of minerals and employing 36,000 people.
Metal production, in particular iron and steel industry, is the dominant heavy industry in Ukraine. Ukraine is the world's eighth largest producer and third largest exporter of iron and steel (2007). Ukrainian iron and steel industry accounts for around 2% of worldwide crude steel output, 5% to 6% of the national gross domestic product and 34% of Ukrainian export revenue. In 2007 it employed 420,000 people – 10% of industrial labor and 2% of the total workforce. It has the highest, by a wide margin, revealed comparative advantage of all branches of the Ukrainian economy. The industry peaked at 42.8 million tonnes in 2007 but has been gravely affected by the financial crisis of 2007–2010 and declined to 29.8 million tonnes in 2009.
Mining is an important industry in Pakistan. Pakistan has deposits of several minerals including coal, copper, gold, chromite, mineral salt, bauxite and several other minerals. There are also a variety of precious and semi-precious minerals that are also mined. These include peridot, aquamarine, topaz, ruby, emerald, rare-earth minerals bastnaesite and xenotime, sphene, tourmaline, and many varieties and types of quartz.
The Muncelu Mic mine was a large open pit mine in the western of Romania in Hunedoara County, 16 km southeast of Simeria and 387 km north-west of the capital, Bucharest. Muncelu Mic represents one of the largest iron ore reserves in Romania having estimated reserves of 6.5 million tonnes of ore. When it was operational it produced around 200,000 tonnes of iron ore/year. The mine also has a gold and silver reserves of around 5.4 million tonnes grading 1g/t gold and 8g/t silver resulting 173,000 oz of gold and 1.38 million oz of silver.
The Hope Downs mine is an iron ore mining complex located in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. It comprises four large open-pit mines. The mines are co-owned by the Hancock Group and Rio Tinto, and the complex was named after Hope Hancock.
Northern Iron Ore Beneficiation Works (PivnGZK) was built and launched in Kryvyi Rih in 1963 and is one of several iron ore dressing complexes around Kryvyi Rih. Along with Ingulets Iron Ore dressing Works and Central Iron Ore Enrichment Works, it belongs to Ukrainian holding company Metinvest.
Central Iron Ore Enrichment Works (CGZK) specializes in processing and production of raw materials for the steel industry, merchant concentrate with an average Fe content of 65.0% to 68.2% and pellets with an average Fe content of 63.9%. It is the only mine in Ukraine, that simultaneously uses open-pit quartzite fields and underground mining.
The Belanovskoye mine is a large iron mine located in central Ukraine in the Poltava Oblast. Belanovskoye represents one of the largest iron ore reserves in Ukraine and in the world having estimated reserves of 1.7 billion tonnes of ore grading 31% iron metal. The mine is 2km north of the Yeristovskoye mine and immediately south of the Zarudenskoye mine, both which are also iron deposits owned by Ferrexpo.
The Zarudenskoye mine is a large iron mine located in central Ukraine in the Poltava Oblast. Zarudenskoye represents one of the largest iron ore reserves in Ukraine and in the world having estimated reserves of 1.5 billion tonnes of ore grading 31% iron metal. The deposit sits immediately north of the operational Belanovskoye mine, and immediately south of the undeveloped Vasilievskoye mine.
The Vasilievskoye mine is a large iron mine located in central Ukraine in the Poltava Oblast. Vasilievskoye represents one of the largest iron ore reserves in Ukraine and in the world having estimated reserves of 1.4 billion tonnes of ore grading 31% iron metal. The deposit sits immediately north of the Zarudenskoye mine, and immediately south of the Kharchenkovskoye mine.
The Kharchenkovskoye mine is a large iron mine located in central Ukraine in the Poltava Oblast. Kharchenkovskoye represents one of the largest iron ore reserves in Ukraine and in the world having estimated reserves of 2.8 billion tonnes of ore grading 30% iron metal. The mine sits immediately north of Vasilievskoye mine and immediately south of Manuilovskoye mine.
The Manuilovskoye mine is a large iron mine located in central Ukraine in the Poltava Oblast. Manuilovskoye represents one of the largest iron ore reserves in Ukraine and in the world. It is estimated that it has reserves of 3.5 billion tonnes of ore grading 30% iron metal. The mine sits immediately north of the Kharchenkovskoye mine and immediately south of the Brovarkovskoye mine.
The Brovarkovskoye mine is a large iron mine located in central Ukraine in the Poltava Oblast. Brovarkovskoye represents one of the largest iron ore reserves in Ukraine and in the world having estimated reserves of 4 billion tonnes of ore grading 30% iron metal. The mine sits immediately north of the Manuilovskoye mine.
The mining industry of Guinea was developed during colonial rule. The minerals extracted consisted of iron, gold, diamond, and bauxite. Guinea ranks first in the world in bauxite reserves and 6th in the extraction of high-grade bauxite, the aluminium ore. The mining industry and exports of mining products accounted for 17% of Guinea's gross domestic product (GDP) in 2010. Mining accounts for over 50% of its exports. The country accounts for 94% of Africa's mining production of bauxite. The large mineral reserve, which has mostly remained untapped, is of immense interest for international firms.
Aethel Mining is a British mining company headquartered in London and owned by Ricardo Santos Silva and Aba Schubert. Aethel Mining is the operator of the Torre de Moncorvo mines in Portugal, the largest private iron ore deposit in Europe.
