A recent discovery has shaken up the mining industry. A “supergiant” deposit of high-quality gold ore was uncovered in central China. According to Chinese state media, it contains an estimated at 1,000 metric tons (1,100 US tons) of the precious metal. If accurate, this massive reservoir could be the largest known deposit of gold left anywhere in the world.
The reservoir was found at the Wangu gold field, in the Hunan province, near some existing gold mines. Workers spotted more than 40 gold veins containing around 330 tons of gold down to a depth of 6,600 feet. However, a 3D model created by mining experts estimate that there could be up to 1,100 tons of gold as deep as 9,800 feet below the surface. Should it be true, it would be worth up to $83 billion.
“Many drilled rock cores showed visible gold,” says Chen Rulin, an ore-prospecting expert at China’s Hunan Province’s Geological Bureau. He also shares that the recently discovered deposit boasts 138 grams of gold per metric ton of ore (4.87 ounces per 1.1 US ton), a rare rate in the mining industry. Test drills around the new site's “peripheral areas” also led to the discovery of even more gold, suggesting there may be more deposits waiting to be found.
Given the numbers estimated by local mining experts, this deposit would surpass the largest known gold reserve in the world, found in South Deep mine in South Africa, which has 930 metric tons (about 1,025 US tons) of gold. Overall, it is estimated that the world has mined 233,000 tons of gold throughout history, with only one third of that mining having taken place before 1950.
Even before this discovery, China was already the biggest producer of gold in the world, accounting for around 10% of global gold mined in 2023. Now, this recent discovery of the gold deposit in China is projected to raise the global price of gold to $2,700 per ounce by early next year.
Sources: Supergiant gold deposit discovered in central China's Hunan; Global mine production; China Gold Reserves; Gold prices forecast to climb to record high
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