Ministry adds 186 new technologies to mineral resource catalog

The Ministry of Natural Resources has released a new catalog of advanced and applicable technologies for mineral resource conservation and utilization, adding 186 new technologies in a significant update to the 2022 version.

The new catalog, a crucial step in promoting ecological civilization construction and the revised Mineral Resources Law, includes 376 technologies. It covers comprehensive exploration, efficient mining, mineral processing, comprehensive utilization, green and low-carbon, and digital and intelligent technologies. Compared to the 317 technologies released in 2022, the total number has increased by 18 percent, with an update rate of nearly 60 percent.

First released in 2012 to promote high-quality development in the mining industry, the catalog has been updated every three years since 2019. Evaluation of the 2022 edition showed that 44 exploration technologies were applied in 1,119 projects, facilitating the discovery of 780 million metric tons of oil, 580 million cubic meters of natural gas, 170 million tons of iron ore, 87 million tons of natural soda, and 316 tons of gold.