Australia's Identified Mineral Resources 2024 World Rankings
Page last updated:27 February 2025
World Rankings
Australia’s EDR of gold, iron ore, lead, rutile, uranium, vanadium, zinc and zircon were the world’s largest in 2023 (Table 5). Another 13 commodities ranked in the top five for world economic resources: bauxite, black coal, brown coal, cobalt, copper, ilmenite, lithium, magnesite, manganese ore, nickel, silver, tin and tungsten (Table 5). Australia’s ranking for economic resources of vanadium rose from second in the world in 2022 to first in 2023 as economic resources in China were revised downwards and Australian resources increased.
In 2023, Australia was the top global producer for bauxite, iron ore and rutile, as well as lithium which is important for battery storage technologies. Australia was the second largest producer of lead and zircon; the third largest producer of gold, manganese ore and zinc; the fourth largest producer of cobalt, rare earths, tantalum and uranium; and the fifth largest producer of black coal (Table 5). During 2023, Australia was a top five producer of 14 minerals and metals, of which seven are listed in Australia as Critical Minerals and two are listed as Strategic Materials, with the Australian mining industry continuing to be a reliable and responsible source of resource commodities.
Table 5
Table 5. World ranking for Australian Economic Resources and Australian production as at December 2023.
| Commodity | World Ranking for Economic Resources | Share of World Economic Resources | World Ranking for Production | Share of World Production |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Antimony | 6 | 5% | 7 | 2% |
| Bauxite | 3 | 12% | 1 | 26% |
| Black Coal (recoverable) | 4 | 9% | 5 | 6% |
| Brown Coal (recoverable) | 2 | 23% | 9 | 3% |
| Chromium | minor | minor | n.a. | 0% |
| Cobalt | 2 | 16% | 4 | 2% |
| Copper | 3 | 10% | 8 | 4% |
| Diamond | minor | minor | n.a. | 0% |
| Fluorine | 8 | minor | n.a. | 0% |
| Gold | 1 | 21% | 3 | 10% |
| Graphite | 8 | 4% | n.a. | 0% |
| High Purity Alumina Ore | unknown | unknown | n.a. | 0% |
| Ilmenite | 2 | 26% | 6 | 4% |
| Iron Ore | 1 | 31% | 1 | 38% |
| Lead | 1 | 37% | 2 | 10% |
| Lithium | 2 | 28% | 1 | 49% |
| Magnesite | 4 | 4% | 9 | 2% |
| Manganese Ore | 4 | 15% | 3 | 9% |
| Molybdenum | 6 | 5% | minor | minor |
| Nickel | 2 | 19% | 6 | 4% |
| Niobium | unknown | unknown | unknown | unknown |
| Phosphate | 11 | 1% | 13 | 1% |
| PGE | minor | minor | minor | minor |
| Potash | 12 | 1% | minor | minor |
| Rare Earths | 6 | 5% | 4 | 8% |
| Rutile | 1 | 66% | 1 | 35% |
| Scandium | unknown | unknown | n.a. | 0% |
| Silver | 3 | 15% | 8 | 4% |
| Tantalum | unknown | unknown | 4 | 6% |
| Thorium | n.a. | 0% | n.a. | 0% |
| Tin | 3 | 13% | 8 | 3% |
| Tungsten | 2 | 13% | minor | minor |
| Uranium | 1 | 32% | 4 | 9% |
| Vanadium | 1 | 49% | 0 | 0% |
| Zinc | 1 | 28% | 3 | 9% |
| Zircon | 1 | 77% | 2 | 24% |
Abbreviations
n.a. = not applicable because Australia has no Economic Demonstrated Resources or production of that particular commodity; PGE = platinum group elements (platinum, palladium, osmium, iridium, ruthenium, rhodium).
Notes
World rankings determined by comparing Australia’s EDR and production to economic resources and production reported for other countries (see sources below). Undocumented resources and production are not used in the comparisons. Minor = <1% of global economic resources and/or production, therefore Australia’s ranking unable to be determined. Unknown = Global economic resources are too opaque for comparisons (e.g., there are large, undocumented tantalum resources in the Congo) or Australian production is likely to have occurred during the year but quantities are not publicly available. World rankings for black coal resources and production based on 2022 data from Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources, Germany (Energy Study 2023). Uranium EDR based on Reasonably Assured Resources recoverable at costs of less than US$130/kg.
Sources
United States Geological Survey (Mineral Commodity Summaries 2024), International Atomic Energy Agency/Nuclear Energy Agency (personal communication September 2024), World Nuclear Organisation (Uranium Production, Figures, personal communication September 2024), Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources, Germany (Energy Study 2023).