China Claims to Have Discovered the World's Largest Gold Mine

A massive high-quality gold mine with an estimated volume of about one thousand tons has been discovered in central China. The value of this amount of gold found in the Pingjiang area, which is the largest known reserve in the world, is estimated to be around 83 billion dollars. The explorations and drilling conducted, along with computer 3D modeling, indicate that each ton of gold ore from this mine contains 138 grams (approximately 5 ounces) of pure gold, while this figure in other high-quality mines is only 8 grams. China is currently the main player in the global gold market, with its gold mine reserves estimated at about two thousand tons, accounting for a 10 percent share of total gold production worldwide. Despite the announcement of this massive field discovery, gold prices in global markets have still risen due to high demand. It is not exactly clear how much undiscovered gold reserves exist in the world today, but experts have differing and even contradictory opinions about its volume. Before the formation of planet Earth, gold atoms were created in the furnaces of large stars; these are limited resources that take millions of years to settle in mines and become extractable. Statistics from the World Gold Council indicate that last year, 3,644 tons of gold were produced worldwide. However, Iran's annual gold production is less than 10 tons. According to this report, Iranians purchased about 27.3 tons of gold jewelry and 44.4 tons of gold coins and bars in 2023. Iranians accounted for about 1.3 percent of global jewelry purchases last year and about 3.7 percent of gold bar and coin purchases worldwide. Gold prices in global markets have also seen significant growth in recent years. Currently, each kilogram of gold is traded in international markets for over 85 thousand dollars, which is 30 percent higher than last year and 80 percent higher than in 2019. Gold prices have nearly sextupled over the past 20 years.