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Some 106 new large and medium-sized mining areas were discovered in China by the end of 2001, increasing proven domestic mineral deposits to 156 varieties.
According to the 2001 Communique for China's Land and Resources promulgated by the Ministry of Land and Resources, among the 156 mineral resources that can be exploited in China, there are nine energy resources, 54 metals, 90 non-metals and three other liquids or gases.
Last year, China newly verified 1.64 billion tons of coal, 727 million tons of oil and 430 billion cubic meters of natural gas. Other mineral resources with comparatively large reserves include iron, copper, aluminum, lead, zinc, gold and sulfur.
In recent years, the Chinese government has intensified prospecting for minerals with the investment in geological explorations rising to 22.7 billion yuan (about 2.7 billion US dollars) last year.
In addition, China also made an attempt to transfer the right of mineral prospecting and exploitation, making a total profit of 1.8 billion yuan (about 216 million US dollars) last year.
Statistics show that the gross output value of China's mining industry reached 479 billion yuan (about 58 billion US dollars) in 2001 with the yields of major mineral products, such as raw coal and crude oil, increasing remarkably.
(Xinhua News Agency April 12, 2002)
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