Although the practice of gold mining has been around for thousands of years, it’s estimated that roughly 86% of all above-ground gold was extracted in the last 200 years.
With modern mining techniques making large-scale production possible, global gold production has grown exponentially since the 1800s.
The above infographic uses data from Our World in Data to visualize global gold production by country from 1820 to 2022, showing how gold mining has evolved to become increasingly global over time.
A Brief History of Gold Mining
The best-known gold rush in modern history occurred in California in 1848, when James Marshall discovered gold in Sacramento Valley. As word spread, thousands of migrants flocked to California in search of gold, and by 1855, miners had extracted around $2 billion worth of gold.
The United States, Australia, and Russia were (interchangeably) the three largest gold producers until the 1890s. Then, South Africa took the helm thanks to the massive discovery in the Witwatersrand Basin, now regarded today as one of the world’s greatest ever goldfields.
South Africa’s annual gold production peaked in 1970 at 1,002 tonnes—by far the largest amount of gold produced by any country in a year.
With the price of gold rising since the 1980s, global gold production has become increasingly widespread. By 2007, China was the world’s largest gold-producing nation, and today a significant quantity of gold is being mined in over 40 countries.
The Top Gold-Producing Countries in 2022
Around 31% of the world’s gold production in 2022 came from three countries—China, Russia, and Australia, with each producing over 300 tonnes of the precious metal.
North American countries Canada, the U.S., and Mexico round out the top six gold producers, collectively making up 16% of the global total. The state of Nevada alone accounted for 72% of U.S. production, hosting the world’s largest gold mining complex (including six mines) owned by Nevada Gold Mines.
Meanwhile, South Africa produced 110 tonnes of gold in 2022, down by 74% relative to its output of 430 tonnes in 2000. This long-term decline is the result of mine closures, maturing assets, and industrial conflict, according to the World Gold Council.
Interestingly, two smaller gold producers on the list, Uzbekistan, and Indonesia, host the second and third-largest gold mining operations in the world, respectively.
The Outlook for Global Gold Production
As of April 25, gold prices were hovering around the $2,000 per ounce mark and nearing all-time highs. For mining companies, higher gold prices can mean more profits per ounce if costs remain unaffected.
According to the World Gold Council, mined gold production is expected to increase in 2023 and could surpass the record set in 2018 (3,300 tonnes), led by the expansion of existing projects in North America. The chances of record mine output could be higher if gold prices continue to increase.
Looking for a quick summary of @NOVAGOLD and our @DonlinGold project in Alaska? Check out our 'Why Invest' page for a brief slider on our key attributes, including our top shareholders.
Today’s Key Takeaways: Senate liberals bucking “all of the above” permitting reform. OPEC warns IEA about undermining oil investments. EIA sees growth for US NG and LNG production through 2050. Teck pulls plan to split company. Peltola supports International Watershed Board to address mining impacts.
NEWS OF THE DAY:
SENATE LIBERALS DIG IN AGAINST ‘ALL OF THE ABOVE’ IN PERMITTING: Permitting Reform 2.0 kicked off yesterday in the Environment and Public Works Committee, and liberal Democrats are doing all they can this time around to shape the effort up front and avoid a repeat of the Inflation Reduction Act, which saw them swallowing some big concessions on fossil fuels.
Republican and Democratic members picked up the issue where it was left off in December with the failure of Sen. Joe Manchin’s legislation, stressing the need for faster environmental reviews, more electric transmission, and the like.
But Sen. Jeff Merkley and some others resisted that brand of “all of the above” reform to ease regulatory burdens on fossil fuel project construction.
Doing permitting reform as “all of the above,” which characterized Manchin’s permitting bill, and which Manchin has said is the motif behind the IRA rather than its being a “climate bill,” undermines U.S. leadership on climate change mitigation and would make other nations think twice about cutting their emissions, Merkley said.
“I have witnessed how the rest of the world responds to that, saying, “Oh, you’re lobbying us to reduce coal in Indonesia, or change our policies in Vietnam, or stop importing coal from Australia to India … isn’t the United States proceeding to do a lot more fossil projects?’” he said.
He, along with EPW member Ed Markey and seven other Democrats, voted against Manchin’s bill in December even as other Democratic climate hawks voted in favor.
Markey has circulated permitting priorities of his own, which prioritize more electric transmission to clear the interconnection queues that are full of renewable energy projects and would seek to enable more community input under NEPA, rather than add timelines to those processes.
Merkley said transmission is his priority, too, and expressed little appetite to compromise on reforms favoring oil and gas.
“The point I’m making here is that increasing fossil fuel projects is a major catastrophe that cannot be undone by the next generation, because it’s going to be too late,” Merkley told Jeremy.
The rub: There’s lots of pro-fossil sentiment in the permitting reform mix. Manchin is reviving his bill from the last Congress, and EPW Ranking Member Shelley Moore Capito,as well as Energy and Natural Resources Ranking Member John Barrasso,are teeing up permitting reform bills of their own in the coming weeks.
Barrasso is big on oil and gas, and Capito’s counter proposal to Manchin’s initial permitting bill last year likewise sought to approve the Mountain Valley Pipeline.
The Biden administration has also grown more accepting of the need for additional oil and gas production since the war in Ukraine started, while still favoring clean energy resources over others.
That has driven a wedge between the administration and allies in Congress. Secretary Jennifer Granholm went out of her way last week to say her department supports the Mountain Valley Pipeline in a letter to FERC.
Merkley called the letter “completely misguided” and out of sync with science.
In our Annual Energy Outlook 2023 (AEO2023) Reference case, we project U.S. natural gas production to increase 15% and liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports to increase 152% between 2022 and 2050. We expect natural gas production to rise to 42.1 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) by 2050. Production growth is largely driven by U.S. LNG exports, which we expect to rise to 10 Tcf by 2050. Natural gas production growth on the Gulf Coast and in the Southwest reflects increased activity in the Haynesville Formation and Permian Basin, which are close to infrastructure connecting natural gas supply to growing LNG export facilities.
In our AEO2023, we explore long-term energy trends in the United States and present an outlook for energy markets through 2050. We use different scenarios, called cases, to understand how varying assumptions affect energy trends. The AEO2023 Reference case, which serves as a baseline, or benchmark, reflects laws and regulations adopted through mid-November 2022, including the Inflation Reduction Act.
Just hours before shareholder vote, Teck pulls its plan to split company; leaves door open for Glencore to pursue takeover.
On the dawn of its annual shareholder meeting, Teck Resources Ltd. removed a pivotal proposal to split the iconic Canadian mining company into a base metals-focused company to be rebranded as Teck Metals Corp. and a metallurgical coal company to be named Elk Valley Resources Ltd.
Shareholder approval of this split would have likely put to rest an increasingly hostile takeover bid by Glencore, which wants to merge all of Teck Resources’ metals and coal assets into its own portfolio. A splitting of Teck would have increased the complexity of such a merger.
The cancellation of the vote indicates that Teck’s board and management were not confident that it had the votes necessary for the split that would have likely stymied Glencore’s takeover bid.
Monday, Representative Peltola announced her support for an International Watershed Board for certain rivers along the Southeast Alaska and British Columbia border, ahead of meetings this week by the International Joint Commission of the US and Canada in Washington, D.C.
“Alaska and Canada share more than just a border—we share many watersheds and rivers that are critical to our people,” said Representative Peltola. “As the International Joint Commission convenes this week, I must speak up for the many Alaskan communities and Tribes I have heard from who are concerned about the potential impacts of widespread Canadian mineral exploration and development, including the construction of large tailing dams near shared wild salmon habitat. These projects are proceeding quickly, and we must ensure that our shared water resources are protected.
For that reason, I am calling on the Biden Administration to initiate an International Watershed Board for the Taku, Stikine-Iskut, and Unuk-Nass Rivers along Southeast Alaska’s border with British Columbia. This is the best way to ensure that Alaskan communities and tribes downstream from potential and existing mining sites in BC can raise their concerns and participate in an equitable dialogue between our two nations. I am hopeful that the Canadian governments will honor the internationally accepted process as laid out in the Boundary Waters Treaty and allow this critical conversation to take place between all impacted jurisdictions.”
Although far from a ringing endorsement, Secretary Haaland defending the Willow project reflects the reality of the situation: natural gas and oil are the foundation of America’s energy security now – & are projected to be for decades to come. Read more: https://t.co/AmxneBGKN6
— American Petroleum Institute (@APIenergy) April 27, 2023
Today’s Key Takeaways: Americans’ support for nuclear energy hits all-time high. Young voters angry with Biden over Alaska oil drilling project. FERC ruling supports LNG efforts. A barrier removed for Pebble Mine. Biden ignores environmental groups request for a plan to phase out oil and gas production on public lands.
Americans’ support for nuclear energy is at its highest point in a decade, according to a new Gallup poll.
Fifty-five percent of respondents said they strongly or somewhat favor the use of nuclear energy as a method of providing electricity in the U.S., while another 44 percent said they oppose the use of such energy.
U.S. nuclear opinions
Overall, do you strongly favor, somewhat favor, somewhat oppose or strongly oppose the use of nuclear energy as one of the ways to provide electricity for the U.S.?
Support for nuclear energy has steadily increased since hitting a record low in 2016, when 44 percent supported its use, Gallup noted.
By a 3-1 margin, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) voted on April 21 to reaffirm approvals initially issued in 2019 that will allow NextDecade’s big new liquefied natural gas (LNG) export facility to move forward. The vote to reaffirm the decision was made necessary by an order issued 18 months ago by the District of Columbia US Court of Appeals.
In an interview on Monday, NextDecade Chairman and CEO Matt Schatzman confirmed the FERC decision now clears the way to move quickly to a final investment decision (FID) on the project. “We have publicly disclosed that we expect to make it (FID) by the end of Q2,” he says.
Schatzman went onto say that the company’s plan remains to confirm the FID for the first three trains in what would ultimately become a five-train plant. The initial three trains would be capable of processing 17.6 million tons/year of LNG.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will reconsider its decision denying a permit for the proposed Pebble Mine.
In 2020, the Army Corps rejected Pebble’s application for a large open-pit gold and copper mine upstream from Bristol Bay. But now the company has partially won its administrative appeal of that decision.
The announcement suggests that one barrier to the controversial mine is not as solid as opponents had hoped.
In an 81-page ruling Tuesday afternoon, the agency’s reviewing officers conclude the Alaska District made a few mistakes, particularly in how it dealt with the possibility of a catastrophic failure of a dam that would contain waste rock from the mining operation. The permit denial was in part based on the potential damage to fish and water quality in the event of a catastrophic dam breach, even though the Army Corps concluded a catastrophic event isn’t “reasonably foreseeable.”
“My decision to remand the permit application denial back to the Alaska District is not a permit authorization,” Gen. Kirk Gibbs, the commander of the Pacific Ocean Division, said in an emailed statement. “The District has been asked to re-evaluate specific issues in the administrative record to ensure that the decision is well-supported.”
Pebble faces other obstacles, beyond the Corps permit. Earlier this year the Environmental Protection Agency, at the urging of tribes and others that fish the salmon-rich waters of Bristol Bay, concluded the mine was incompatible with the Clean Water Act. The EPA decision effectively vetoed any proposal to develop the Pebble deposit that would have a similar impact on the same rivers.
The Corps’ administrative ruling sends the permit application back to the Alaska District for reconsideration of particular aspects.
There was no immediate response from the Pebble Partnership, which has been pursuing the project for more than two decades.
POLITICS:
GROUPS SUE INTERIOR OVER OIL AND GAS PHASEOUT PETITION: Environmental groups sued the Biden administration for not responding to an administrative petition they filed earlier this year requesting the administration put together a plan to phase out oil and gas production on public lands.
The petition, led by Center for Biological Diversity, was filed in January under the Administrative Procedure Act, which allows interested parties to petition for the issuance, amendment, or repeal of a rule.
Plaintiff groups, which also include Wildearth Guardians and Friends of the Earth, argued the Interior Department failed to comply with its regulations for “prompt consideration” of the petition and asked the court to compel the department’s response.
Their petition included a recommended schedule for phasing down production to 50% of its 2020 baseline in 2026. By 2035, the schedule provides for production levels to be only 2% of 2020 levels.
The Biden administration has moved forward with planning and scheduling new lease sales more steadily since the Inflation Reduction Act passed. Lease sales in several states are scheduled to take place next month, and the Bureau of Land Management has begun scoping for Q3 sales.
As Alaska prepares to accept and implement billions of dollars of infrastructure funding from the federal government via the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) it is important that the state do everything in their power to ensure that projects supported by this legislation can be implemented in the most efficient and timely manner. Assuming the 404 dredge and fill permitting program of the Clean Water Act is a logical step forward in this effort.
Assuming responsibilities from the Feds is nothing new to Alaska. Some of the benefits to all Alaskans include:
Setting infrastructure permitting priorities
Delivering timely infrastructure projects that serve Alaska’s immediate needs (think about rural Alaska and funding they are receiving for sanitation projects and the need to implement these projects quickly- but being delayed by the need for a 404 permit to dig and install the systems)
Using State of Alaska employees who are personally vested in respecting the environmental guidelines required by law and
Providing opportunities for State of Alaska employees to have more career opportunities, thereby increasing employee retention.
AKDOT Commissioner Ryan Anderson outlines this concept in his letter below:
I don’t care what your energy or climate platform is. Permitting reform is holding it back, and progress can’t be made without it.
Today’s Key Takeaways: Interior Secretary defends Willow. Supremes leave climate change cases re: oil to the states. Texas is looking to new natural gas plants for back-up power for their grid. Palmer project in Southeast, AK to spend $25.5 million in 2023.
Interior Secretary Deb Haaland defended her department’s approval of the contentious Willow oil project on Friday, saying that despite President Joe Biden’s campaign promise to end new drilling on federal lands, “We’re not going to turn the faucet off and say we’re not drilling anymore.″
Speaking to the annual conference of the Society of Environmental Journalists, Haaland said the Biden administration is “following the science and the law when it comes to everything we do, and that includes gas and oil″ leases considered by her agency, which oversees U.S. public lands and waters.
Despite Biden’s pledge, “We’re not going to say we’re not going to use gas and oil. That’s not reality, ″ Haaland said. “So we are doing the best we absolutely can. ″
Haaland’s comments came after the administration faced sharp criticism from some of its strongest supporters — especially young climate activists — after Interior approved the $8 billion Willow project on March 13. The massive drilling plan by oil giant ConocoPhillips could produce up to 180,000 barrels of oil a day on Alaska’s petroleum-rich North Slope.
SCOTUS DECLINES TO HEAR OIL COMPANIES’ APPEAL ON CLIMATE CHANGE CASES: The Supreme Court declined to hear appeals from oil companies seeking to shift climate suits to federal courts, allowing the oil majors to be held liable for any damages as determined by individual state courts.
The decision is a blow to the oil majors’ push to have their concerns heard by a federal court, where they are widely believed to have a higher chance of success than in state and local jurisdictions.
The primary appeal was led by ExxonMobil and Suncor Energy, who sought to move the suit by two Colorado counties and the city of Boulder, according to the Examiner’s Kaelan Deese.
The localities argue the companies should compensate taxpayers for the higher cost of road maintenance and fighting wildfires. Chevron, ConocoPhillips, Shell, Phillips 66, and BP also filed appeals in cases filed in Colorado local governments.
The increasing threat of blackouts is spurring Texas politicians to consider a plan to fund new natural gas-fired power plants that would provide back-up power to the grid. The plan is to build up to 10 gigawatts to provide backup generation that is weatherized and has on-site fuel, creating an energy insurance fund. Builders of the facilities would be assured returns of up to 10 percent. The plan is estimated to cost $18 billion, putting the price tag of the “Texas Energy Insurance Program” around $7 billion over what had previously been estimated. The bill, SB 6, sets aside $10.8 billion to finance 10,000 megawatts of natural gas power plants. The power plants would be used only in case of power grid emergencies, acting similar to a backup generator for the state power grid.
SB 6 leaves open the question of whether the plants would be paid for using state funds or through extra charges to electricity customers served by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), which covers most of the state. A $10.8 billion price tag would mean an extra cost of less than $4 a month for residential customers, according to Alicia Knapp, president and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway Energy Renewables. The plan would direct the state to hire one or several entities such as the river authority to build power plants that could come online during emergencies. The plants would be able to supply 2 million homes during peak demand and could run for days, unlike battery backup power.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, April 24, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — American Pacific Mining Corp (CSE: USGD / OTCQX: USGDF / FWB: 1QC) (“American Pacific” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce the 2023 budget and work program for the Palmer Project (“Palmer” or the “Project”), an advanced-stage, high-grade volcanogenic massive sulphide-sulphate (“VMS”) project located within the Porcupine Mining District of the Haines Borough, Alaska.
The 2023, multi-purpose, US $25.5 million work program at the Palmer Project, includes a surface exploration drilling program, geotechnical drilling, camp construction, ongoing baseline environmental and site engineering work.
2023 Palmer work program highlights:
A 9,000 metre (“m”) resource infill drill program at the Southwall Zone designed to begin the process of upgrading mineral resources from Inferred to Measured and Indicated at Palmer. The Palmer Deposit (Southwall and RW Zones) currently include an Indicated mineral resource of 4.68 million tonnes grading 5.23% zinc,1.49% copper, 30.0 grams per tonne (“g/t”) silver, 0.30 g/t gold and inferred mineral resource of 5.34 million tonnes grading 5.20% zinc, 0.96% copper, 29.2 g/t silver, 0.28 g/t gold.1
A 2,550 m, nine-hole geotechnical drill program to improve the understanding of the hydrogeology, including water volume and quality at Palmer.
On-going camp construction to support seasonal exploration activities.
Environmental and permitting, including on-going environmental baseline studies and compliance work.
Engineering studies, including metallurgical programs on the Southwall and RW Zone mineralization, a production site evaluation that provides an alternate production portal, mill and tailing management analysis, and ongoing preparations for a feasibility study.
