China Discovers Largest Gold Deposit = 8 Statue of Libertys

[Lemon Thrower]

Why isn't the gold price rising on this news?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Chinese scientists have uncovered a "supergiant" deposit of high-quality gold ore hidden near some of the country's existing gold mines. The vast reserve, which could be the largest single reservoir of the valuable metal left anywhere on Earth, could end up being the largest known deposit of the precious metal anywhere in the world, and is worth more than $80 billion.

As LiveScience reports, the new deposit was uncovered at the Wangu gold field in the northeast of Hunan province, representatives from the Geological Bureau of Hunan Province (GBHP) told Chinese state media on Nov. 20. Workers detected more than 40 gold veins, which contained around 330 tons (300 metric tons) of gold down to a depth of 6,600 feet (2,000 meters). However, using 3D computer models, mining experts have predicted that there could be up to 1,100 tons (1,000 metric tons) of gold — roughly eight times heavier than the Statute of Liberty — hidden at depths of up to 9,800 feet (3,000 m).

If true, the entire deposit is likely worth around 600 billion yuan ($83 billion), GBHP officials said.

Researchers drilled down around 6,600 feet below the ground and identified more than 40 veins of gold ore.

Officials revealed that the maximum quality of the new deposit was 138 grams of gold per metric ton of ore, which is relatively high compared with most other gold mines around the world. "Many drilled rock cores showed visible gold," Chen Rulin, an ore-prospecting expert with GBHP, told state media.

More gold was also found during test drills around the new site's "peripheral areas," suggesting there are more large deposits waiting to be tapped in the future, experts said.

It is hard to keep track of the amount of gold left in the various mines across the world due to fluctuations in the rate of extraction at each site and a lack of transparency in reporting results. However, as of 2022, the largest known remaining gold reserves on Earth are found in South Africa's South Deep gold mine, which has around 1,025 tons (930 metric tons) of gold, according to Mining Technology. This means the new deposit could be the largest known natural stockpile of gold on the planet.

Mining experts believe that the new deposit contains up to 1,100 tons of gold

News of the discovery sent ripples through the mining community and the wider global economy. As LiveScience notes, the price of gold jumped to around $2,700 per ounce - just below a record high set earlier this year - although it is unclear why a surge in gold supply would push the price of gold higher.

China is already the biggest producer of gold in the world, accounting for around 10% of global output in 2023, according to Reuters. However, the country still uses more gold than it can produce, consuming around three times as much of the precious metal as it can dig up. As a result, China relies heavily on importing gold from countries like Australia and South Africa.

China currently mines around 10% of the world's newly dug up gold every year.

The new gold deposit could help alleviate this issue but will not solve the problem completely. Based on current consumption rates, the entire deposit would only supply the country's needs for around 1.4 years.

By the end of 2023, an estimated total of 234,332 tons (212,582 metric tons) of gold have been dug up in human history, with more than two-thirds of this being extracted since 1950, according to the World Gold Council.

This may seem like a lot. But if you were to melt down all the gold ever mined and put it into a single cube, it would only be around 72 feet (22 m) across, according to the World Gold Council, slightly shorter than the length of a blue whale.

https://www.zerohedge.com/precious-meta ... 80-billion

[Cu Penny Hoarder]

a depth of 6,600 feet (2,000 meters)

[68Camaro]

There is no reason gold would go UP on this news if was thought to be easily and quickly attainable. This supply is neither. There is a strong belief that there is a lot of gold far deeper, in fact at the core, surrounded by its other heavy metal friends in the periodic table, and outside of this is the far larger magnetic spherical core of molten iron. Probably billions of tons of gold there, but completely inaccessible. The gold in the streets of heaven is easier to get to.

[shinnosuke]

Projects to extract gold from asteroids just got set back a dozen years.

[pmbug]

Why isn't the gold price rising on this news?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
...

Why would you expect gold to rise upon news of a potential (increased) supply shock? Even if this gold were accessible and expected to be easy/cheap to mine, China doesn't export it's local production - this gold isn't going to make it's way to the LBMA or COMEX or global gold markets. If anything, it would indicate that China could rely more on it's domestic production and end up buying less from the global markets.

[JerrySpringer]

How much energy and money would it take to extract the ore? I get oil is drilled miles down, but solid rock ore does not flow up pipes. Devil's advocate says they do an open mine pit a mile deep, lol.

[shinnosuke]

Now Presidente Bukele of El Salvador reports that his country has $3 trillion in gold deposits.
https://x.com/stacyherbert/status/1863786112726003965

The value is mentioned around the 23:50 mark in the embedded video if you don't want to watch it all.

[tdtwedt]

Now Presidente Bukele of El Salvador reports that his country has $3 trillion in gold deposits.
https://x.com/stacyherbert/status/1863786112726003965

The value is mentioned around the 23:50 mark in the embedded video if you don't want to watch it all.

Tether-parent iFinex to aid El Salvador’s crypto rules

The parent company of Bitfinex exchange and Tether (USDT), iFinex, reached a partnership with El Salvador to realize the vision of President Nayib Bukele for comprehensive crypto legislation.

https://crypto.news/ifinex-el-salvador-crypto-rules/

[Lemon Thrower]

How much energy and money would it take to extract the ore? I get oil is drilled miles down, but solid rock ore does not flow up pipes. Devil's advocate says they do an open mine pit a mile deep, lol.

Not that much. The mines in South Africa are similarly deep and have been producing for decades. Of course, that deep the conditions are barely fit for humans but the castle dwellers don't ever mention that.

[68Camaro]

How much energy and money would it take to extract the ore? I get oil is drilled miles down, but solid rock ore does not flow up pipes. Devil's advocate says they do an open mine pit a mile deep, lol.

Not that much. The mines in South Africa are similarly deep and have been producing for decades. Of course, that deep the conditions are barely fit for humans but the castle dwellers don't ever mention that.

Yes, you're correct. I did 5 minutes of research and found out that most of the producing south African mines are now that deep or much deeper. For the deepest mine with the highest reserves, the corollary is that it took 5 years to sink shafts before production started, and the 2022 extraction cost was >$1600 / toz compared to a then value of $1900, so profits have been marginal. Gold has gone up since then, but so have costs, and it will be many many years before the early sunk costs get paid back. And it's a risky business, with the possibility of mine collapse due to an unforeseen fracture giving way. Bottom line, if the rock supports mining, it's very feasible, but not without cost or risk.