CRU: Chinese Withdrawal of Iron Ore Mining Licenses to Have Limited Market Impact

LONDON, December 8, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

In China's fight against pollution, The Metallurgical Mines' Association of China (MMAC) recently announced that it will withdraw more than 1,000 licenses from iron ore miners in the country. Contrary to media reports, our analysis show that this measure will have little impact on the Chinese iron ore industry.

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Brief overview of iron ore mining in China
China is a country with plenty of iron ore reserves. However, almost all of the reserves consist of magnetite with an average iron content of~30%. In comparison, the largest iron ore producers in the world all mine reserves that consist of hematite and contain around 60% iron. As a result of the low Fe content, Chinese iron ore requires beneficiation to raise the iron content to levels suitable for sintering or pelletising. After beneficiation, Chinese domestic iron ore production consists mostly of concentrate with an iron content of ~64-66%. CRU estimates that, currently, around 68% of the concentrate is used in sinter plants and 32% in pellet plants.

Historically, the Chinese steel industry obtained most of its iron ore from domestic sources. However, as Chinese steel production increased rapidly in the early-2000s, domestic iron ore production was not enough to supply the country's booming steel industry.  Today, China obtains only 19% of its iron ore from domestic production - a figure that CRU expects to fall to 15% in 2021, as lower iron ore prices continue to force high-cost Chinese producers from the market.

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About CRU  

CRU offers unrivalled business intelligence on the global metals, mining and fertilizer industries through market analysis, price assessments, consultancy and events.

Since our foundation by Robert Perlman in 1969, we have consistently invested in primary research and robust methodologies, and developed expert teams in key locations worldwide, including in hard-to-reach markets such as China.

CRU employs over 260 experts and has more than 10 offices around the world, in Europe, the Americas, China, Asia and Australia - our office in Beijing opened in 2004.

When facing critical business decisions, you can rely on our first-hand knowledge to give you a complete view of a commodity market. And you can engage with our experts directly, for the full picture and a personalised response.

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SOURCE CRU