Metal Ore Mining
Industry Profile Report
Dive Deep into the industry with a 25+ page industry report (pdf format) including the following chapters
Industry Overview Current Conditions, Industry Structure, How Firms Operate, Industry Trends, Credit Underwriting & Risks, and Industry Forecast.
Call Preparation Call Prep Questions, Industry Terms, and Weblinks.
Financial Insights Working Capital, Capital Financing, Business Valuation, and Financial Benchmarks.
Industry Profile Excerpts
Industry Overview
The 256 metal ore producers in the US are primarily engaged in developing mine sites, extracting ores (metal-bearing rock), and processing it to extract the desired metals, including iron ore (hematite, magnetite, siderite, taconite), precious metals (gold, silver, platinum), copper, nickel, lead, zinc, uranium, radium and vanadium ores, and other metals. Extraction processes include dressing (picking, sorting, washing of ores), milling (crushing, grinding), and beneficiation (processing to improve purity or quality).
Environmental Compliance
Metal ore producers are directly impacted by a wide range of environmental regulations that affect the permitting, operation, and reclamation of mining sites.
Talent Shortage
As the US looks to boost its domestic stocks of critical metals and minerals required for the green energy transition, the mining industry is facing a major shortage of talent.
Industry size & Structure
The average metal ore mining company operates out of one to two locations, has about $105 million in annual revenue, and employs fewer than 50 workers.
- The metal ore mining industry includes 256 firms that employ 44,000 workers and generate $27 billion in annual revenue.
- Most companies operate only one or two mine sites at a time due to the large capital investment in equipment needed for extraction and processing.
- Major industry segments include mining and processing iron ore, gold and silver ore, copper, nickel, lead, and zinc.
- The industry is highly concentrated: the top 20 companies account for 94% of annual revenue.
- Large companies with operations in the US include ArcelorMittal, Hibbing Taconite Company, Cliffs Minnesota Mining Co., Barrick Gold, Newmont Corp., and Freeport-McMoRan. These companies may be vertically integrated with mining and steelmaking operations and mines outside the US.
- Minnesota produces most of the iron ore mined in the US. Almost all iron ore (98%) is used to make steel.
Industry Forecast
Metal Ore Mining Industry Growth
Recent Developments
Mar 16, 2025 - Trump Order Boosts US Uranium
- The Trump administration may classify uranium as a critical mineral, unlocking federal funding and fast-track permitting for US projects, OilPrice.com reports. In 2023, the US had five operating uranium mines, down from 20 mines in 2009. Currently, the US imports nearly all of the uranium concentrate used in its nuclear generators, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA). Since peaking in the early 1980s, domestic production of uranium concentrate – the first step in the nuclear fuel production process – has fallen to the point where imports account for 99% used to make nuclear fuel. US uranium mines produced just 50,000 pounds of uranium concentrate in 2023, a significant decrease from the 194,000 pounds produced in 2022, per the EIA. Demand for uranium is expected to grow due to increasing the power requirements from AI data centers.
- The price of antimony – a critical metal used in munitions, solar panels, semiconductors, and other industrial products – is rising following China’s ban on certain rate earth mineral exports to the US, Reuters reports. In December, China banned exports of certain rare earth metals to the US in retaliation for the Biden administration’s imposition of export controls to China, pushing antimony prices to all-time highs, between $39,500-40,000 per metric ton as of Dec. 31. Overall, antimony prices soared by around 250% last year. China controls roughly half of global antimony production, with Tajikistan and Russia controlling some 30%, leaving the US dependent of foreign sources. To reduce US reliance on imports, Idaho-based Perpetua Resources – the only mine source of antimony in the US – and smelter operator United States Antimony Corp. are exploring a partnership to establish an antimony supply chain in Idaho and Montana, Metal Tech News reports.
- The bipartisan Good Samaritan Remediation of Abandoned Hardrock Mines Act of 2024, signed into law by President Biden in December, cuts the red tape to allow state agencies and nonprofits to begin the long-overdue clean up of an estimated 23,000 legacy abandoned actively draining mines in Colorado, and well over 100,000 nationwide, according to the National Mining Association (NMA). Previously, the intricacy of federal environmental law had scared off would-be do-gooders from stepping in to clean up actively draining abandoned hardrock mines because they risked becoming legally and financially liable for the pollution. According to the NMA, the bill’s passage will encourage the involvement of mining companies in the clean up. A version of the law was first introduced in Congress in 1999.
- Producer prices for metal ore mining companies rose 8.4% in December compared to a year ago after rising 5.1% in the previous December-versus-December annual comparison, according to the latest US Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Over the past five years, the producer price index for metal ore mining firms – a measure of what producers receive for their products – has risen nearly 50% on rising demand for metals amid concerns of supply disruptions. Employment by the industry rose by 1.4% in January year over year, while average wages at mining firms rose 3% YoY in December to $35.71 per hour, per the BLS.
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