Non-Metal Mining & Quarrying
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 2,700 non-metal mining companies in the US develop mine sites, extract non-metallic minerals from mines, and process the minerals mechanically through beneficiation (crushing, grinding, washing, separating, and concentrating) or by using chemical or electrochemical techniques. Products include dimensional stone blocks or slabs, crushed or broken stone, sand and gravel, clay, and minerals such as potash, soda, borate, sodium, potassium, and phosphate.
Environmental Impacts Of Extraction
During operation, mining companies must control soil erosion and prevent runoff that could contaminate nearby bodies of water.
Injuries and Fatalities Drive Regulation
The mining industry has a notoriously high injury and fatality rate.
Industry size & Structure
The average non-metal mining company operates out of one to two locations, has about $11 million in annual revenue, and employs about 35 workers.
- The non-metal mining industry consists of about 2,700 firms that employ 95,300 workers and generate about $30 billion annually.
- Major industry segments include dimensional and crushed stone mining and quarrying; sand and gravel quarrying and dredging; and clay, ceramic, refractory, and other nonmetallic mineral mining and quarrying.
- About 71% of establishments have fewer than 20 employees.
- 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.
- Large US companies include Martin Marietta Materials, The Mosaic Company, Compass Minerals International, Intrepid Potash, and United States Lime & Minerals.
Industry Forecast
Non-Metal Mining & Quarrying Industry Growth
Recent Developments
Nov 25, 2022 - Freight Rail Strike Looms
- Tens of thousands of rail workers may strike, causing the nation’s freight railroads to shut down unless Congress intervenes. The International Brotherhood of Boilermakers union, which represents a fraction of approximately 115,000 rail workers involved in the contract dispute with Union Pacific, BNSF, CSX, and other railroads, voted down the contract on Nov. 14. All 12 rail unions must approve their deals to avert a strike, although no strike is imminent because all the unions have agreed to keep negotiating even if their members vote no, until a deadline early in December. Congress is expected to block a strike and impose contract terms on both sides if they can't come to an agreement before the deadline. The stakes are high for the US economy with so many industries, including distributors of farm supplies, relying on railroads to deliver their raw materials and finished products, the AP reports.
- The price of diesel fuel used to power mining and quarrying equipment and the trucks that transport the industry’s products is at a record premium versus gasoline and crude oil. While the price of gasoline is up about 14% so far in 2022, the price for diesel has risen by about 50%, to $5.35 a gallon, according to price data from AAA/OPIS. The gains widened the gap between the two fuels to an all-time high of $1.61, versus 23 cents a year ago. Dwindling stocks, the war in Ukraine, severe weather, and other energy market disruptions are behind the growing gap, The Wall Street Journal reported in November. Wholesale diesel, delivered into New York harbor, traded at a record premium to crude oil in October, according to the Energy Information Administration, which also reported the country had only 25 days of diesel in reserve.
- Declines in coal-powered electricity production and paper manufacturing are reducing the demand for lime, which plays a key role in many air pollution control applications. US lime demand is forecast to decline 1.3% yearly in volume terms through 2026, according to Lime: United States, a recent report by Freedonia Focus Reports. Declining demand for flue gas desulphurization (FGD) due to declines in coal use, as well as falling paper and paperboard production, will trigger decreases. Mitigating factors in lime’s decline are expanding construction activity, chemical output, and steel production. Quicklime is expected to remain the leading form of lime used, owing to its versatility and low price, according to the report.
- The US Geological Survey recently announced that Arkansas and Missouri will receive more than $2.75 million to collect the largest continuous swath of geophysical data in the United States focused on critical mineral resources. The state-and-federal partnership is funded in part by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed late last year. With over $320 million in total funding for critical minerals mapping, Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding has accelerated mapping in areas with potential for holding critical mineral resources still in the ground and in mine wastes. The mapping of critical minerals is intended to improve understanding of domestic supplies, a key step in securing a reliable and sustainable supply of the critical minerals essential to clean energy technologies like batteries and wind turbines.
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