North China’s Inner Mongolia autonomous region has the most new minerals discovered of all the provinces and autonomous regions in the country, according to local experts.

Since 1958, China has discovered more than 50 types of internationally recognized new minerals, 10 of which to be found in Inner Mongolia including bafertisitel, baotite and huanghoite. The rare earth mine in Bayan Obo mining district in Inner Mongolia’s Baotou city is the largest of its kind in the world.

As of the end of 2018, Inner Mongolia’s 20 species of mineral resources had the highest reserves in China, its 45 species of mineral resource reserves rank in the top 3 in the country, and its 95 species of mineral resource reserves are in the top 10.

The identified rare earth resource reserves in Inner Mongolia rank first in the world.

Meanwhile, total estimated gross coal resources in the autonomous region are 953.90 billion metric tons, of which proven reserves are 473.69 billion tons.The total for commercially viable coal reserves in the autonomous region is 409.04 billion tons, accounting for 26.87 percent of the country's total and ranking it first among all the provinces and autonomous regions in China.

The region also has 868.65 million tons estimated gold reserves, 8.19 million tons of copper, 17.22 million tons of lead, and 16.64 million tons of zinc. 

In 2020, coal output in Inner Mongolia autonomous region was 1,025.51 million tons, a decrease of 6 percent over the previous year and coking coal production was 42.23 million tons, an increase of 14.8 percent year-on- year.