Norilsk Nickel’s mine tops the list of most valuable mines in the world

A USD 873 billion mine extracting Ni, Cu, Pt, Pd and Au metals from the magmatic sulphide deposit that forms the core of Norilsk Nickel’s eponymous operations was listed as the most valuable mine in the world by MINING.COM.

If the calculations were based on prices back in March, the value of the mine would have pushed USD 1.5 trillion.

Who

Using data from sister company Mining Intelligence, MINING.COM compiled a ranking of the world’s 10 richest working base and precious metal mines by calculating the aggregate value of mineral resources based on ruling prices.

The first three mines in the list were discovered in the previous century, but some other mines continue to hold their value despite being older than the airplane.

Why it matters

“While nowhere near all the contained metals in terms of measured and indicated resources in these deposits will be extracted, the exercise does illustrate just what valuable assets mines like these are and, perhaps more pertinently, just how unevenly rich deposits like these are scattered across the planet.”