Gold is one of the rare element on this Earth. Gold’s value has skyrocketed over the years since its discovery in ancient times. During those times, gold was common and ancient civilizations decorate their royal halls with gold and silver. Now, as the supply of gold has decreased yet its demand is increasing, the value of it has become very high.
This is why gold mining is such a lucrative business. This is also where the expression “hit a gold mine” came from. People who have discovered a gold mine become instantly rich since they are able to harvest such high amounts of gold in just one area. But, there is one country in the world that has produced more gold than any other country. Find out which is the top gold producing country in the world.
The top gold producing country in the world is none other than China. China is the number one consumer of gold as well as the top producer of gold.
In the past year, China has produced 355,000 kilograms of gold. The gold mines at Shandong Province has been one of the most lucrative in the business.
It is located in the middle of Beijing and Shanghai. It is one of the top gold producing mines in China with over one-fifth of the output produced in a year. It is solely controlled by the China National Gold Group.
Even though it has a lot of gold mines, China has over a thousand tons of gold held as a reserve while there are still over 1,900 tons of it lying underground somewhere in the land.
In 2012, China has seen an increase of over 11.7% in total production over the previous year. Since then, the country has been accounted for 13.7% of the total gold production in that same year.
The gold mines in China can be found in five different provinces namely Shandong, Henan, Jiangxi, Yunnan, and Fujian. The country’s largest gold producing company is the Zijin Mining Company which operates in Zijinshan gold and also mines copper.
In the past few years, China has risen to become the top gold producing country and has created a vast gap from the next country that has produced large amounts of gold as well. Australia takes the second spot followed by the United States than by Russia, and finally the former top spot, South Africa.
China produces over 370 metric tons of gold per year while Australia only gets 250 metric tons a year. During 2011 and 2012, Australia has seen a four percent decrease in production which is the reason why China has grabbed the top spot.
What Do I Think
Prior to 2006, South Africa was the largest gold producing country in the world. Around 2011, there were numerous gold mine strikes that led to the decrease in gold production in the country. South Africa has 35 large-scale gold mines that are still in operation which includes the deepest gold mine like Tau Tona and Mponeng.