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The Mineral Industries of the Middle East and North Africa in 2015

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The Mineral Industries of the Middle East and North Africa in 2015 2015 Minerals Yearbook THE MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA [ADVANCE RELEASE] U.S. Department of the Interior July 2019 U.S. Geological Survey 10° W 0° 10° E 20° E 30° E 40° E 50° E 60° E 50° N 40° N E D I T M E R R A N E SYRIA A LEBANON ATLANTIC N S E A ISRAEL TUNISIA IRAQ (West Bank) IRAN OCEAN (Gaza) MOROCCO 30° N P E JORDAN R S ALGERIA IA KUWAIT N LIBYA EGYPT BAHRAIN GU SAUDI ARABIA LF Western Sahara R E D S E A QATAR UNITED ARAB OMAN EMIRATES 20° N YEMEN ARABIAN SEA GULF OF ADEN 10° N Base modified from ESRI ArcGIS online world countries (generalized) map data, 2017 Mercator Auxiliary Sphere projection World Geodetic System 1984 datum Figure 1. Map of the Middle East and North Africa region. The countries covered in this report are labeled on the map; bordering countries are shown in gray and not labeled. The Mineral Industries of the Middle East and North Africa By Mowafa Taib, Sinan Hastorun, Glenn J. Wallace, Loyd M. Trimmer III, and David R. Wilburn The countries and territories of the Middle East and North their relatively small populations. The rate of growth of the GDP Africa (MENA) region that are covered in this chapter include in the MENA region was 0.3% in 2015 compared with 0.1% the following: Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, in 2014 and 2.1% in 2013. The rates of growth for individual Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, countries within the region varied greatly; Egypt, Iraq, and Syria, Tunisia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the West Bank Morocco achieved the highest rates of economic growth in and Gaza Strip, Western Sahara, and Yemen. The region covers 2015, and Iran, Libya, Syria, and Yemen had the lowest rates of an area of about 11.4 million square kilometers or about 7.6% of growth for the year (table 2, end of chapter). the world’s total land area. In 2015, the MENA region was home In 2015, several MENA countries were under various levels to about 428 million people, or 5.8% of the world’s population of political instability and civil unrest. Libya, Syria, and Yemen (fig. 1, facing page; table 1). were among the countries most affected by armed conflicts, and they suffered big economic losses owing mainly to sharp Acknowledgments reductions in the value of their hydrocarbon production and exports. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) acknowledges and expresses its sincere appreciation to the Government agencies Exploration and international organizations listed below for providing mineral production statistics and basic economic data and Many Governments (through their geological surveys) and exploration and mineral-related information. international exploration companies continued to explore in For mineral production statistics— the region for such nonfuel minerals as bauxite (Saudi Arabia), • Algeria—Ministry of Industry and Mines; copper (Iran, Israel, Morocco, Oman, and Saudi Arabia), gold • Israel—Department of Quarries and Mines of the Ministry (Egypt, Iran, Oman, and Saudi Arabia), lead and zinc (Algeria, of Energy and Water Resources; Iran, and Tunisia), silver (Egypt, Iran, Morocco, Oman, and • Kuwait—Central Statistical Office of the Ministry of Saudi Arabia), and tantalum (Egypt). Table 3 is a list of selected Planning; nonfuel mineral exploration sites in the MENA region in 2015. • Morocco—Ministry of Energy, Mines, Water and the Environment; Commodity Overview • Oman—Ministry of Commerce and Industry; The main contributions of the MENA region to the world’s • Saudi Arabia—Central Department of Statistics and supply of mineral commodities were crude petroleum and Information of the Ministry of Economy and Planning, and condensate (32.4 %), helium (31.1%), phosphate rock (20.3%), Deputy Ministry for Mineral Resources of the Ministry of natural gas (21.5%), ammonia (N content) (12.2%), aluminum Petroleum and Mineral Resources; and (primary) (about 11%), gypsum (9.9%), potash (7.2%), cement • United Arab Emirates—National Bureau of Statistics. (7.1%), petroleum refinery products (3.8%), chromite (2.6%), For basic economic and population data— and crude steel (2.3%) (table 4; BP p.l.c., 2016, p. 20; Hamak, • International Monetary Fund, and 2017). • The World Bank Group. Tables 5 through 18 include the MENA region’s historical General Economic Conditions production data for major mineral commodities for 2005, 2010, 2014, and 2015, and projected production in the region for 2017, In 2015, the gross domestic product (GDP) of the MENA 2019, and 2021. Estimates for the production of major mineral region based on purchasing power parity was about $7.8 trillion, commodities for 2017 and beyond have been based upon which accounted for 6.8% of the world’s GDP. The region’s supply-side assumptions, such as announced plans for increased GDP per capita averaged $18,240, which was 17% higher than production and (or) new capacity construction and bankable the world average of $15,618; Qatar had the highest GDP per feasibility studies. The outlook tables in this summary chapter capita ($130,686), and Yemen ($2,676) and Syria ($1,821) show historic production and projected production trends; had the lowest GDPs per capita in the region. The higher than therefore, no indication is made about whether the historical average GDP per capita in the region was attributed to the Gulf data are estimated or reported, and revisions are not identified. Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, namely Bahrain, Kuwait, Data on individual mineral commodities in the tables in the Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, individual country chapters are labeled to indicate estimates which had some of the highest GDPs per capita in the world and revisions. The outlook segments of the mineral commodity owing to the wealth generated by their hydrocarbon exports and tables are based on projected trends that could affect currently THE MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA—2015 [ADVANCE RELEASE] 46.1 (2015) producing facilities and (or) planned new facilities that were being built in Iran, and the planned expansion of smelters operating companies, consortia, or Governments have projected in Bahrain, Oman, and the UAE (table 7). to come online within indicated timeframes. Chromium and Cobalt.—Iran and Oman were the only Forward-looking information, which includes estimates of producers of chromite in the region in 2015. Chromite future production, exploration, and mine development, cost of production decreased by 26% in 2015 compared with that of capital projects, and timing of the start of operations, are subject 2014. The decrease was attributed to lower chromite prices on to a variety of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual international markets. Morocco was the sole producer of cobalt events or results to differ significantly from expected outcomes. in the MENA region; its production increased by 24% in 2015 Projects listed in the following sections are presented as an compared with that of 2014 (tables 8, 9). indication of industry plans and are not a USGS prediction of Copper.—The MENA region was a minor contributor to the what will take place. world’s copper supply in 2015. Copper mine production was carried out by Iran, Morocco, Oman, and Saudi Arabia. Iran was Metals the leading copper producer in the region followed by Morocco and Saudi Arabia. The region’s copper mine production was Aluminum and Bauxite and Alumina.—Iran and Saudi expected to increase by 72% in 2021 compared with that of Arabia were the only producers of bauxite in the MENA region 2015; most of the increase would be from new projects in Iran, in 2015. Iran produced 520,000 metric tons (t) of bauxite which was also expected to expand its primary copper smelting and Saudi Arabia produced 1.6 million metric tons (Mt) of and refining capacity during the next 5 years (tables 10, 11). metallurgical bauxite. The region’s bauxite output was expected Gold.—The MENA region was a modest contributor to the to increase to 6.2 Mt by 2021, and most of the increase would world’s supply of gold. Egypt was the leading gold producer come from the capacity expansion to 5 million metric tons per in the region in 2015, followed by Saudi Arabia and Iran. The year (Mt/yr) at the Al-Ba’itha Mine in Saudi Arabia, although a region’s gold production increased by 11% in 2015 compared significant increase in Iran’s production was also expected (table 5). with that of 2014. The region’s gold output was projected to Saudi Arabia became the region’s leading producer of increase by about 55% to about 35,100 kilograms (kg) by 2021 alumina in 2015. The Ras Al Khair alumina refinery, which from about 22,700 kg in 2015 following the completion of used bauxite produced at the Al-Ba’itha Mine in northeastern phase 2 of the Sukari Mine in Egypt and the commissioning of Saudi Arabia, was completed in 2014 and came online in new mines in Iran and Saudi Arabia (table 12). late 2015. It produced 846,000 t of alumina for the year. In Iron and Steel.—In 2015, the MENA region’s iron ore output Iran, alumina production at the Jajarm refinery, which was decreased by about 18% compared with that of 2014. Iran was operated by Iran Aluminum Co., decreased to 241,000 t in the leading producer of iron ore in the region. The decrease 2015 from 251,000 t in 2014. Iran had to import 66% of the in iron ore production was attributed to the decline in iron alumina needed by its aluminum smelters. Iran was expected ore prices on world markets.
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