China International Mining Conference: Leading the Transformation Path, Jointly Building a Green Future

Tianjin, October 18, 2024 — The four-day 2024 China International Mining Conference concluded at the Tianjin Meijiang International Convention and Exhibition Center. With the theme of “Promoting Mining Cooperation, Creating a Better Future”, this global mining event attracted nearly 10,000 participants from more than 40 countries, regions and international organizations, as well as over 370 participating institutions and enterprises. It has become a core platform for insight into global mining transformation trends and pooling international cooperation consensus. As a journalist who has long focused on global resource issues, I witnessed China’s practical actions and remarkable achievements in promoting green mining transformation and deepening international cooperation on site.

Authoritative Guidance: Mapping New Directions for Mining Transformation

One of the core values of the conference is to provide authoritative guidance for global mining development. During the exhibition, the Ministry of Natural Resources successively released several landmark achievements such as the China Mineral Resources Report 2024 and Global Mining Development Report 2024, systematically sorting out the global mineral resources supply and demand pattern — the supply and demand of fossil energy are both rising globally, the supply and demand of bulk solid minerals are differentiated, and the output of strategic emerging minerals is growing rapidly. These data are regarded by participants as the “gold standard for decision-making reference”. A mining practitioner from Inner Mongolia said bluntly: “The report of the conference every year is an important basis for us to layout projects.”

More practically significant is the release of the first batch of 15 typical cases of ecological restoration in production mines nationwide, covering different mineral types, mining methods and ecological regions such as Shanxi Pingshuo Coal Mine and Liaoning Dagushan Iron Mine, providing replicable “Chinese solutions” for global mining ecological governance. At the Mine Ecological Restoration Forum, experts pointed out that these cases prove that mining development and ecological protection can fully achieve coordinated development, breaking the inherent perception that “mining must destroy mountains”.

Technological Innovation: Green and Intelligent as the Core of Transformation

Entering the 40,000-square-meter exhibition area, greenization and intellectualization have become the most distinctive marks of the times. The newly added exhibition areas such as green exploration, deep drilling and intelligent mines have concentrated on showing the breakthrough progress of China’s mining technology. The reconnaissance-type intelligent patrol dog of Shenzhen Chuangming New Energy Co., Ltd. shuttled flexibly in the exhibition area. Its supporting distributed green power unit solution can realize green power supply for all links of the mine. The photovoltaic energy storage system designed by the company for African mining areas not only achieves 100% green power coverage, but also costs only 30% of diesel power generation . Within two days of the exhibition, the enterprise had established contacts with more than 500 domestic and foreign enterprises, and nearly 100 reached cooperation intentions.

The popularization of intelligent equipment is reshaping the mining production model. The “dark factory” solution displayed by Oriental Measurement & Control realizes unmanned operation of the whole mineral processing process through digital means, and its unmanned electric locomotives and open-pit mine trucks have been applied in many places; The 3D printed intelligent mine sand table of Xinhai Mining enables managers to remotely control all production data in real time through digital twin technology; Haofeng Drilling’s full-hydraulic wireline core exploration drill has 8 international patents, becoming a “sharp tool” for deep exploration . The automatic equipment of Yantai Jinpeng Mining Machinery even attracted participants from Bolivia for special docking. Its 24-hour intelligent monitoring system has been exported to more than 20 countries, helping local high-efficiency and low-carbon production.

International Cooperation: Building a New Pattern of Win-Win Development

China has always promoted global mining cooperation with an open attitude. The 7 national and regional promotion meetings of this conference have become key links for cooperation and docking. The first Xinjiang special promotion meeting launched 178 superior mineral projects, attracting leading enterprises such as China Rare Earth Group and Zijin Mining. The 200-seat venue was full; At the African mining project promotion meeting, mining department officials from five countries including Zambia and South Africa focused on promoting resource projects. The exchange platform built by China Geological Survey Bureau relying on China-Africa Geoscience Cooperation Center has become a concrete practice to implement the Beijing Action Plan 2025-2027 of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.

Paul Kabuswe, Minister of Mines and Mineral Development of Zambia, expressed the aspirations of many countries: “The development of Africa’s mining industry needs a strong partnership, and China’s support in technology transfer and sustainable investment is crucial.” This cooperation is not a one-way output, but a win-win situation. The mineral projects participated by Chinalco in the co-construction countries of the “the Belt and Road Initiative” have created a large number of jobs by extending the processing industry chain; Zijin Mining has improved the development efficiency of low-grade ores with independent technology, and its overseas projects have driven the maximization of local resource value . Turki Al-Babtain, Deputy Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources of Saudi Arabia, clearly stated that Chinese enterprises are welcome to participate in the mining transformation plan in Saudi Arabia’s “Vision 2030” to jointly build a global mining hub.

China’s Contribution: Stabilizer and Enabler of Global Mining

Against the backdrop of slowing global economic growth and rising risks in industrial and supply chains, China’s contribution to international mining development has become increasingly prominent. The Global Mining Development Report 2024 points out that the steady growth of China’s mineral resources supply and consumption has injected certainty into the global mining industry. From the technical level, China’s intelligent equipment and green technology are helping developing countries avoid the trap of “pollution first, treatment later”; From the perspective of cooperation, the “the Belt and Road Initiative” geoscience cooperation promoted by China has become an important link for global mining connectivity; From the standard level, Chinese enterprises actively practice the international ESG system, setting a benchmark for sustainable mining development.

As Long Guoqiang, Vice Minister of the Development Research Center of the State Council, said at the theme forum, digitalization and greenization are the two core trends of global mining transformation, and China is providing “new momentum” for this transformation through technological innovation and open cooperation. From Chinese cases of ecological restoration to intelligent green technology solutions, from multilateral cooperation platforms to win-win development practices, this China International Mining Conference clearly shows that China is not only a participant in global mining development, but also a leader in the transformation path and a promoter of coordinated development.