Mining in Spain

Spain has some of the most mineralized territory in Western Europe, including the volcanic-hosted massive sulfide (VMS) deposits of the Iberian Pyrite Belt (IPB) of southern Spain. The IPB alone was estimated to have yielded 1.7 billion tons of sulfides, and more than 80 VMS deposits have been recorded in which individual tonnages were in excess of 1 million tons. Spain had the largest known reserves of celestite and was home to the richest mercury deposit in the world and one of the biggest open-pit zinc mines in Europe. Spain was the largest EU producer of lead and zinc, and a major producer of pyrites, among other nonferrous and precious metals. Production far exceeded domestic consumption for most nonmetallic minerals, and Spain is a net exporter to other EU countries of lead, mercury, nonmetallic-mineral manufactured products, slate, other crude industrial minerals, and zinc.

In terms of value, Spain is one of the leading EU countries, with one of its highest levels of self-sufficiency in mineral raw materials. Almost all known minerals have been found in Spain, and mining is still a notable factor in the economy. Of the 100 minerals mined, 18 were reportedly produced in large quantities - bentonite, copper, fluorspar, glauberite, gold, iron, lead, magnetite, mercury, potash, pyrites, quartz, refractory argillite, sea and rock salt, sepiolitic salts, tin, tungsten, and zinc.

The economic development of certain areas, such as the Asturias and the Basque regions, was based on their mineral wealth, and mining continued to be an important current and potential source of income in these and other mineral-rich areas.