From Ukraine to Gaza
Russia holds the world's largest proven natural gas reserves. At 1.32 quadrillion cubic feet, its supply accounts for nearly 20% of the global total as of 2020.
The country is rich in resources including coal, oil, natural gas, gold, timber, and rare earth metals. Russia also has the second largest gold reserves at 6,800 tons, or more than 12% of the global total as of 2021.
A large producer of oil and liquified natural gas, Australia's proven oil reserves measured 2.4 billion barrels at the end of 2021.
Not limited to these fuels, Australia's natural resources include coal, timber, copper, iron ore, gold, and uranium. The country is also the largest net exporter of coal, with 29% of global coal exports.
Natural resources in China are estimated to be worth US$23 trillion. Coal and rare earth minerals make up 90% of China's resources.
China possesses oil and natural gas, as well as gold, aluminum, and other minerals in immense amounts.
The estimated value of natural resources in the United States is US$45 trillion. Almost 90% of this figure are timber and coal. As of 2020, the US had the largest proven coal reserves in the world.
America has large copper, gold, oil, and natural gas deposits, as well as substantial lead, molybdenum, phosphates, rare earth elements, uranium, bauxite, iron, mercury, nickel, potash, silver, tungsten, zinc, petroleum, natural gas, timber, and arable land.
India's major mineral resources include coal (fourth largest reserves in the world), iron ore, manganese ore, lithium ore (sixth largest reserve in the world as of 2023), mica, bauxite, chromite, natural gas, diamonds, limestone, and thorium. India's oil reserves currently serve 25% of the country's demand.
India has the potential to produce US$400-500 billion worth of oil and gas, gold, silver, iron ore, copper, coal, calcium, rock phosphate, and more thanks to its abundant reserves of these resources.
Deposits of over 72 different natural resources, including oil, gas, gold, coal, iron, uranium, manganese, bauxite, and chromite, are present in the Republic of Kazakhstan. Oil and gas comprise 97% of all natural resource state revenues.
Kazakhstan is the world's largest uranium producer. The country also has extensive coal, gold, and manganese reserves. Kazakhstan ranks third for the production of titanium in the world, seventh for zinc and eighth for lead.
Namibia has a long history of mineral mining. In 2023, it was announced that an estimated 11 billion barrels in oil reserves were found off the country's coast.
Namibia is one of the most important countries for diamond mining, both onshore and offshore. Namibia is also rich in natural resources including uranium, copper, zinc, lead, magnesium, cadmium, arsenic, pyrites, silver, and gold.
Mexico's mining history goes back 500 years. It is a major source of silver and gold. The country is among the world's largest producers of oil, silver, copper, gold, lead, zinc, natural gas, and wood.
Minerals like mercury, cadmium, antimony, manganese, iron, and coal are also found there. Sizable fiscal revenues are derived from the oil and gas sector.
Other minerals mined in Botswana include nickel-copper, coal, soda ash, gold, silver, semi-precious stones, and granite. Botswana has reserves of untapped uranium, lead, and zinc that are yet to be exploited.
Botswana's mining industry continues to be one of the most lucrative in the world, especially diamond mining. The country is the world's leading producer of diamonds by value.
Chile is the main copper producer in the world, supplying 29% of global numbers. The country also accounts for 22% of the world's production of lithium, making it the second-biggest producer in the world.
Chile’s mining sector provides approximately 9% of both indirect and direct jobs throughout the nation.
Peru has reserves of both oil and natural gas, and is one of the world's richest countries in terms of natural resources—although it remains one of the world's poorest nations economically.
Peru is one of the primary producers of mineral commodities in the world. It is Latin America's largest producer of gold, and the world's second-largest producer of copper, silver, and zinc.
In global terms, South Africa holds the world's largest reported reserves of gold, platinum group metals, chrome ore and manganese ore, and the second-largest reserves of zirconium, vanadium, and titanium.
South Africa is rich in minerals. The country boasts diamonds and gold, alongside reserves of iron ore, platinum, manganese, chromium, copper, uranium, silver, beryllium, and titanium.
Turkey’s geology is complex and this is reflected in the diversity of its mineral deposits. Excluding petroleum and coal, there are 53 exploitable minerals and metals and 4,500 mineral deposits in Turkey.
Turkey is the leading steel producer in the Middle East. It's also a major producer and exporter of chromite and mines iron ore, coal, lignite, bauxite, and copper.
Fossil fuels, including petroleum, natural gas, and coal, constitute a major source of revenue. Indonesia still has 68 unexplored oil and gas basins across the archipelago.
Brazil's resources are worth an estimated US$21.8 trillion. The country also has the capacity for immense hydroelectric power production.
Brazil's resources include gold, iron, oil, and uranium, while its mining industry is focused on bauxite, platinum, copper, gold, iron, and tin.
Canada has an estimated US$33.2 trillion worth of natural resources, with the third-largest oil deposits after Venezuela and Saudi Arabia. Canada is also a leading producer of natural gas.
Indonesia has a large, and in many cases unprospected, variety of mineral deposits. Mining accounts for roughly one-tenth of the country’s GDP. The country possesses a wealth of mineral resources, being ranked first for nickel, second for tin, fifth for gold, sixth for bauxite, sixth for coal, and seventh for copper.
Copper, lead, nickel, and zinc and precious metals like gold, platinum, and silver are also found in Canada. It is home to commodities including industrial minerals, such as gypsum, limestone, rock salt, and potash, as well as energy minerals, such as coal and uranium.
The Philippines is the fifth most mineralized country in the world, with an estimated US$1 trillion in untapped reserves of copper, gold, nickel, zinc, and silver. The Philippines currently exports iron ore, chromium, zinc and silver, and produces some oil and gas.
The Philippines is a world-leading producer of nickel. It also produces a significant amount of gold and copper, with copper being the country’s primary mineral.
Venezuela has natural resources estimated at US$14.3 trillion that include iron, natural gas, and oil. In 2020, it had the largest proven oil reserves on earth.
Iraq's desert terrain holds petroleum, natural gas, phosphates, and sulfur that amount to US$15.9 trillion in natural resources.
Iran's natural resources are worth an estimated US$27.3 trillion. As well as being the fifth largest crude oil producer in OPEC, it was the world's third-largest natural gas producer in 2020.
Iraq is the second-largest crude oil producer in OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries), while being the world’s fifth-largest holder of proven crude oil reserves.
It has US$34.4 trillion worth of natural resources—notably oil. Saudi Arabia has been a leading exporter ever since oil was discovered there in 1938.
Saudi Arabia's other natural resources include natural gas, copper, feldspar, phosphate, silver, sulfur, tungsten, and zinc.
Venezuela has the 10th-largest reserves of natural gas in the world, as well as being rich in iron ore, gold, bauxite, hydropower, and diamonds.
Coal, chromium, copper, iron ore, lead, manganese, zinc, and sulfur are also found in Iran.
DRC is home to the world’s largest reserves of cobalt (51% of known reserves) and significant quantities of diamonds, gold, and copper.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is extremely rich in precious minerals, with an estimated US$24 trillion in untapped deposits of raw minerals in the country.
The Republic of Guinea was the world’s second-largest producer of bauxite in 2022, with output up by 4% on 2021. And it's expected to rise even more over the next few years.
Guinea accounts for 24% of global production of bauxite. Exports increased by 4% in 2022 over 2021, with the highest share being exported to China.
Ukraine has some of the largest lithium and titanium reserves in Europe, as well as being one of the largest suppliers of grain and corn to the rest of the world.
Sources: (Mining Technology) (Britannica)(Business Insider) (Investopedia) (Statistica)
(Business Today) (TrustWorks Global) (IMF)
See also: Are natural products always better than synthetic ones?
Ukraine has the second-largest natural gas reserves in Europe. Ores such as iron, titanium, and non-metallic raw materials are some of the country's major exports, and so are iron ore, corn, semi-finished iron, and seed oils.
The Kingdom of Norway has rich resources of oil, natural gas, hydroelectric power, forests, and minerals. It's also one of the largest exporters of seafood. Norway is the world’s 13th largest oil producer. In addition, Norway is the fifth largest natural gas producer and the third largest per capita.
Norway's natural resources include petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, titanium, pyrites, nickel, fish, timber, and hydropower.
While some places are obvious and well known, others you might not be aware of. Unfortunately in many cases, however, being rich in resources doesn't translate to economic prosperity for the local population.
Curious? Click on this gallery to learn about some of the world's most important resource reserves and where they're located.
Countries with the most natural resources
Did you realize these countries have huge reserves of minerals and fuel?
LIFESTYLE Facts
Whether we like it or not, we depend on natural resources for basically everything in our lives; from the electricity in our homes to the phones in our pockets. Some of these resources are under fire for their sustainability (or lack thereof), yet it seems we're quite far from replacing things like fossil fuels completely in the short term. But have you ever wondered where the world's main sources of fuel and minerals originate?
While some places are obvious and well known, others you might not be aware of. Unfortunately in many cases, however, being rich in resources doesn't translate to economic prosperity for the local population.
Curious? Click on this gallery to learn about some of the world's most important resource reserves and where they're located.