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List Of Spain Natural Resources And Their Uses

List Of Spain Natural Resources And Their Uses

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Check out the full list of Spain’s natural resources and their usefulness for the country. Spain is a state in southwestern Europe with the 13th biggest economy. The country takes up about 85 percent of the librarian peninsula. It also includes the Balearic Islands, Livia, and the Canary Islands. It is one of the nations with top purchasing power uniformity around the globe. The natural resources in Spain consist of; sepiolite, gypsum, kaolin, copper, uranium, lead, fluorspar, zinc, tungsten, coal and iron ore. The important mineral products of the country are; alumina, steel, gold, coal, copper, cement and Zinc. In the 1930s, the country was exceedingly affected by the civil war which caused a drop off in its economic development. In 1980, there was an alteration to rapid economic modernization and democracy which made Spain one out of the countries with the strongest economies in the world. Spain has plentiful reserves for natural resources. 

List Of Spain Natural Resources And Uses

  In late 2008, the country’s economic withdrawal caused a decline in the country’s GDP by 3.7 percent in 2009 to $1.402 trillion, and in 2010, it was abridged to $1.400 trillion in 0.1 percent. In 2011, the country’s GDP increased by $1.494 due to a boost in the country’s trade, an increase in investment, an upgrade in structural reforms and development in infrastructure. Spain’s GDP experienced a 2.5 percent increase in 2018.

Spain Natural Resources And Their Uses

  • 1. Metals 

The Las Cruces copper mine was acquired by the Inmet Mining Corp of Canada in 2010. The Las Cruces copper mine was estimated to contain 17.6 MT (Metric Tons) of proven copper reserves. The mine’s total capacity of production was 72,000 metric tons per year of copper cathode and 1 metric ton of copper ore. The Salamanca-Zamora area considered to be one of the significant gold terrains in Spain is being explored by the Ormonde Mining plc of Ireland. The El Valle-Bolinas, the Carles copper and the gold alarm deposits in northern Spain were acquired by Orvana Minerals Corporation. Indicated reserves of 6.4 metric tons grading 4.7 gram per tons gold and 0.80 percent copper were contained in the deposits, and inferred resources of 7.2 metric tons grading 5.4 gram per tons and 0.45 percent copper were also contained in the deposits. The Orvana Minerals Corporation of Canada planned to begin production in the El Valle-Boinas and Carles gold-copper project with a capacity totaled at 750,000 metric tons per year. 

There was a 7 percent decrease in the steel Spain exported in comparison to that of the previous year’s exports. In comparison to more substantial steel exporting nations such as China and Japan, Spain’s exports reportedly measures 14 percent and 25 percent of what is produced in those countries respectively. France, Portugal, and Italy were the primary importing nations of Spain’s steel. Spain’s steel exports provided approximately USD 3 million in revenue for the country as of December 2017, and this was an increase from the previous year’s USD 2.34 million.

  • 2. Arable Land

One of the primary natural resources in the country is Arable land. The arable land has contributed to the immensely growing agribusiness industry in the country. The total land area in Spain is estimated as; 27.18 percent for arable land, 9.85 percent for permanent crops and about 6.27 for other uses. The £40 billion exported agricultural produce accounts for over 3 percent of the country’s GDP in 2015. 15 percent of the country’s total export is accounted for agricultural produce. By 2011, Spain has the 25th biggest arable land behind Tanzania and Niger. 

The cultivated lands in Spain are irrigated, and they are over 14,672 square miles. Plants benefiting from the irrigation include; vegetables, corn, fruit plants, fodder grasses, mangoes, tomatoes, sugar beets, potatoes, and strawberries among others. In the European Union, Spain is the top producer and exporter of strawberries and citrus fruits like lemons and oranges. 

  • 3. Coal

Coal deposit in Spain is estimated to be over 4,500 million tons, and the 1,156 million tons of accessible reserves inclusive. By 2010, Spain was the 13th coal-producing state in the world. In 2015, 10.9 percent of the country’s energy needs were provided by coal. During the Spanish civil war, coal mining was quite active. In October 1934, the union miners suffered a 15-day siege in Oviedo and Gijon. Cercs Mine Museum was dedicated to coal mining and the museum was established in 1999. It was agreed by the government and the labor union that 10 coal mines will be closed by December 2018, and it was decided by the government that over €250 million will be paid for occupational retraining and early retirements. Numerous coal plants produced 2.3 percent of the country’s electric energy needs. 

  • 4. Gold

Gold was found in the Las Medulas region soon after mining started in Spain during the 25BC. Golds were obtained before the Roman conquest from the alluvial reserves. During the second half of the first century AD, large scale mining of gold began and it intensified after the Roman invasions, hence, Las Medulas became the largest gold mine in their empire. The Romans used various unique mining methods like hydraulic mining due to freed and availability of cheap labor. It was claimed by Pliny the Elder the explorations of the Romans yielded over 3,615,581 pounds of gold in 250 years. The bedrock of the country was Kimberlite Ore which has gold. Various mining industries are still presently searching for gold deposits in the northwestern parts of Spain. Gold accounted for about 0.47 percent of the world’s gold rate by 2013 and was one of the top five exports from Spain. The export destinations of the gold from Spain were France and Germany. 

  • 4. Uranium

In 2015, Spain has the 21st biggest uranium reserves in the world and it was over 33,900 tons. Exploration of uranium began in Spain in 1950 and by 1992 in various geological environments particularly in Salamanca province numerous uranium reserves were discovered. Caceres, Badajoz, and Guadalajara provinces also had other uranium deposits. Korea Electric Power and Berkeley Resources limited were the two leading firms which owned uranium mines in Spain. 

  • 5. Fossil Fuel

Crude oil in Spain was estimated to be 0.96 thousand barrels per day as of March 2019, and this crude oil production includes; shale oil, oil sands, crude oil, and natural gas liquids. Spain has depended more on importing crude oil from other countries as the production of crude oil declined. It was estimated that the country imported 1,350 barrels each day from various countries, including Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, and Nigeria. In 2015, Spain produced a total of 2.19 billion cubic feet of natural gas.

  • 6. Industrial Minerals

Spain’s cement output was estimated to be 13.4 metric tons between December 2017 and 2018, and it was 1.1 metric tons greater than the output between December 2016 and 2017. Cementos Mexicanos and Votorantim were the two primary cement companies that operated in the country. In Asturias, Minerales y Productos Derivados that operated three fluorite deposits produced 150,000 tons per year of fluorspar. With the combined capacity of Emilio, Jaimina, and the Moscona underground mines, 420,000 tons were produced per year. The total amount of fluorspar output in 2010 was 131,000 tons compared to 122,408 tons produced in 2009. ICL fertilizers announced the first stage of a plant construction in 2010 to produce vacuum salt.  The company planned expansion of potash production capacity to 1.1 metric tons of potash and 1.5 metric tons of salt. The country’s saprolite output was estimated at 770,000.

  • 7. Mercury

The largest and oldest mercury mine in the world can be found in Spain with overproduction of 250,000 metric tons of mercury in the last 2,000 years. Cinnabar, a mercury-producing mineral,  has been found in significant amounts in Almaden. Cinnabar was first used as a pigment by the Romans, but it was later used as alchemy and medicine. During the mid 16th century, mercury became important when a metal-extracting process (from silver and gold Ore) was introduced. A museum was built in place of the closed down mines when mercury mining was prohibited in Europe. In 2006, the mercury mines were opened and visitors were able. To tour the first-lev of the mines. 

  • 8. Tungsten

In 2017, Spain was the 9th top tungsten producer, and that was after producing about 570 metric tons. By 2016, Spain had about 32,000 metric tons of tungsten deposits. Most of the biggest mines in the country were found in the western parts. Barruecopardo mine with an estimated reserve of approximately 10.9 million tons was one of the biggest tungsten mines in the country. La Parrilla mine with an estimated reserve of about 30 million tons was situated in Valladolid province. 

  • 9. Hydropower

In 2015, 37.4 percent of the total energy consumed in Spain was contributed by renewable energy. The primary sources of renewable energy in Spain were the wind power and hydropower. Spain constructed numerous dams like Alarcon, Alcantara, and Bolarque among others. In 2015, the dams produced over 30,828GWh. The amount of hydropower in total reduced from 42,533GWh in 2014 to 30,828GWh in 2015.

Conclusion On Spain’s Natural Resources

   One of Europe’s most diverse mining industries can be found in Spain, and it produces most of the industrial minerals. The country has attracted many foreign investors due to the discoveries of the gold reserves. Foreign investment in its mineral industry has been encouraged due to the country’s skilled workforce, well-developed infrastructure, fiscal policies, and legislative framework. The domestic requirements could not be met due to the country’s insufficient mineral output, hence, it turned towards the importation of mineral products. The Spanish government planned to increase the country’s trade and investment, revise its law according to European Union (EU)  guidelines in 2010, and improve its infrastructure to reduce its dependence on imports. 

Spain is a state in southwestern Europe with the 13th biggest economy. The country occupies about 85 percent of the librarian peninsula. It also includes the Balearic Islands, Livia, and the Canary Islands. It is one of the nations with top purchasing power parity in the world. The natural resources in Spain include; sepiolite, gypsum, kaolin, copper, uranium, lead, fluorspar, zinc, tungsten, coal and iron ore. The significant mineral products of the country were; alumina, steel, gold, coal, copper, cement and Zinc. In the 1930s, the country was extremely affected by the civil war which caused a decrease in its economic growth. In 1980, there was a transition to rapid economic modernization and democracy which made Spain one out of the countries with the strongest economies in the world. Spain has abundant reserves for natural resources.

  In late 2008, the country’s economic recession caused a decline in the country’s GDP by 3.7 percent in 2009 to $1.402 trillion, and in 2010, it was reduced to $1.400 trillion in 0.1 percent. In 2011, the country’s GDP increased by $1.494 due to an increase in the country’s trade, an increase in investment, improvement in structural reforms and improvement in infrastructure. Spain’s GDP experienced a 2.5 percent growth increase in 2018. 

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