Trends in global copper mining – a review

Abstract

Copper and its alloys are used for diverse applications that are required for us to attain a specific standard of life. Continuous copper production and use are needed for the development of the society. Future copper demand will be covered mainly by the discovery of new deposits and mining. However, technological improvements and efficient designs intended to limit copper consumption will be equally important, similarly to recycling, as part of the activities associated with circular economy. Current data indicate that the global extraction of copper reached 20.2 million tons in 2016, while the output from metallurgical plants attained the level of 19.0 million tons in the same year. However, the refined copper production output increased to 23.3 million tons in 2016, including 3.9 million tons obtained from recycling. One can ask the question: Can we run short of copper, considering the present 6% increase and projected further increase of copper extraction and use? This paper is trying to find an answer to this question, based on such factors as copper resources and their long-term availability, global distribution of identified and projected copper resources, global extraction rates, and the trends in copper extraction capabilities.