Published annually by BGS, the UK Minerals Yearbook provides comprehensive statistical data on the production, consumption and trade of UK minerals. The yearbook includes definitive updates to inform decision makers, the minerals industry and those interested in the contribution of minerals to the national economy.

The UK is an important producer of a range of minerals that are consumed in many sectors of the economy, including construction and industry. In 2023, some 176.3 million tonnes of minerals were extracted from the UK landmass for sale both within the UK and internationally.

After the initial recovery in the mineral sector experienced post-COVID-19 (2022), economic uncertainty and decreased demand from the construction sector in particular resulted in reduced production of most minerals during 2023. One exception to this was a rise in the production of natural gypsum, due to the cessation of coal-fired power generation in the UK and the resultant loss of alternative desulphogypsum production.

In 2023, a further 82.6 million tonnes, consisting mainly of oil and gas (oil equivalent) and marine-dredged sand and gravel, were extracted from the UK Continental Shelf.

Download the UK Minerals Yearbook from the Minerals UK website.

Published annually by BGS, the UK Minerals Yearbook provides comprehensive statistical data on minerals production, consumption and trade. It is of value to all those interested in Britain’s minerals industry and its contribution to the national economy.

Mineral production in the UK is back at around pre-COVID-19 levels, but there was a decline in mineral production in 2022 due to a decline in demand from the construction sector.

In the UK 185.9 million tonnes of minerals were extracted from the landmass for sale in 2022. These can be broken down into the following main categories, with percentages of total production in brackets:

• 126.4 million tonnes of crushed rock (for both construction and industrial uses) (68 per cent)
• 40.3 million tonnes of sand and gravel (21.7 per cent)
• 6.6 million tonnes of other construction minerals (3.5 per cent)
• 10.3 million tonnes industrial minerals (other than those within crushed rock) (5.5 per cent)
•  0.7 million tonnes of coal (0.4 per cent)
• 1.5 million tonnes of oil and gas (oil equivalent) (0.8 per cent)

A further 91.3 million tonnes, mostly oil and gas (oil equivalent) but also marine-dredged sand and gravel, were extracted from the UK continental shelf.

The UK Minerals Yearbook 2023 is available to view and download from the .

The latest statistical data on minerals production in the UK is now . The UK Minerals Yearbook 2021 provides essential information about the production, consumption and trade of UK minerals up to 2020.

Published annually by BGS, the yearbook includes definitive updates designed to inform decision makers, the minerals industry and those interested in the contribution of minerals to the national economy.

The UK produces over 270 million tonnes of minerals each year, contributing to the country construction, energy, manufacturing and agricultural sectors.

Coal production continues to decline (80 per cent since 2015) as the UK continues to move away from the use of coal for power generation. Also notable in 2020 is a decline in production of construction minerals, around 10 per cent compared to 2019. This is most likely a temporary reduction due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The UK Minerals Yearbook 2021 is available to view and download from the Minerals UK website.

The 51ΑΤΖζ (BGS) has published the , with partners the Confederation of British Industry Minerals Group (CBI MG) and the Mineral Products Association (MPA).

The yearbook, first published in 1853, provides comprehensive statistical data on the UK minerals industry, including production, consumption and trade.

This research provides decision makers with reliable, up-to-date information on the UK minerals industry and quantifies its impact on the economy.

Minerals studied in the report include petroleum, gas, tin, gold, diamond as well as lesser-known but essential tellurium, strontium and everyday minerals like salt.

The contains key findings such as:

• Sand and gravel were worth Β£934 million to the UK economy in 2019, compared to Β£584m in 2013
• Coal was worth just Β£132 million to the UK economy in 2017, compared to Β£780 million in 2013
• Coal production has declined from 12,768 thousand tonnes in 2013 to 2,166 in 2019, a decrease of over 80%
• Production of crushed rock has risen from a historic low in 2009 of 91,103 thousand tonnes, to 129,300 thousand tonnes in 2019, showing a gradual recovery in the construction sector and wider economy.
• Iron and steel production has dropped by 33% in the last five years

For UK consumption of energy wind and hydro electricity have risen to 5% of the total whereas coal has dropped  to 2%, petroleum, gas and nuclear have remained stable.

Global production of lithium has seen a sharp increase of 235 per cent in five years, according to the latest figures now published in by BGS.

The latest version of the WMP, available to download on the Minerals UK website, sets out production figures by country for more than 70 mineral commodities over the five-year period from 2014 to 2018. The BGS has published these data annually, since 1913.

Updated figures show mineral production being driven by the growing demand for electric vehicles, with the largest global increases for commodities used to manufacture batteries, including the production of lithium (25 per cent), cobalt (18 per cent), graphite and nickel (both 13 per cent).

Scientists at the BGS say the figures for lithium are β€œparticularly significant” as it follows a major increase in production between 2016 and 2017. This has been driven by a substantial contribution from production in Australia, as well as Canada, Chile, Zimbabwe and China. Namibia and Nigeria have also added to new production.

The latest statistical data on minerals production in the UK has also been made available this week by the BGS, with its publication of the .

An annual publication, the yearbook offers essential information about the production, consumption and trade of UK minerals, and industry updates primarily intended to inform key decision makers.

The UK produces around 200 million tonnes of minerals each year, which contributes directly to our construction, agriculture, energy and manufacturing, construction sectors.

Most notable are the increase in the value of sand and gravel, worth Β£902 million to the UK economy in 2018, compared to Β£555 million in 2012.

Production of crushed rock has risen from a historic low in 2009 of 91 103 000 tonnes to 126 600 000 tonnes in 2017, reflecting the gradual recovery in the construction sector and the wider UK economy.

Iron, steel and coal production have dropped in the last five years.

There is continuing interest and concern surrounding the worldwide security of supply of certain minerals. Indications suggest that materials use is projected to more than double by 2060, with metals expected to grow the fastest.

It critically important that we understand the pressure this will place on the environment, global economies and future gains in well-being. BGS research is evolving to address this challenge, and increasingly our focus is on improving understanding of stocks and flows of raw materials, such as cobalt and lithium, which are essential to decarbonise our future energy and transport systems.

Dr Karen HanghΓΈj, BGS Director.

Andrew Bloodworth, BGS Science Director for Policy, Decarbonisation and Resource Management stressed that BGS will continue to work with European partners on several minerals-related research projects in the coming months.

Although metals are an essential component of decarbonisation technologies, their production is currently carbon intensive.

This has led BGS to develop an interest in understanding how sustainable and responsible supply of metals from primary and secondary sources can be improved, and what policies or approaches will be most effective in implementing change.

Andrew Bloodworth, BGS Science Director for Policy, Decarbonisation and Resource Management.