Since 2025, the global mining and beneficiation pharmaceutical industry has undergone profound changes. Against the backdrop of carbon neutrality goals, the popularization of ESG investment concepts, and the worsening deterioration of mineral resources, the technological route, market structure, and competitive logic of mineral processing reagents are being redefined. This issue's news will take you to quickly grasp the latest developments in the industry.

1、 Policy and regulation: Global green threshold continues to rise

1.1 EU plans to include cyanide in the list of substances of high concern under REACH regulation

According to industry insiders, the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) is advancing the legislative process to include sodium cyanide in Annex XIV (Authorized Substances List) of the REACH regulation. Once approved, gold refining companies using cyanide within the EU will face strict authorization approval, and unauthorized companies will not be able to obtain gold produced using cyanide from outside the EU.

impact analysisMajor global gold refining centers, such as Switzerland, will accelerate the screening of upstream suppliers and require them to provide verifiable proof of cyanide free or low cyanide production. This will have a transmission effect on the selection of mineral processing agents in major gold producing regions such as South America and Africa.

1.2 Upgrading of China's Green Mine Construction Standards

In the "National Green Mine Construction Evaluation Indicators (2025 Edition)" released by the Ministry of Natural Resources in early 2025, "the replacement rate of toxic and harmful raw materials in mineral processing technology" has been added as a core assessment item. Require the cyanide substitution rate of newly built gold mines to be no less than 30%, and strive to reach over 50% by 2028.

market reactionMultiple new gold mining projects in Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, and other regions have prioritized the use of environmentally friendly beneficiation agents during the feasibility study phase, resulting in a significant increase in demand for thiosulfate and environmentally friendly composite agents.

1.3 Three South American countries jointly sign the Andean Green Mining Declaration

The mining ministers of Peru, Chile, and Argentina signed a declaration in February 2025, committing to reducing cyanide use in environmentally sensitive mining areas by 40% by 2030 and establishing a regional certification and mutual recognition mechanism for environmentally friendly mineral processing agents. This move will affect the Andean mining areas, which account for over 30% of global copper and gold production.

2、 Technological breakthrough: A new generation of pharmaceuticals enters the fast lane of commercialization

2.1 Glycine gold extraction technology achieves industrial validation at the 100 ton level

The glycine leaching technology developed in collaboration between Curtin University in Australia and a gold mine in Western Australia has successfully achieved continuous and stable operation after 18 months of industrial testing. This technology uses food grade amino acids as leaching agents, completely cyanide free, and can achieve a leaching rate of 88-92% for oxidized and partially sulfide ores.

industry evaluationKnown as the "closest to ultimate environmentally friendly gold extraction technology", although the current cost is still higher than cyanide method, with the maturity of large-scale production and by-product recovery technology, it is expected to have comprehensive competitiveness within 3-5 years.

2.2 Key breakthrough in thiosulfate stabilization technology

The long-standing problem of poor stability and easy decomposition in thiosulfate systems has reached a turning point. The "complex stabilizer" technology developed by a Canadian technology company can extend the half-life of thiosulfates in complex solution environments by more than 5 times, while reducing the volatilization loss of ammonia.

Application ProgressA large copper gold mine in Chile with an annual output of 30 tons of gold has completed renovation, using a new technology of thiosulfate system to achieve a gold recovery rate of 91.5%, zero cyanide usage, and an annual cost savings of over 8 million US dollars in environmental treatment.

2.3 Bio leaching chemical leaching coupling technology enters pilot testing

The "bio chemical coupling gold extraction process" developed by Mintek Research Institute in South Africa in collaboration with Anglo American Resources utilizes extreme thermophilic bacteria to pretreat refractory sulfide encapsulated gold, followed by leaching with low concentration environmentally friendly agents. The pilot data shows that for the extremely difficult to process gold concentrate containing 17g/t arsenic, the total recovery rate reaches 83%, which is 28 percentage points higher than traditional processes.

2.4 Initial Results of AI Assisted Drug Molecular Design

A leading Chinese mineral processing agent company has partnered with Tsinghua University to establish a deep learning based molecular performance prediction model for mineral processing agents. Through high-throughput screening of over 3000 candidate molecules, a specialized collector for a high mud oxidized gold mine in Yunnan has been successfully developed. The industrial recovery rate has increased by 5.7% and the drug consumption has decreased by 22%.

3、 Market Dynamics: Supply and Demand Pattern and Price Trends

3.1 Leading the growth rate of demand for environmentally friendly mineral processing agents

According to statistics from the China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association, the total size of the domestic gold ore dressing agent market in 2024 is about 4.2 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 6.2%. among which

• Traditional Sodium Cyanide Market: Growth of 2.1%, Share Reduced from 82% to 78%

• Environmental protection/low toxicity beneficiation agent market: growth of 28%, share increased from 18% to 22%

• It is expected that the share of environmentally friendly beneficiation agents will exceed 25% by 2025

3.2 The fluctuation of raw material prices affects the cost structure

Affected by fluctuations in global energy prices and basic chemical raw material prices, the mineral processing agent industry is facing cost pressures

3.3 Top enterprises accelerate production capacity layout

• Cyanate ChemicalsInvest 800 million yuan to build a production base in Inner Mongolia with an annual output of 50000 tons of environmentally friendly beneficiation agents, focusing on the thiosulfate series. It is expected to be put into operation in Q1 2026.

• Iris ChemistryAcquired EcoGold, an Australian environmental pharmaceutical technology company, and obtained exclusive global authorization for its glycine gold extraction technology.

• Shandong JinyiStrategic cooperation has been reached with Zijin Mining to jointly develop specialized reagents for high copper gold mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The first batch of 2000 tons has been shipped.

• BASFAnnounced to withdraw from some traditional sodium cyanide businesses and shift towards the research and development of bio based mineral processing agents, with plans to launch commercial products before 2027.

3.4 Regional supply-demand imbalance manifests

The demand for environmentally friendly mineral processing agents in emerging gold producing regions such as Africa and Central Asia is rapidly increasing, but local supply capacity is insufficient, resulting in import dependence. In 2024, China's exports of mineral processing agents to Central Asia increased by 37% year-on-year, with the proportion of environmentally friendly products exceeding 50% for the first time.

4、 Enterprise News: Active Mergers and Acquisitions and Technological Cooperation

4.1 Zijin Mining Invests in a Certain Environmental Protection Pharmaceutical R&D Enterprise

Zijin Mining's investment platform strategically invested 120 million yuan in a research and development enterprise for environmental beneficiation agents in Xiamen, holding a 25% stake. Both parties will jointly establish a "Joint Laboratory for Green Extraction of Difficult to Handle Gold Mines", focusing on developing environmentally friendly chemical solutions for high arsenic and high carbon ores.

4.2 Shandong Gold and Universities Jointly Build Mineral Processing Agent Research and Development Center

Shandong Gold Group has signed a cooperation agreement with Central South University to jointly establish the "Gold Selection and Metallurgy Green Pharmaceutical Research and Development Center". The center plans to invest 50 million yuan within three years to develop a specialized pharmaceutical series targeting deep gold resources in the Jiaodong region.

4.3 International mining giants promote supply chain greening

Barrick Gold has released the "2025 Sustainable Procurement Guidelines", requiring all mineral processing agent suppliers to provide third-party certified carbon footprint reports by 2027 and prioritize the procurement of "non-toxic future" certified products. Rio Tinto Group announced that its new project will prioritize the use of cyanide free beneficiation technology.

4.4 Accelerating the formulation of industry standards

Commissioned by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the "Technical Specification for Green Design Product Evaluation - Gold Concentrator" drafted by the China Gold Association has completed the solicitation of opinions and is expected to be officially released in the second half of 2025. The standard will provide quantitative requirements for the toxicity, biodegradability, and heavy metal content of mineral processing agents.

5、 Future outlook: Three major trends shaping a new industry landscape

5.1 Trend 1: Transformation from "Product Supply" to "Solutions"

Leading enterprises are transforming from simple pharmaceutical manufacturers to full chain service providers of "ore diagnosis formula customization process optimization". Enterprises that can provide "one mine, one strategy" solutions will take the initiative in competition.

5.2 Trend 2: Diversified technological routes coexist

In the next 5-10 years, the mineral processing agent market will present a diversified pattern:

• Traditional cyanide will still occupy a share in simple mines and existing renovation projects

• Thiosulfates dominate the formation of high copper ore fields

• Thiourea maintains its advantage in the field of carbon and arsenic containing minerals

• Glycine, halogens, etc. are gradually being promoted in environmentally sensitive areas

• Continuous breakthroughs in biotechnology as a long-term direction

5.3 Trend 3: Green attributes become the core competitive element

With the promotion of policies such as the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), the "carbon footprint" and "environmental footprint" of mineral processing agents will become core indicators for procurement decisions, just like price and performance. Enterprises with full lifecycle environmental data will receive a market premium.

Conclusion: The window of transformation is narrowing

The mining and beneficiation pharmaceutical industry is standing at a critical crossroads of transformation. Enterprises that can accurately grasp technological trends, actively layout green tracks, and deeply bind with mining customers will gain opportunities in the new round of industry reshuffle.

For mining enterprises, the selection of ore dressing agents is no longer a simple procurement decision, but a strategic proposition related to competitiveness, compliance costs, and sustainable development capabilities in the next decade. The choice of medicine is the choice of the future.