Entering the mid second quarter of 2025, the mining and beneficiation pharmaceutical industry is facing a critical period of multiple benefits and challenges intertwined. On the one hand, global environmental regulations continue to tighten, forcing traditional pharmaceuticals to accelerate their withdrawal; On the other hand, the concentrated release of demand for environmentally friendly chemicals in emerging gold producing areas has injected strong growth momentum into the industry. This issue focuses on policy trends, technological breakthroughs, and market changes in the past month, presenting you with the latest industry landscape.
On May 6th, the European Commission officially released the "Roadmap for the Phase out of Cyanides for Industrial Use", which clearly requires:By 2028, all cyanide used by gold refining companies within the European Union must come from certified 'low-risk supply chains'; By 2032, EU gold imports must be accompanied by a 'cyanide free production certificate'Once implemented, this roadmap will have a profound impact on the global gold supply chain.
Industry reactionThe London Bullion Market Association (LBMA) has initiated a revision process for the "Responsible Gold Standard" and plans to include "cyanide substitution rate" as a core assessment indicator. Major global gold refiners have adjusted their procurement strategies, prioritizing mines that use environmentally friendly chemicals as suppliers.
On May 15th, the Ministry of Natural Resources released the "Green Mine Construction Standards (Revised Draft for Soliciting Opinions)", which added the indicator of "green substitution rate of mineral processing agents" and required that the proportion of environmentally friendly agents used in new mines should not be less than 50%, and the proportion of environmental protection agents used in existing mines should not be less than 30% before 2028. At the same time, it is explicitly stated that the "annual consumption of cyanide" is a key parameter for assessing the environmental risk level of mines.
Expert interpretationThe Deputy Secretary General of the China Gold Association stated that the new regulations will accelerate the withdrawal of traditional sodium cyanide from small and medium-sized mines, and it is expected to release about 1.5-2 billion yuan/year of environmental protection pharmaceutical market space in the next three years.
On May 20th, the African Ministerial Conference on Mining concluded in Ethiopia, and 15 major gold producing countries in Africa jointly signed the Addis Ababa Declaration, committing to reducing cyanide use in mining areas by 35% by 2030 and establishing a regional mechanism for mutual recognition of environmental beneficiation agent certification. The declaration also proposes to prioritize the introduction of low toxicity technologies such as thiosulfate and thiourea.
market opportunityAfrica is currently the second largest gold producing region in the world, with an annual cyanide consumption of approximately 180000 tons. A 35% substitution target means approximately 60000 tons/year of substitution demand, equivalent to a multi billion yuan emerging market.
On May 25th, the Indonesian Ministry of Energy and Mines issued Ministerial Order No. 12, which stipulatedStarting from January 1, 2026, it is prohibited to construct new gold mining and beneficiation projects using cyanide method. Approved projects must complete environmental protection technology transformation before 2028Indonesia is the fourth largest gold producing country in the world, and this move will directly affect the investment plans of multiple international mining companies in the region.
GreenGold Australia and a gold mine in Western Australia jointly released the latest economic data on glycine gold extraction technology: after scale optimization, the cost of reagents per ton of ore has been reduced from the initial $4.2 to $2.8, and the gap with cyanide method (about $2.5) has narrowed to $0.3.
technical details：
Hedging profits through by-product copper recovery, reducing actual net costs by an additional $0.5
The leaching rate remains stable at 88-91%, comparable to the cyanide method
Tailings can be directly backfilled without special anti-seepage treatment
industry evaluationThis means that the glycine gold extraction technology has commercial competitiveness and is expected to be rapidly promoted in environmentally sensitive areas, high copper mines, and other scenarios in the next 3-5 years.
The fourth generation thiosulfate stabilizer developed by a Canadian technology company has been industrially validated and can extend the half-life of the drug in solution from the original 72 hours to 240 hours, while reducing ammonia volatilization by 70%.
application achievementsIn the application of a high copper gold mine (Cu 2.3%) in Chile, the unit consumption of reagents decreased from 2.8kg/t to 1.6kg/t, and the gold leaching rate remained above 91%, saving more than 4 million US dollars in annual reagent costs.
The "thermophilic bacteria pretreatment+thiourea leaching" technology developed in collaboration between Anglo American Resources and Mintek in South Africa has completed pilot testing at a high arsenic gold mine in Ghana. The data shows that:
Processing time: 7 days (pretreatment)+6 hours (leaching)
Total recovery rate: 85.2% (original cyanide method 56%)
Energy consumption: reduced by 52% compared to roasting method
Environmental indicators: No SO ₂ emissions, tailings arsenic stabilization rate of 99.7%
Commercial planningWe plan to launch the first industrial demonstration plant in 2026, with a designed annual processing capacity of 1 million tons.
The "arsenic mineral selective inhibitor" jointly developed by Central South University and Shandong Gold has been validated in the laboratory. For high arsenic sulfide ores (As 3-8%), this agent can suppress arsenic in the tailings during the flotation stage, reducing the arsenic content in the gold concentrate from 2.5% to below 0.3%, creating conditions for subsequent environmentally friendly leaching.
Application prospectsChina's high arsenic gold reserves are about 2000 tons, and this technology is expected to activate a large amount of idle resources.
According to the latest data from China Chemical Industry Information Center, the domestic market size of mineral processing agents from January to April 2025 is about 1.53 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 8.2%. among which
| category | Sales revenue (in billions of yuan) | year-on-year growth rate | market share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Traditional Sodium Cyanide | 10.8 | +0.5% | 70.6% |
| Thiosulfates | 2.6 | +30% | 17.0% |
| Thiourea class | 1.0 | +18% | 6.5% |
| halogens | 0.4 | +33% | 2.6% |
| Other environmental protection categories | 0.5 | +42% | 3.3% |
key trendsThe total proportion of environmental protection has reached 29.4%, an increase of nearly 4 percentage points from the end of last year, and the growth rate continues to lead.
| raw material | Current price (yuan/ton) | Monthly increase | Annual increase |
|---|---|---|---|
| Liquid alkali (32%) | 1220 | +3.4% | +24% |
| sulfur | 1580 | +4.0% | +26% |
| urea | 1820 | -3.2% | -17% |
| bromine | 24800 | -1.6% | -11% |
| Sodium cyanide | 10000 | +2% | +8% |
industry impactThe cost pressure continues to spread to the middle and lower reaches, putting pressure on the profit margins of some small and medium-sized pharmaceutical enterprises, and the industry concentration is expected to further increase.
From January to April, the export volume of mineral processing agents in China increased by 28% year-on-year, and the export value increased by 35%. Main destination:
| region | Export value (USD 10000) | year-on-year growth | Proportion of environmental protection category |
|---|---|---|---|
| Central Asia (Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Tajikistan) | 5200 | +48% | 68% |
| West Africa (Ghana, Mali) | 3800 | +35% | 52% |
| South America (Chile, Peru) | 3100 | +22% | 61% |
| Southeast Asia (Indonesia, Myanmar) | 2900 | +41% | 45% |
Chifeng Gold announced on May 12th that it will strategically invest 80 million yuan in a Jiangsu based environmental beneficiation agent enterprise, holding a 20% stake. Both parties will jointly develop a specialized formula for thiosulfate for the high copper gold mine in Vientiane Mining (Laos), with the goal of increasing the recovery rate of associated gold from 81% to over 88%.
On May 18th, Luoyang Molybdenum Industry announced the launch of a three-year "Green Mineral Processing Agent Supply Chain Optimization Plan", which includes the following core contents:
The replacement rate of sodium cyanide in existing mines will reach 30% by 2026 and 50% by 2028
New projects prioritize the use of environmentally friendly chemicals
Establish a supplier ESG evaluation system and implement it from 2026 onwards
SolvayAnnounced an investment of 150 million euros to build a bio based mineral processing agent research and development center in Belgium, with plans to launch commercial products by 2027
clariant Signed a five-year strategic cooperation agreement with Barrick Gold to jointly promote the application of thiosulfate technology in African mines
AshlandSell its traditional sodium cyanide business and fully shift towards the field of environmentally friendly mineral processing agents
| enterprise | project | production capacity | Production time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shandong Jinyi | Xinjiang Environmental Protection Mineral Processing Agent Base (Phase I) | 30000 tons/year | Q4 2025 |
| Zhonghua Blue Sky | Hunan Yueyang Base (Phase I) | 50000 tons/year | Q2 2026 |
| Jiangsu Qiangsheng | Yunnan New Project | 20000 tons/year | Q3 2025 |
| Hubei Xingfa | Yichang Technical Renovation Project | Add 15000 tons/year | Q3 2025 |
Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan have recently introduced multiple policies to encourage foreign investment, while imposing stricter restrictions on the use of cyanide. From January to April 2025, China's exports of mineral processing agents to Central Asia increased by 48% year-on-year, with environmental protection accounting for 68%.
Typical CaseThe Navoi Mining Consortium in Uzbekistan plans to build two new gold mines by 2026, with a clear requirement to use cyanide free processes. At present, the technical solutions for thiosulfate and thiourea are being evaluated, and it is expected to release approximately 15000 tons/year of pharmaceutical demand.
Ghana, Mali, Burkina Faso and other high arsenic and high carbon gold mines have entered an active period of development. Due to the inability of traditional cyanide methods to effectively process such ores, technological routes such as thiourea and halogens have opened up an opportunity window.
Latest UpdatesA Chinese engineering company has signed a framework agreement with the Ghanaian government to build West Africa's first large-scale gold mine using the "thiourea+resin adsorption" process, with a designed annual processing capacity of 5 million tons, expected to be put into operation in 2027.
The high copper gold mining concentration areas in Chile and Peru continue to release demand for environmental protection renovation. Chile's National Copper Company plans to invest $500 million over the next five years to transform all of its copper bearing gold ore beneficiation processes into thiosulfate systems.
Market estimationChile alone, the demand for thiosulfate drugs will increase by approximately 50000 to 80000 tons per year in the next five years.
With the tightening of policies in major markets such as the European Union, China, and Africa, the exit speed of traditional sodium cyanide will exceed expectations. It is expected that by 2028, the global market share of environmentally friendly mineral processing agents will increase from approximately 25% to over 40%.
A single technological route is difficult to cope with the complex and ever-changing properties of ores. Multi technology integration solutions such as "pretreatment+environmental leaching", "bio chemical coupling", and "flotation leaching synergy" will become mainstream.
With the concentrated release of demand for environmentally friendly chemicals in emerging gold producing areas, coupled with the emphasis on the safety of key mineral supply chains in various countries, localized production of mineral processing agents will become a trend. It is expected that in the next 3-5 years, Chinese pharmaceutical companies will accelerate their production capacity layout in Central Asia, Africa, South America and other regions.
The mining and beneficiation pharmaceutical industry is standing at a critical crossroads of transformation. The four forces of environmental regulation, technological iteration, market demand, and competitive landscape are reshaping the industry landscape.
For pharmaceutical companies, grasping the pace of policies, breaking through key technologies, and deeply cultivating key markets will be the key to winning the future. For mining enterprises, the selection of mineral processing agents is upgrading from "cost considerations" to "strategic decisions" - it not only determines the current economy, but also affects future compliance capabilities and sustainable development space.
The choice of medicine is the choice of the future. 在这场深刻的行业变革中，唯有主动应变者，方能行稳致远。
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