Ministry Natural Resources
The MNR (Ministry of National Resources) recently published its first batch of tungsten mining quotas for 2024.
The 2024 first batch of tungsten mining quotas is 62 kt (converted to 65% WO3), and quotas have been assigned to the following provinces; 23.67 kt to Jiangxi, 15.53 kt to Hunan and 7.05 kt to Henan accounting for 38%, 25% and 11% of the total respectively.
| Province | 65% WO3 65%, t | % of Total |
| IM | 1,200 | 1.94% |
| Heilognjiang | 340 | 0.55% |
| Zhejiang | 100 | 0.16% |
| Anhui | 100 | 0.16% |
| Fujian | 2,238 | 3.61% |
| Jiangxi | 23,670 | 38.18% |
| Henan | 7,050 | 11.37% |
| Hubei | 180 | 0.29% |
| Hunan | 15,530 | 25.05% |
| Guangdong | 2,616 | 4.22% |
| Guangxi | 2,400 | 3.87% |
| Yunnan | 3,960 | 6.39% |
| Shaanxi | 780 | 1.26% |
| Gansu | 1,254 | 2.02% |
| Xinjiang | 582 | 0.94% |
| Total | 62,000 | 100.00% |
The first batch of 2024 tungsten mining quotas is 1 kt lower or down by 1.6% y-o-y from the figure for 2023, signaling the first retreat since 2020.
Due to shrinking mining quotas, environmental regulations, ore depletion, and challenges in new project development, domestic tungsten supply is expected to remain tight. Increased downstream demand from equipment renewal policies and photovoltaic tungsten wires may prompt strong tungsten prices at a high level over the mid-long term – according to industry commentators.
