The World Gold Council reports that the process of excavating gold is becoming increasingly challenging for miners.

• The World Gold Council stated that the gold mining industry is facing challenges in maintaining production growth due to the depletion of gold deposits.
• In 2023, mine production increased by just 0.5% compared to the previous year, according to information from the international trade association.
• John Reade of WGC stated that finding, financing, and operating gold is becoming increasingly difficult.

The World Gold Council reports that the gold mining industry is facing challenges in maintaining production growth due to the depletion of easily accessible gold deposits.

John Reade, WGC Chief Market Strategist, stated that while there was a 4% increase in first quarter mine production in 2024 compared to the previous year, the overall trend of mine production has been stagnant since around 2016. There has been no growth in mine production since then.

In 2023, mine production increased by just 0.5% compared to the previous year, according to information from the international trade association.

In 2022, global gold production experienced a 1.35% year-on-year growth, a decrease from the 2.7% growth recorded in the previous year. However, in 2020, global gold production recorded its first decline in a decade, with a 1% slide.

Reade stated that after a decade of rapid expansion from approximately 2008, the mining sector is facing challenges in maintaining consistent growth in production.

As many prospective areas have already been explored, finding new gold deposits is becoming increasingly difficult around the world, he explained.

According to WGC, large-scale gold mining is a capital-intensive process that requires extensive exploration and development, with an average timeline of 10 to 20 years before a mine is ready for production.

The probability of a gold discovery resulting in the development of a mine is low, with only about 10% of global discoveries having enough metal to justify mining.

The majority of the 187,000 metric tons of gold mined to date has come from China, South Africa, and Australia. According to the United States Geological Survey, gold reserves that can be excavated are estimated at around 57,000 tonnes.

Government permits are becoming increasingly difficult to obtain and require more time to secure, making mining operations more challenging, according to Reade.

The construction of infrastructure such as roads, power, and water is necessary for many mining projects in remote areas, which increases the costs of building these mines and financing operations, according to Reade.

"Finding gold is becoming increasingly difficult, even with permits, financing, and operation," he stated.

Currently, gold is trading at $2,294.3 per ounce after experiencing a brief pause in its upward trend, which was fueled by robust demand from China.