Challenges of metal ore mining
V.I. Golik1
1 Moscow Polytechnic University, Moscow, Russian Federation
Russian Mining Industry №2/ 2026 p. 92-96
Abstract: The virtually inexhaustible subsoil resources allow the Russian Federation to occupy a leading position regarding the reserves of the main useful mineral types, but the proven reserves in Russia are not being incremented at a sufficient pace, which poses a threat to its mineral resource base. Scarce rare metals are sold abroad. Production has been stopped at companies that do not generate immediate profit. Ore processing tailings are poorly utilized despite the emergence of innovative technologies such as metal leaching. The following methods were used: generalization of publications and research results, systematization and analysis of research results, forecasting at the engineering level. The result obtained included information on extraction of the main ores of ferrous, non-ferrous and precious metals. It is shown that large-scale geological exploration of new mineral deposits has decreased, while the gap between the mining volumes and reproduction of reserves has increased. The paper provides characteristics of Russia's reserves of metal raw materials that determine the challenges in their development. The dynamics of mineral mining volumes are presented for the years of the weakened resource base recovery. The main challenges of mining operations during the transition period from the industrial to the post-industrial society are formulated, including a reduction in the mining volumes due to decreasing material intensity of the metal-based technologies. It is noted that the changing demand-supply situation in the global metals market opens up opportunities for geotechnological extraction methods, including in situ leaching, heap leaching, drillhole in situ leaching and leaching in high-speed disintegrator mills. The priority tasks of mining and processing operations are specified in details. The material of the article can be used in assessing the potential development of natural and man-made reserves of metal ores.
Keywords: subsoil, metals, mining operations, processing, reserve increment, deposit, geotechnology, minerals, leaching
For citation: Golik V.I. Challenges of metal ore mining. Russian Mining Industry. 2026;(2):92–96. https://doi.org/10.30686/1609-9192-2026-2-92-96
Article info
Received: 13.01.2026
Revised: 09.02.2026
Accepted: 11.02.2026
Information about author
Vladimir I. Golik – Dr. Sci. (Eng.), Professor, Department of Metallurgy, Moscow Polytechnic University, Moscow, Russian Federation; https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1181-8452; e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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