Top 10: Biggest Mines

The global mining industry has evolved from a traditional extraction sector into the fundamental engine of the dual green and digital transitions. 

As the world simultaneously electrifies and scales AI, the demand for future-facing minerals - copper for power grids, lithium for batteries and iron ore for low-carbon steel - has reached historic highs.

Coupled with geopolitical urgency, declining ore grades and increasing operational complexity, major industry players are deploying autonomous fleets, AI-driven exploration and renewable-powered sites to maintain productivity. 

This Top 10 represents the massive scale and engineering ingenuity required to fuel the modern global economy.

10. Kiruna

Owned by: LKAB (Swedish State)
Location: Kiruna, Norrbotten County, Sweden
Size: Ore body is 4km long, 80m wide and 2km deep
Operations started: 1898

The Kiruna mine in northern Sweden is the world’s largest and most modern underground iron ore mine.

It is famous for its massive, high-grade magnetite ore body, which is 4 kilometres long and 80 meters thick. 

What makes Kiruna interesting is its impact on the surface; because of the "caving" mining method, the ground is sinking, forcing the entire city of Kiruna to be relocated building-by-building to a new site 

The mine is a pioneer in automation, utilising driverless trains and remote-controlled drills at depths exceeding 1,000 meters.

9. Simandou

Owned by: Winning Consortium Simandou (WCS) & Rio Tinto (SimFer JV)
Location: Nzérékoré Region, Guinea
Size: Estimated 2.4 billion tonnes of ore reserves
Operations started: 2024/2025 (Initial shipments)

Located in the remote Highlands of Guinea, Simandou is considered the world’s largest untapped high-grade iron ore deposit. 

It is unique because its iron content is so high, which means that it can be processed with significantly lower carbon emissions than standard ore.

The project is a huge infrastructure, requiring the construction of a 600-kilometre railway and a deep-water port to reach the coast. 

After decades of legal and political delays, it is currently one of the most significant mining developments that could transform the global steel market.

8. Bingham Canyon

Owned by: Rio Tinto
Location: Oquirrh Mountains, Utah, USA
Size: 4km wide and more than 1.2km deep
Operations started: 1906 (Large-scale open pit)

Commonly known as the Kennecott Copper Mine, this site in Utah is the largest man-made excavation on Earth. The mine is a porphyry deposit, meaning the copper is spread throughout the rock in low concentrations, requiring a massive scale to be profitable.

Despite a catastrophic landslide in 2013 that moved 145 million tonnes of rock, the site is built for longevity and resilience, utilising advanced radar technology to predict events like this, resulting in zero fatalities.

7. Muruntau

Owned by: Navoi Mining and Metallurgical Company (State-owned)
Location: Kyzylkum Desert, Uzbekistan
Size: 3.5km long, 2.5km wide and 600m deep
Operations started: 1967

Muruntau, located in the Kyzylkum Desert of Uzbekistan, is the world’s largest open-pit gold mine by production. 

It is a massive operation that produces more than 2 million ounces of gold annually. 

The mine uses a unique conveyor transport system to move ore out of the deep pit rather than relying solely on trucks. It remains a low-cost leader in the gold industry due to its immense scale and high-quality ore.

6. Chuquicamata

Owned by: Codelco (Chilean State)
Location: Atacama Desert, Antofagasta Region, Chile
Size: 4.3km long, 3km wide and 1.1km deep
Operations started: 1915

Chuqui was, for decades, the largest open-pit copper mine by volume in the world. Located in the Chilean Andes, it is famous for its stadium-like terracing. 

After 100 years of open-pit mining, the site has transitioned into a massive underground operation. This "Chuquicamata Underground" project is one of the world's most complex engineering feats, designed to extend the mine's life by another 40 years.

5. Oyu Tolgoi

Owned by: Rio Tinto (66%) and the Government of Mongolia (34%)
Location: South Gobi Desert, Ömnögovi Province, Mongolia
Size: 2.3 billion tonnes of measured and indicated resources
Operations started: 2013

Oyu Tolgoi is a ‘mine of the future’ located in the South Gobi Desert of Mongolia. It is one of the highest-grade copper and gold deposits ever discovered. 

The site is a hybrid operation, but its centrepiece is the underground Hugo North lift, which uses advanced block caving technology.

It is the largest financial project in Mongolian history and is expected to account for a staggering 30% of the country’s GDP at full capacity. The mine is also a leader in water conservation, recycling over 80% of the water used in its desert operations.

4. Grasberg

Owned by: PT Freeport Indonesia (MIND ID 51.2%, Freeport-McMoRan 48.8%)
Location: Mimika Regency, Central Papua, Indonesia
Size: Mining district covers roughly 200,000+ acres
Operations started: 1973 (Grasberg discovered in 1988)

Grasberg is a geological wonder located in the highlands of Papua, Indonesia. It sits at an elevation of 4,100 meters, making it one of the highest mines in the world. 

It is famous for holding the world’s largest single gold reserve and the second-largest copper reserve. 

The site transitioned from a world-famous open pit to an entirely underground operation in 2019. Its history is marked by extreme engineering challenges, including building a 116-km access road through dense jungle and jagged mountains.

3. Escondida (BHP)

Owned by: BHP (57.5%), Rio Tinto (30%), JECO (12.5%)
Location: Atacama Desert, Antofagasta Region, Chile
Size: Two massive open pits; 3.5 billion tonnes of reserves
Operations started: 1990

The Escondida mine in Chile is the world's leading producer of copper. 

Its name, ‘The Hidden One’, refers to the fact that the ore body was buried under hundreds of meters of barren rock and was only discovered through innovative geological mapping. 

It is the heartbeat of the global copper market; any strike or disruption at Escondida can cause global copper prices to spike. 

To support its massive operations in the arid Atacama Desert, the mine utilises a massive desalination plant to pipe processed seawater 170km from the Pacific Ocean.

2. Carajás (Vale S.A.)

Owned by: Vale S.A.
Location: Carajás Mountains, Pará State, Brazil
Size: More than 18 billion tonnes of known reserves in the district
Operations started: 1985

The Carajás Mine in the Amazon region of Brazil, is the world’s largest iron ore mining complex. The ore at this mine is ‘pure’ hematite, often exceeding 66% iron content, making it some of the highest-quality iron on Earth. 

It was discovered by accident in 1967 when a geologist’s helicopter was forced to land on a ‘bald’ hill that turned out to be solid iron. 

Today, the site features the S11D project, which uses a truckless system, a series of mobile crushers and conveyor belts that drastically reduce diesel consumption and environmental impact.

1. North Antelope Rochelle (Peabody Energy)

Owned by: Peabody Energy
Location: Campbell County, Wyoming, USA
Size: Roughly 65,000 acres
Operations started: 1983 (Merged in 1999)

Located in Wyoming’s Powder River Basin, this is the largest coal mine in the world. 

It produces ‘cleaner’ low-sulfur sub-bituminous coal used for electricity across the United States. Unlike the deep pits of South America, this is a strip mine where massive draglines and shovels uncover coal seams that are over 60 feet thick. 

It is a marvel of logistics; a single train over two miles long leaves the facility every few hours. It represents the absolute peak of American industrial energy production.