2024 Meet Alaska Conference & Trade Show 45 Zinc remains most valuable metal; gold, coal strong At a value of $1.5 billion, zinc held onto its throne as the most valuable metal produced in Alaska during 2023. With production forecasts and price trends headed in opposite directions for zinc and gold, however, the gleaming precious metal that drew fortune-seekers North at the turn of the 20th century could soon regain the crown as the most valued metal produced in the 49th State. According to preliminary calculations completed by Alaska’s Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys (DGGS), the total value of metals produced at Alaska mines was approximately $3.76 billion during 2023. When you include sand and gravel mining for the construction sector, that value bumps up to around $4.1 billion, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). When you add in the coal produced for in-state power plants, the total value of all the materials extracted from Alaska mining operations during 2023 comes in at about $4.25 billion In addition to a solid year of production from Alaska’s one coal, seven hardrock metal, and 145 placer gold mines, mineral exploration spending continued to be strong across the Far North State remained strong during 2023. Dave Szumigala, a mineral resources geologist at DGGS, informed attendees of an Alaska mining sector overview at the AME Roundup mining convention that $230 million was spent at around 50 mineral exploration projects across the state last year. According to preliminary data compiled by DGGS, nearly half of the 2023 mineral exploration spending was invested in discovering and expanding gold deposits, making the precious metal the top mineral commodity sought in Alaska. Polymetallic volcanogenic massive sulfide deposits, such as those being mined at Hecla Mining Company’s Greens Creek Mine on the Southeast Panhandle and Ambler Metals’ Arctic mine project in Northwest Alaska, were also popular exploration targets in the state last year. While the exploration for new sources of the minerals and metals needed for the lithium-ion batteries powering electric vehicles has not yet been as pronounced in Alaska as many of the other mining jurisdictions around the world, the search for graphite, nickel, and cobalt accounted for roughly 8 percent of exploration spending last year. Battery mineral exploration spending is expected to continue to rise as current projects expand and new projects emerge over the next couple of years. Globally significant zinc output Due in large part to the highgrade deposits at Teck Resources Ltd.’s Red Dog Mine in Northwest Alaska, zinc continues to be the top commodity mined in the state. During 2023, Red Dog produced 539,800 metric tons (1.19 billion pounds) of zinc, which accounts for 4.5 percent of the 12 billion metric tons of all the zinc mined on Earth last year. When you add in the 47,000 metric tons (103.6 million pounds) produced as a byproduct at the Greens Creek silver mine, Alaska operations accounted for around 5 percent of the global supply of zinc, a metal considered critical to the U.S. Alaska’s share of the global zinc supply, however, could begin to slip as ore grades decline at the 35-year-old Red Dog Mine over the coming years. “Over the next three years, production is expected to decrease due to declining grades at Red Dog,” Teck Resources CFO Crystal Prystai Alaska mine value tops $4 billion in 2023 CONTINUED on PAGE 46 www.AlaskaAlliance.com Photo Courtesy Kinross Alaska
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