Pakistan is endowed with significant mineral resources and is emerging as a very promising area

for prospecting/exploration for mineral deposits. Based on available information, the country's
more than 6,00,000 km2 of outcrops area demonstrates varied geological potential for metallic
and non-metallic mineral deposits. In the wake of 18th amendment to the constitution all the
provinces are free to exploit and explore the mineral resources which are in their jurisdiction.
Mining and quarrying contributes 13.19% in industrial sector and its share in GDP is 2.4%.
In the recent past, exploration by government agencies as well as by multinational mining
companies presents ample evidence of the occurrences of sizeable minerals deposits. Recent
discoveries of a thick oxidised zone underlain by sulphide zones in the shield area of the Punjab
province, covered by thick alluvial cover have opened new vistas for metallic minerals
exploration. Pakistan has a large base for industrial minerals. The discovery of coal deposits
having over 175 billion tonnes of reserves at Thar in the Sindh province has given an impetus to
develop it as an alternative source of energy. There is vast potential for precious and dimension
stones.
Extraction of principal minerals in the last 6 fiscal years is given in the table below :-[95]

Unit of
Mineral 2014– 2015– 2016– 2017– 2018– 2019-
quantit
s 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
y

Metric
Coal
ton 3,406,851
3,749,312 3,953,992 4,477,555 5,406,878 8,428,237

Natural
MMCFT
Gas 1,465,759
1,481,550 1,471,854 1,458,935 1,436,546 1,316,636

Crude Oil JSB 34,490,00

31,652,00 32,269,00 32,557,00 32,495,00 28,091,00
0
0 0 0 0 0

Metric
Chromite
ton 100,516 69,333 105,238 97,420 138,244 121,435

Magnesit
Metric
e 4,611 35,228 19,656 23,596 42,996 16,165
ton
 Unit of
Mineral 2014– 2015– 2016– 2017– 2018– 2019-
quantit
s 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
y

Metric
Dolomite
ton 223,117 666,755 301,124 488,825 472,474 302,045

Metric
Gypsum
ton 1,417,007
1,871,716 2,079,629 2,475,893 2,517,825 2,149,873

Limeston Metric
40,470,35
e ton 46,123,36 52,149,13 70,818,72 75,596,32 65,809,92
7
7 7 5 8 4

Metric
Rock salt
ton 2,136,361
3,552,984 3,534,075 3,653,746 3,799,106 3,368,978

Metric
Sulphur
ton 19,730 14,869 23,740 22,040 20,715 19,948

Metric
Barytes
ton 24,689 57,024 75,375 145,189 116,480 55,341

Soap Metric
stone ton 100,724 125,985 152,279 141,504 156,935 150,009

Metric
Marble
ton 2,815,601
4,746,638 4,906,233 8,813,025 7,736,443 5,796,879
 Unit of
Mineral 2014– 2015– 2016– 2017– 2018– 2019-
quantit
s 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
y

Metric
Bauxite
ton - - - 145,189 92,936 101,047

4,592
Metric
Quartz
ton 38,117 90,588 98,909 125,014 112,308