Economy, Mining

The mineral wealth of Spain is considerable. In 1999 production, in metric tons, included hard and brown coal (24.3 million), iron ore (265,000), zinc (200,000), copper (23,300), and lead (51,000). Spain also produced 5,000 kg (11,000 lb) of gold and 70 metric tons of silver. In addition, 7.3 million barrels of petroleum were extracted. The principal coal mines are in the northwest, near Oviedo; the chief iron-ore deposits are in the same area, around Santander and Bilbao; large mercury reserves are located in Almaden, in southwestern Spain, and copper and lead are mined in Andalusia.