The Great Resource Grab: China’s Global Mining Takeover Gains Momentum
China’s billion-dollar mining spree is redrawing the global resource map as Western rivals scramble to catch up
Editorial Team (ET)July 9, 2025
Chinese mining acquisitions are surging to heights not seen in over a decade as Beijing intensifies its global scramble for the raw materials that fuel the world’s economy. With geopolitical friction sharpening and resource nationalism on the rise, China’s mining companies are moving quickly, striking billion-dollar deals in regions many Western firms now view as too risky. The result is a global shift in the balance of mining power—one where Beijing is confidently rewriting the rules.
In 2024, China recorded more than ten overseas mining deals valued over $100 million each, a level of activity not witnessed since 2013. That momentum hasn’t slowed. This year alone, China’s Zijin Mining has committed $1.2 billion for a gold mine in Kazakhstan, while Baiyin Nonferrous Group finalized a $420 million deal for Brazil’s Mineração Vale Verde copper and gold mine. These transactions are not simply opportunistic acquisitions. They are part of a deliberate, well-financed campaign to secure the minerals critical to future industries.
China already dominates the processing of key materials like lithium, cobalt, and rare earths. What it doesn’t control—at least not yet—is the full pipeline of raw material supply. That’s changing. From the Andes to West Africa to Central Asia, Chinese firms are planting flags, often in jurisdictions Western miners are abandoning. In regions like Mali, where military-led governments are driving resource nationalism, Chinese companies have shown a willingness to accept lower returns or less favorable terms, if it means control of the asset. It’s a long game. And it’s working.
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