Gold

With its bright yellow color, gold is one of the precious mines that has attracted the attention of people since the first ages because it has the characteristics of being enchanting people, not being affected by abrasive external conditions due to its durability, being found free in nature and easy processing, and protecting its commercial value and identity in every period. Unlike other precious metals, this precious metal, which has many features of its own, has been used for thousands of years as a means of savings, ornaments, gifts and commercial exchange. The limitation in nature, the fact that its supply could not be increased suddenly in the rate of price increases and the fact that an alternative mineral could not be found yet reveals how precious gold is.

Our country has about 2% of gold resources. Because gold production in our country does not meet the consumption, Türkiye is one of the world's most important importer of gold. While we had an annual average foreign trade deficit of 3.9 billion dollars in 6 years in gold mines until 2021, we had a foreign trade surplus of 3.9 billion dollars in 2021.

Gold production in our country first started officially in Izmir-Bergama in the Ovacik gold mine in 2001. The production of gold, which was 1.4 tons / year at the beginning, and the production of gold mines with the new operation increased to 42 tons / year in 2020 and decreased to 39 tons / year in 2021. Following the increase in gold market prices, our country's production potential is thought to be 50 tons / year.

Domestic and foreign investors spent approximately $ 2 billion on exploration and 5 billion on facility investments in gold projects took place in our country to date. These investments employ 13,000 people. While gold prices in the world market were around $ 270 / ounce in the 2000s, today they reach $ 1900 / ounce. This shows that gold mining is in an important position in our country's economy.

Gold production in our country by years; (tons / year)

Date of Update: 12 September 2022