Mining, Minerals, Metals: Introduction
Segments
Highwall Mining
In highwall mining, the coal seam is penetrated by a continuous miner propelled by a hydraulic machine.
Surface Mining
Companies in this segment remove soil and rock overlying the mineral deposit through shafts or tunnels.
Underground Mining
The segment includes companies that dig tunnels or shafts into the earth in order to reach buried ore deposits, such as coal and other hard rocks.
The Mining, Minerals, Metals industry is Highly Concentrated. The production in this industry is dominated by a small amount of large firms that are able to shape the industry’s direction and price levels.
Primary Demand Drivers
- Coal: Generators of electricity
- Metal ore: Industrial production
- Nonmetallic mineral: Construction spending and agricultural spending on fertilizers
Profitability Drivers
- Efficient operations since most products are commodities sold based on price
- Volume of operations
- Strategic acquisitions at bargain prices
From the Blog 
The discovery of a sizable rare-earth element deposit in Sweden raises new expectations for Europe's transition away from fossil fuels and a reduction in the reliance on China, which currently supplies most of the vital minerals. Rare-earth elements are essential for renewable energy and electric vehicles. The Swedish state-owned mining corporation LKAB has already started creating a strategy to extract the components from the largest known deposit in Europe. The deposit contains certain rare-earth elements that might be utilized to make permanent magnets, which are needed to power electric motors and wind turbines. The mining of iron ore may result in the production of rare-earth elements as a byproduct.
An energy crisis brewing in Europe could end many businesses and lead to a global supply chain disaster for an already struggling system. Two large industries affected by this will be the metals sector and the agricultural sector. With these significant sectors at risk, European governments are attempting to face this problem every day to see how they may be able to stop this issue as fast as possible.
Sources
- Hoovers (Date Accessed: 6/1/2017)