Ten Major New Trends in Geological Exploration in 2022: Are There Clear Signs of Recovery in China’s Geological Survey Sector?

On October 2, General Secretary Xi Jinping replied to a letter from all the geologists of the Sixth Geological Brigade of the Shandong Provincial Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources, expressing his earnest expectations for them to carry forward their fine traditions and excel in mineral exploration. General Secretary Xi emphasized that mineral resources constitute an essential material foundation for economic and social development, and that their exploration and development are vital to national welfare, people’s livelihoods, and national security. He urged all comrades to vigorously uphold the fine traditions of patriotism, dedication, pioneering innovation, and hard work; to actively embrace the concept of green development; to intensify exploration efforts; to strengthen scientific and technological breakthroughs; and to play an even greater role in the new round of strategic initiatives aimed at achieving major breakthroughs in mineral discovery. In doing so, they should contribute anew to safeguarding national energy and resource security and to the comprehensive building of a modern socialist country, thus writing a new chapter for the “Heroic Geological Team.”

Subsequently, the Ministry of Natural Resources issued a notice stating that General Secretary Xi Jinping had replied to all the geologists of the Sixth Geological Brigade of the Shandong Provincial Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources, fully commending their remarkable achievements in mineral exploration and the sense of mission and responsibility they have demonstrated. The notice underscored the critical importance and role of mineral resources and their exploration and development, while expressing earnest expectations for upholding fine traditions and playing an even greater role in the new round of strategic initiatives aimed at breakthroughs in mineral exploration. The notice further clarified that the national natural resources system should, in light of actual conditions, ensure thorough implementation and strive to enhance China’s capacity to secure energy and mineral resources. It called for deepening surveys on the national conditions of mineral resources, vigorously advancing the strategic action plan for breakthroughs in mineral exploration, giving full play to both government and market forces, promoting green practices in the exploration and development of mineral resources, fostering a balanced approach that integrates ecological protection with the secure supply of energy and mineral resources, and strengthening scientific and technological support for geological mineral exploration.

General Secretary Xi Jinping’s reply to the Shandong Geological Team No. 6 was issued against a backdrop of mounting challenges to national energy and resource security, the government’s shift from land‑based fiscal revenue to mining‑related revenue, growing uncertainty in mineral supply, eight consecutive years of declining investment in geological and mineral exploration, and persistent difficulties in the reform of the geological survey sector—making it a powerful boost for China’s geological survey industry. The Ministry of Natural Resources has thoroughly studied the spirit of the letter and is taking concrete measures to implement its guidance, which holds the promise of reversing the longstanding downward trend in exploration spending, removing long‑standing obstacles that have plagued the geological and mineral exploration sector, and introducing a series of policies to advance the exploration and development of mineral resources.

Affected by factors such as a sharp decline in land‑sale revenues due to national real estate regulation, sluggish market conditions leading to reduced corporate tax receipts, and the need to provide financial support for ensuring timely delivery of housing projects, coupled with rising expenditures on COVID‑19 control over the past three years, government fiscal revenue has faced significant challenges. As a result, the traditional land‑based fiscal model that many local governments once relied upon is under severe strain and can no longer sustain budgetary balance. Beginning in 2020, local governments—led by Yunfu and Zhaoqing in Guangdong Province—have pioneered a new mining‑based fiscal model to replace the land‑centric approach; Yunfu’s 30% year‑on‑year increase in fiscal revenue in 2022 serves as a prime example.

The fiscal scale of the mining sector is no less than that of real estate, with individual projects often worth hundreds of millions, billions, or even tens of billions. More importantly, such investments not only generate immediate revenues from the sale of mineral resources, helping to alleviate current government budgetary constraints, but also foster industrial development, boost local employment and economic growth, and deliver long-term output and tax revenues—achieving multiple benefits in one go. However, a sluggish market and geopolitical instability make it difficult for companies to reliably forecast or budget for the expected returns on industrial investments. As a result, when committing to new industries, firms increasingly seek concessions from local governments—namely, access to mineral resources—to mitigate investment risks. Companies believe that mineral assets are unlikely to depreciate; indeed, high‑quality, scarce resources can even generate steady, low‑effort profits. This trend—where industries trade for mineral assets and mineral resources, in turn, drive industrial development—is ushering in a new era. In the future, leveraging mineral resources to catalyze industrial growth will be an effective and rapid means of spurring economic development.

As the government shifts from land‑based fiscal revenue to mining‑related revenue, the issuance of mining rights is increasing, and demand is growing for services such as mineral exploration, reserve verification, development and utilization plans, project feasibility studies, and environmental protection. Geological surveying firms must seize this rare opportunity, leverage their geological expertise, and strengthen their capacity to provide end‑to‑end, value‑chain‑oriented services that support both the economy and society; otherwise, if they merely engage in low‑margin exploration driven by price competition, they will not only fail to turn a profit but may also struggle to collect payments.

On March 5, Premier Li Keqiang, on behalf of the State Council, delivered the Government Work Report to the Fifth Session of the 13th National People’s Congress. The report called for strengthening domestic resource security, accelerating the exploration and development of oil, gas, minerals, and other resources, improving the national strategic reserves system, and ensuring the supply of primary commodities.

On September 19, the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee held a press conference on the development and achievements of natural resources in the new era. The conference announced that the Ministry of Natural Resources, in coordination with relevant departments, will launch a new round of strategic initiatives to achieve breakthroughs in mineral exploration, prioritizing scarce strategic resources, strengthening basic geological surveys, intensifying exploration—particularly detailed prospecting—and fully leveraging the roles of various market players, thereby effectively bolstering China’s capacity to secure strategic mineral resources. This new round of strategic actions will enhance domestic production capacity for primary energy and resource commodities and help safeguard the bottom line of energy and resource security.

The central government attaches great importance to ensuring the security of mineral resources and, through the China Geological Survey’s departmental budget, actively supports basic, public‑interest‑oriented, and strategic geological and mineral surveys. These efforts aim to comprehensively assess the nation’s resource endowment, identify priority exploration targets, and lay a solid foundation for the exploration and development of strategic mineral resources. At the same time, local governments are encouraged to increase their fiscal contributions, and the geological exploration fund has been fully redirected toward prioritizing exploration blocks, thereby jointly addressing the issue of funding for regional exploration activities.

In January, the Jiangsu Bureau of Geological Exploration integrated the public‑service functions of the Jiangsu Provincial Bureau of Geological and Mineral Exploration and related geological survey institutions to establish the Jiangsu Provincial Geological Bureau, a department‑level institution under the Provincial Department of Natural Resources. It also merged the East China Nonferrous Metals Geological Bureau with the Provincial Institute of Geological Survey to reconstitute the Jiangsu Provincial Institute of Geological Survey, a deputy‑department‑level institution affiliated with the Provincial Geological Bureau. Meanwhile, all subordinate institutions formerly under the Jiangsu Provincial Bureau of Geological and Mineral Exploration and the East China Nonferrous Metals Geological Exploration Bureau were transferred to the jurisdiction of the Provincial Geological Bureau.

In May, the Zhejiang Provincial Institute of Geology and Zhejiang Provincial Natural Resources Group Co., Ltd. were officially inaugurated in Hangzhou, marking a significant milestone in the reform to separate public‑service institutions from enterprises within Zhejiang’s geological surveying sector, and signaling the entry of Zhejiang’s geological work into a new phase of systemic restructuring, business‑process reengineering, and institutional‑mechanism reshaping.

In May, the newly established Henan Provincial Geological Bureau, the Henan Provincial Institute of Geology, and Henan Yudi Science and Technology Group Co., Ltd. were officially inaugurated in Zhengzhou, marking the emergence of a new institutional framework for geological work in Henan Province—a “one bureau, one institute, one group” structure. On June 9, 2022, in alignment with its three core responsibilities—ensuring energy and resource security, supporting ecological civilization development, and strengthening geological disaster prevention and control—the Henan Provincial Geological Bureau formally unveiled its three newly established centers: the Mineral Resources Exploration Center, the Ecological and Environmental Geology Service Center, and the Geological Disaster Prevention and Control Center.

In June, Jiangxi Provincial Geological Construction Investment Group Co., Ltd. was officially established. The company was formed by integrating five construction firms—Jiangxi Zhongmei Construction Group Co., Ltd., Nuclear Industry East China Construction Engineering Group Co., Ltd., Jiangxi Provincial Geological Engineering (Group) Company, Jiangxi Nonferrous Construction Group Co., Ltd., and Zhonggan Nuclear (Beijing) Investment Development Group Co., Ltd.—under the leadership of the Jiangxi Provincial Bureau of Geology, in line with the decisions and arrangements of the Jiangxi Provincial Party Committee and the Provincial Government to deepen the reform of public‑sector institutions within the geological system, with engineering construction as its core business.

In July, the Sichuan Provincial Department of Natural Resources issued the “Implementation Opinions on Promoting High-Quality Development in the Geological Exploration Sector,” a document that sparked widespread discussion across the national natural resources sector, particularly within the geological exploration industry. According to a responsible official from the department, post-reform geological exploration entities now face vast opportunities and will provide geological technical support and services to Sichuan Province in multiple fields, including energy and resource security, tourism‑related geological surveys, scientific and technological innovation, geological disaster prevention and control, and urban development space. Following the reforms, these units will strengthen integration in areas such as talent, projects, and science‑and‑technology innovation platforms, achieving synergies that yield results greater than the sum of their parts—“1+1+1>3.”

Geological exploration units are the “cells” of the geological sector’s development; when these cells thrive, the entire sector prospers. Surveys indicate that among Chinese geological exploration teams, 73% cite insufficient market‑development and technological‑innovation capabilities, 66% point to talent shortages and brain drain, and 51.5% identify declining investment in geological exploration as key challenges. The primary factors hindering reform of these units are the management system and the remuneration mechanism, accounting for 65.5% and 57.8%, respectively. At present, reform of geological exploration units has entered a transformative new phase, with the pace of reform accelerating across China.

The 2022 budgets for geological exploration units across all provinces have been released one after another, with most provinces reporting budget increases compared to 2021. Preliminary estimates indicate that provincial-level fiscal spending on geological exploration exceeded RMB 4 billion in 2022, marking a year-on-year rise.

In 2021, national geological exploration expenditures totaled RMB 17.381 billion, up 7.5% year on year—the first positive growth since 2013. In 2022, the exploration budget expanded further compared with 2021, signaling a clear recovery in the sector.

From August to October, 14 provinces and autonomous regions—including Heilongjiang, Liaoning, Xinjiang, Ningxia, Inner Mongolia, Hebei, Shandong, Hubei, Jiangxi, Fujian, Guizhou, Guangxi, Yunnan, and Sichuan—successively released their comprehensive plans for mineral resources (2021–2025). These plans focus on key issues such as ensuring resource security, optimizing resource allocation, promoting integrated utilization, protecting ecological environments in mining areas, and advancing management reforms. They also underscore the need to strengthen basic geological surveys—covering mineral geology, hydrogeology, and disaster geology—in response to emerging demands related to ecological civilization, energy and resource security, and geological hazard prevention, thereby facilitating the transformation and upgrading of the geological exploration sector. Furthermore, the plans emphasize intensifying exploration efforts for locally advantageous resources to provide robust resource support for industrial development, enhance resource‑use efficiency, and achieve a balanced integration of economic, environmental, and social benefits.

The master plan for mineral resources is formulated on the basis of the endowment of mineral resources, the current status of exploration, development, and utilization, and the demand for mineral resources driven by national economic and social development over a specified period. It sets forth the overall quantity, structure, spatial distribution, and temporal sequencing for geological exploration, the development and utilization of mineral resources, and their protection. As a guiding document, it enables the state to strengthen macro‑regulation over the development and utilization of mineral resources and to promote their optimal allocation and rational use. Due to its highly specialized nature, such plans are typically prepared by geological survey agencies, which has led to delays in reflecting market realities and constraints on economic development. There is an urgent need to base these plans on market dynamics, prioritize the promotion of economic and social progress, and comprehensively integrate considerations of environmental protection, resource security, and public safety to ensure their scientific formulation.

In January, the China Geological Survey released the “14th Five-Year Plan for National Geological Surveys,” outlining 11 key tasks. First, continue to strengthen basic geological surveys and Earth system science research, steadily enhancing our understanding of the Earth system and China’s resource endowment. Second, intensify the exploration and evaluation of clean energy and strategic mineral resources, fully implementing a new round of strategic initiatives to achieve breakthroughs in mineral discovery. Third, accelerate marine geological surveys and the exploration and pilot production of natural gas hydrates, proactively supporting the national strategy of building a strong maritime nation. Fourth, conduct water resource surveys, monitoring, and assessments to underpin optimal allocation, effective protection, and rational development and utilization of water resources. Fifth, carry out ecological geological surveys and conservation‑restoration efforts across land space, providing systematic solutions for the ecological protection and restoration of major rivers and watersheds, as well as for the comprehensive management of critical ecological issues such as soil and water loss, desertification, and stony desertification. Sixth, undertake surveys, monitoring, and evaluations of natural resources to support their scientific conservation and rational development and utilization. Seventh, focus on critical needs, leverage the advantages of geological science and technology, and provide robust support for the implementation of major national strategies and large‑scale infrastructure projects. Eighth, strengthen geological hazard surveys, assessments, and monitoring‑early warning systems, offering more robust technological support for disaster prevention and control. Ninth, deepen international geological survey and scientific‑technological cooperation, enhancing our capacity and level of service to global mining partnerships. Tenth, aim to build a national strategic scientific and technological force, significantly elevating the innovation capacity and modernization of geological science and technology. Eleventh, intensify efforts to advance geological informationization, accelerating the digital transformation of geological survey management and services.

During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, China’s geological survey work adheres to the principles of “national‑demand orientation, a foundational, public‑benefit, and strategic mission, innovation‑driven development, coordinated and integrated advancement, and international openness and cooperation.” It vigorously promotes three major strategic transformations—shifting the focus of geological survey services, refining guiding theories, and reinvigorating development drivers—while accelerating the enhancement of its scientific and technological innovation capacity and modernization. The effort is directed toward addressing critical resource, environmental, ecological, and disaster‑related challenges, as well as fundamental Earth system science issues that constrain high‑quality economic and social development in China, thereby continuously strengthening its ability to support national energy and resource security, ecological civilization, and major national strategies.

In March, the Ministry of Natural Resources issued the “Key Work Guidelines for National Geological Disaster Prevention and Control in 2022,” outlining measures to advance geological disaster prevention and control nationwide. The document emphasizes that in 2022, efforts will be accelerated to conduct risk surveys and assessments of geological hazards, with a focus on integrating the findings into planning for prevention and control, the development of annual response plans, the design of monitoring and early‑warning systems, and risk management strategies. It calls for strengthening 1:50,000-scale hazard risk surveys and 1:10,000-scale investigations in key areas, launching pilot projects to apply domestically produced land‑observation satellites in disaster prevention and control, deepening cooperation with meteorological agencies, and reinforcing critical initiatives such as the selection, supplementation, training, and incentivization of community‑based monitoring and prevention personnel. Furthermore, the 17 key provinces receiving central government funding for geological disaster prevention and control are expected to complete, before the 2022 flood season, the installation and grid‑connection of universal‑type monitoring and early‑warning equipment across their jurisdictions.

Geological hazard prevention and control is a vital safeguard for enhancing risk awareness and response capabilities, building a robust defense against natural disasters, and firmly establishing a safety baseline that protects the lives and property of the people from geological hazards, thereby further strengthening the public’s sense of gain, happiness, and security. It also reflects the geoscience exploration sector’s ongoing expansion of service areas and its growing capacity to provide foundational geological surveys that underpin economic and social development, gradually becoming a cornerstone of the industry.

Since its official launch in December 2021, the National Geological Exploration Industry Supervision Service Platform has received strong support from natural resources authorities across the country and a wide range of geological exploration entities. To date, more than 5,000 exploration firms have registered, with over 4,000 having been publicly disclosed—representing a disclosure rate exceeding 80%—marking significant progress in the platform’s development.

The regulatory service platform offers three key benefits: First, local natural resources authorities can access regulatory information and critical updates through the platform, enhancing transparency in the geological exploration sector and enabling market participants to make informed, optimal choices when selecting partners. Second, geological exploration entities can submit and showcase their activities and performance on the platform, fostering a cumulative effect of achievements and credibility that helps build a positive industry image and promote an ethos of integrity and trustworthiness. Third, the platform provides a solid foundation for conducting “double-random, one-public” inspections and oversight of exploration activities; by establishing credit records and clearly flagging enterprises with adverse histories, it establishes an effective early‑warning mechanism to support the sustainable development of the geological exploration industry.

It is imperative to widely apply modern technologies such as big data, cloud computing, blockchain, and artificial intelligence; to build a ministry‑province‑linked geological big‑data platform; to establish a unified comprehensive monitoring system for natural resources; to enhance the integrated application of geological data; to promote the intelligent development of geological exploration and geological disaster prevention; and to elevate the level of informationization and intelligence in geological surveying.

In February, Wang Dahǔ, Party Secretary and Director of the Hebei Provincial Coalfield Geology Bureau, was placed under disciplinary review and investigation by the Hebei Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection and Supervision on suspicion of serious violations of discipline and law.

In May, Gao Weidong, a member of the Party Committee and Director of the Guizhou Provincial Coalfield Geological Bureau, was placed under disciplinary inspection and supervisory investigation by the Guizhou Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection and Supervision on suspicion of serious violations of discipline and law.

In June, Xia Daochun, the former general manager of Anhui Provincial Geological and Mineral Resources Real Estate Co., Ltd., was placed under disciplinary inspection and supervisory investigation on suspicion of serious violations of discipline and law.

In July, Deng Xiaogang, deputy secretary of the Party Leadership Group and director of the Hainan Provincial Bureau of Geology, was placed under disciplinary inspection and supervisory investigation by the Hainan Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection and Supervision on suspicion of serious violations of discipline and law.

In October, Huang Fangfang, former Party Secretary and Director of the Development and Reform Commission of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, was placed under disciplinary inspection and supervisory investigation by the region’s Commission for Discipline Inspection and Supervision on suspicion of serious violations of discipline and law. Huang Fangfang was investigated four years after stepping down from his post; he previously served as Deputy Director of the Guangxi Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources, Director of the Guangxi Coal Industry Bureau, and Director of the Guangxi Department of Land and Resources, among other positions.

Once upon a time, geological exploration agencies were considered clean and uncorrupt. However, as the mining and engineering markets expanded, some leaders in these sectors turned to profiting from mineral resources or engineering projects, eventually ending up behind bars. Meanwhile, several other departmental leaders who were transferred to geological exploration agencies also came under investigation—for instance, Gao Weidong, former director of the Guizhou Provincial Coalfield Geology Bureau, had previously served as chairman of the Moutai Group; and Wang Dahu, director of the Hebei Provincial Coalfield Geology Bureau, once held posts including member of the Langfang Municipal Party Committee and deputy secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission, member of the Shijiazhuang Municipal Party Committee and vice mayor, as well as deputy secretary of the Cangzhou Municipal Party Committee and mayor of Cangzhou.

Source: Mineral Materials Network