Venezuela Minerals: List, Locations and the Most Valuable
· Updated
Venezuela’s main minerals are gold, iron ore, bauxite (the ore of aluminum), diamonds, coal, nickel and phosphate rock. There are also deposits of coltan and cassiterite, which the government has declared strategic, but neither is mined on an industrial scale. Almost all the metals are in Bolívar state, inside the Orinoco Mining Arc. There are three exceptions: coal is in Zulia, nickel in Miranda and phosphate in Falcón.
Venezuela’s most valuable mineral is gold. One year of gold output is worth about four times one year of iron ore, which comes second. The numbers, the source of each figure and what is still unknown are below.
What is the most valuable mineral in Venezuela?
Gold, measured by the value of what is mined each year:
- Gold: the government reported output of 9.5 metric tons in 2025, about 305,000 troy ounces. At the 2025 average gold price ($3,431.50 an ounce, according to the World Gold Council), that is worth roughly $1.05 billion. The government projects 30% more for 2026, about 12 tons.
- Iron ore: the latest international figure is a USGS estimate of 2.25 million metric tons in 2022. At about $109 a ton (the World Bank’s 2024 average) that comes to roughly $250 million.
- Aluminum, diamonds, coal and phosphate are far smaller: in 2022 the country produced 1,665 carats of diamonds and about 200,000 tons of coal, according to the USGS.
Two caveats are worth keeping in mind:
- The gold figure comes from the government and has no verifiable breakdown. The USGS publishes no gold output for Venezuela because, in its yearbook’s words, available information was “inadequate to make reliable estimates.” There is informal mining and smuggling, so real output is probably higher than the official figure. That strengthens the conclusion.
- How valuable a mineral is depends on how you measure it. By volume, iron ore is far ahead of gold. By resources in the ground, CSIS counts about 75 million ounces of gold (around 2,343 tons) across 24 mines, based on Capital IQ data. By annual value mined, which is what the question usually means, gold wins.
List of Venezuela’s minerals and where they are
| Mineral | Where (state) | Known output | Status in 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gold | Bolívar: El Callao, El Perú, Colombia, Isidora, Sosa Méndez and Tomi mines | 9.5 t in 2025 (government figure) | Output rising; the 2026 law gives the central bank first right to buy |
| Iron ore | Bolívar: Cerro Bolívar, Altamira, Los Barrancos, San Isidro (CVG Ferrominera Orinoco) | 2.25 Mt in 2022 (USGS estimate); capacity 25 Mt a year | Government projects +50% in 2026 |
| Bauxite | Bolívar: Los Pijiguaos mine, Cedeño municipality | ~250,000 t a year in 2020-2022 (USGS estimate) | Running far below capacity (about 390,000 t in 2023 per Geominas); in 2026, partly halted and evacuated over armed groups. See the bauxite guide |
| Aluminum (from bauxite) | Bolívar: Venalum and Alcasa, Puerto Ordaz | 47,000 t in 2022 (USGS estimate) | Venalum resumed exports to the U.S. in 2026 |
| Diamonds | Bolívar (Orinoco Mining Arc) | 1,665 carats in 2022 | Small output, mostly industrial |
| Coal | Zulia: Paso Diablo and Mina Norte mines (Guasare) | 200,000 t in 2022; +260% in 2025 per the government | Far below capacity (~8.3 Mt a year) |
| Nickel | Miranda: Loma de Níquel; plant at Tiara | No reliable figure (USGS) | Declared strategic in 2021 |
| Phosphate rock | Falcón: Riecito mine (Pequiven) | ~15,000 t a year (USGS estimate) | Used for fertilizer |
| Coltan (niobium and tantalum) | Bolívar (Orinoco Mining Arc) | No industrial mining (CSIS) | Niobium and tantalum declared strategic in 2016 |
| Cassiterite (tin ore) | Bolívar and Amazonas | No public figure | Declared strategic in 2021 |
| Rare earths | No confirmed reserves | — | USGS does not list Venezuela |
Mt = million metric tons · t = metric tons.
The minerals one by one
Gold
Almost all of Venezuela’s gold comes from Bolívar state, from mines such as Colombia, Isidora, Sosa Méndez, San Rafael-El Placer and Tomi (El Callao), with processing plants at El Callao, El Perú and Caratal. The list comes from the USGS. In March 2026 the government merged Minerven, the state gold company, into the Corporación Venezolana de Minería (CVM), which took over its assets. More in Venezuela Gold: Where It Is, Output and Who Mines It.
Iron ore
CVG Ferrominera Orinoco mines Bolívar’s iron hills and has a capacity of 25 million tons a year. In 2022 it produced about 2.25 million, less than a tenth of that. According to CSIS, in 2024 Venezuela produced just 0.10% of the world’s iron ore and 0.84% of its gold. More in Venezuela Iron Ore: Deposits, Ferrominera and Output.
Bauxite and aluminum
Bauxite comes from Los Pijiguaos (Cedeño municipality, Bolívar). CVG Bauxilum refines it into alumina, and Venalum and Alcasa smelt it in Puerto Ordaz. Venalum can make 440,000 tons of aluminum a year, according to the USGS. In September 2026 it shipped more than 15,000 tons to the United States, at 99.5% to 99.7% purity. The cargo arrived in New Orleans on October 5. It was the first shipment of Venezuelan aluminum to the U.S. since 2018. Deposits, output figures and the state of the mine are in Bauxite in Venezuela: Los Pijiguaos, Reserves and Output.
Coltan, cassiterite and rare earths: the “strategic minerals”
- Coltan is the ore of niobium and tantalum, both used in electronics. A 2016 decree declared those two elements strategic (according to a timeline by the NGO Provea). Deposits are known, but there is no industrial mining (CSIS).
- Cassiterite is the ore of tin (what it is and what it is used for). Decree 4,598 (Official Gazette No. 42,230, October 8, 2021) reserved it to the executive, together with nickel, rhodium, titanium and minerals associated with rare earths.
- Rare earths: being named in a decree does not mean there are proven reserves. The USGS does not list Venezuela among countries with rare-earth production or reserves in its 2026 report. We explain it in Does Venezuela Have Rare Earths? What Is Known.
A legal caveat: those decrees were issued under the 2015 gold reservation law, which the 2026 Organic Mining Law repealed. The new law lets the government declare strategic minerals by decree again. The sources reviewed do not yet show whether the 2016 and 2021 decrees were confirmed.
Minerals by state
- Bolívar: gold, iron ore, bauxite, aluminum, diamonds, coltan and cassiterite. It is Venezuela’s mining state and the heart of the Orinoco Mining Arc.
- Zulia: coal (Guasare basin).
- Miranda: nickel (Loma de Níquel).
- Falcón: phosphate rock (Riecito).
- Amazonas: has cassiterite and gold, but mining has been banned there since Decree 269 of 1989. The mining that goes on there is illegal.
- Anzoátegui, Aragua, Falcón, Lara, Miranda, Monagas, Táchira, Trujillo and Zulia: limestone and other non-metallic minerals for cement plants. Under the 2026 law, non-metallic minerals the national government does not reserve are regulated by the states.
What changed in 2026
- Organic Mining Law. The National Assembly passed it on April 9, 2026, and it was published in Official Gazette No. 7,020 Extraordinary on April 16. It repeals the 1999 Mining Law and the 2015 law that reserved gold to the state. It separates large-scale mining (concessions) from small, medium and artisanal mining (licenses). It allows companies with a minority state stake if the state authorizes them. It creates a National Superintendency of Mining Activity, a National Mining Fund and a Single Mining Registry. According to press reports on the text, it sets royalties of up to 13% and gives the central bank first right to buy gold.
- U.S. licenses (OFAC). In March 2026 the U.S. Treasury authorized trading in Venezuelan gold and other minerals (General License 51A), supplying goods and services to mining operations (GL 54) and negotiating investments contingent on a specific license (GL 55). On August 27, 2026 it amended them to 51C and 54B. Refining in, and partners from, Russia, Iran, North Korea, Cuba and China remain excluded.
- Exports. Venalum aluminum returned to the U.S., and the government announced 2026 growth targets for gold (+30%), iron ore (+50%) and coal (+100%). What all this adds to the economy is in How Mining Contributes to Venezuela’s Economy: The Numbers.
Investing in gold from the U.S.
Venezuela’s gold can’t be bought as an investment from the U.S., but gold itself can. Today’s price per gram and ounce, for every karat: gold price per gram. The five ways to own it, with their costs and taxes: how to invest in gold. Holding it in a retirement account: gold IRA. Selling coins, bars or jewelry: where to sell gold.
What is still unknown
- Real gold output. There are only government figures and older independent estimates.
- How much is left in the ground. According to CSIS, about 30% of identified gold is in the Siembra Minera project, still at the prefeasibility stage. Venezuela has no modern, public geological inventory.
- Mineral-by-mineral figures for 2023 to 2025. The USGS yearbook published in 2026 stops at 2022. This guide will be updated when new data comes out.