The transformation of a mineral's status reflects a nation's industrial upgrading journey. Recently, high-purity quartz ore was officially added to the national mineral classification as the sole new entry during the 14th Five-Year Plan period. Historically lumped under the broad category of ordinary quartz ore, its new independent status carries significant implications. What impact will this have on high-end manufacturing industries?

Following the Ministry of Natural Resources' announcement of newly discovered mineral species, high-purity quartz ore has been designated as China's 174th mineral species, marking another addition to the national list. It stands as the sole newly established mineral species during the 14th Five-Year Plan period.

The newly established high-purity quartz ore refers to rock that, under current technological and economic conditions, can be processed through beneficiation and purification to yield high-purity quartz sand with silicon dioxide (SiO₂) purity of no less than 99.995% (4N5). Its impurity, inclusion content, and particle size meet the application requirements of high-tech fields such as semiconductors, photovoltaics, and optics.

Based on ore type, high-purity quartz ore can be classified into granitic pegmatite-type, vein quartz-type, natural crystal-type, quartzite-type, and others. Its beneficiation and purification products yield high-purity quartz sand.

As a globally scarce strategic resource that China heavily relies on imports for, In recent years, the Ministry of Natural Resources has actively advanced a new round of strategic initiatives for mineral exploration breakthroughs. The China Geological Survey and relevant institutions in Henan Province have discovered high-purity quartz mineral resources in areas such as the eastern Qinling Mountains of Henan and Altay in Xinjiang, which resemble the high-purity quartz deposits found in the United States. Multiple mining areas capable of producing high-purity quartz sand have been identified, and significant breakthroughs have been achieved in the investigation, evaluation, and exploration of high-purity quartz deposits, as well as in deep purification and targeted impurity removal technologies. The China Geological Survey, Henan Province, and numerous geological survey and research institutions nationwide have independently undertaken technological breakthroughs in high-purity quartz beneficiation. They have successfully produced pilot-scale products exceeding 4N5 grade, with some samples reaching 4N8 grade. This marks a crucial step toward domestic substitution in the accumulation of technical expertise and industrialization pathways for high-purity quartz purification using local resources. With the approval of the State Council, high-purity quartz ore has been formally designated as a new statutory mineral species in China.

The establishment of this new mineral species reflects China's high priority on the security of high-purity quartz ore resources. It will positively impact the cultivation and development of new productive forces, as well as enhance the resilience and security of China's industrial and supply chains.

In recent years, China has added very few new mineral categories. Prior to the establishment of high-purity quartz ore, only two new categories—shale gas and natural gas hydrates (flammable ice)—were added over the past 15 years.

The designation of shale gas as an independent mineral category signifies its transition from being long regarded as a resource with exploration potential to becoming an important unconventional natural gas resource with commercial development capabilities. This provides institutional support for optimizing China's energy structure and enhancing natural gas supply capacity.

Natural gas hydrates (flammable ice), distinct from traditional energy minerals, are buried in marine sediments and permafrost layers. They represent both a potentially massive energy resource and a new energy category that must be incorporated into the mineral resource governance system. Their designation as an independent mineral category reflects the nation's forward-looking approach to deep-sea resource exploration and future energy development.

Notably, during the 14th Five-Year Plan period, China achieved a major leap from zero to significant progress in helium exploration and development. In recent years, leveraging the new round of mineral exploration breakthrough strategy, China has made phased achievements in identifying helium resources and increasing reserves, laying the foundation for reversing long-term import dependence and enhancing resource security for related strategic industries.

The independent classification of high-purity quartz ore aims to support the secure and stable operation of high-end manufacturing supply chains for semiconductors, photovoltaics, and optical fibers.

This decision will have comprehensive and structural implications. It will rapidly activate the commercial exploration market, attract social capital into mineral prospecting, and is expected to quickly establish new resource reserves in favorable mineralization zones such as central and northwestern China.

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