Industry profile
The industrial minerals sector is mainly composed of small and medium-sized enterprises, but also includes some of the world's leading international companies.
Unlike other mining sectors, the European industrial minerals industry and its markets are largely self-sufficient. Minerals are extracted from deposits found across Europe.
The European bentonite, borates, calcium carbonate, diatomite, feldspar, kaolin, plastic clay, silica, talc, gypsum, sepiolite, vermiculite and wollastonite producers - Members of IMA-Europe - operate more than 810 sites throughout Europe. They offer direct employment to some 100.000 people and process an annual volume of some 100 million tonnes of industrial minerals, contributing a value of around Euro 13 billion to Europe's gross domestic product. If downstream industries such as glass, foundries, ceramics, paper, paint, plastic, etc. are included, the figures are much higher.
Details of producing companies are available from the members list or member associations sites. Qualitative and quantitative market overviews can also be obtained from the EU Minerals Yearbook (available from the Office for Official Publications of the European Commission). IMA does not collect original statistics.
