Overview
In 2024, France was the world's 3d-ranked producer of diatomite, accounting for 9.9% of global production; the 3d-ranked producer of kyanite and related minerals (variety: andalusite); the 4th-ranked producer of silicon metal, accounting for an estimated 1.6% of global production (excluding the United States production); the 5th-ranked producer of indium, accounting for 1.9% of global production; the 6th-ranked producer of industrial sand and gravel, accounting for an estimated 2.9% of global production; the 6th-ranked producer (tied with Canada and India) of scrap and flake mica, accounting for an estimated 3.7% of global production; the 7th-ranked producer (tied with India) of abrasives (fused aluminum oxide), accounting for 3.1% of global production (excluding the United States production); the 7th-ranked producer of iron oxide pigments (excluding the United States production); the 9th-ranked producer of talc, accounting for an estimated 3.9% of global production; the 11th-ranked producer of lime, accounting for 0.8% of global production; 13th-ranked producer of salt, accounting for 1.6% of global production; the 16th-ranked producer of pumice and pumicite, accounting for an estimated 1.4% of global production; and the 19th-ranked producer of gypsum, accounting for 1.5% of global production. France also produced 2% of the global production of silicon carbide and 0.5% of the global production of ferrosilicon. Other mineral commodities produced included aluminum, bentonite, cement, refined cobalt, ferromanganese, pig iron, kaolin, lead, refined nickel, nitrogen, sand and gravel (construction), silicomanganese, raw steel and steel products, stone, and zinc.
The mining and quarrying sector contributed less than 1% to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), accounting for about \$2.7 billion of the \$3.2 trillion GDP. By Harmonized System chapter, the leading mineral commodity group exported to the United States by value was precious metals and precious stones. The legislative framework for the mineral sector in France is provided by the Mining Code (Ordinance Nos. 2011–91, 2022–1423, 2022–536; and Law No. 2021–1104). The Ministry of Economy, Finance, and Industrial, Energetic, and Technologic Sovereignty oversees the mineral industry and grants mining permits. Mineral-producing companies in France were privately owned, with most of them headquartered in Europe.
