What’s the difference between mineral reserves and resources?
Every reserve is a resource, but not every resource is a reserve.
The terms “reserves” and “resources” are often used interchangeably when it comes to minerals. But there is an important distinction between the two. The chart explains this distinction visually.
Every reserve is indeed a resource, but not every resource is a reserve.
Two requirements determine whether a mineral resource becomes a reserve. The first is the degree of certainty that it exists: the planet likely has many mineral resources that we have not yet discovered. So to be defined as a reserve, we must have either a proven, probable, or possible understanding of its existence.
The second criterion relates to the economic feasibility of accessing and extracting the mineral resource. To be defined as a reserve, it must be economically and technologically viable to recover. If the economics are subeconomic (i.e. would result in a net loss) or marginal, a mineral resource is not a reserve.
Whilst the original source of this concept — the American geologist Vincent McKelvey — visualized it as a static box, this transition between resources and reserve classifications is dynamic.
As we discover previously unknown resources and develop improved extraction technologies for economic recovery, this reserve box can grow with time. It can also shrink if we consume them at a faster rate than they’re discovered.
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Hannah Ritchie and Max Roser (2024) - “What’s the difference between mineral reserves and resources?” Published online at OurWorldinData.org. Retrieved from: 'https://ourworldindata.org/reserve-vs-resource' [Online Resource]BibTeX citation
@article{owid-reserve-vs-resource,
author = {Hannah Ritchie and Max Roser},
title = {What’s the difference between mineral reserves and resources?},
journal = {Our World in Data},
year = {2024},
note = {https://ourworldindata.org/reserve-vs-resource}
}
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