As the grain for the development of iron and steel industry, the distribution, mining, composition and transportation of iron ore are of great significance to the development of iron and steel industry. Globally, in recent years, China's crude steel production capacity has exceeded 50% of the global production capacity and digested more than 60% of the global iron ore. And the iron ore market has been singing all the way recently. Therefore, no matter how much attention is paid to iron ore and related raw materials.

Core content

1. What are the main classifications of iron ore?

2. What are the differences in iron ore composition in different regions?

3. What is the global distribution of iron ore?

4. Who are the world famous iron ore companies?

5. Where is the world-famous iron mine?

6. What are the characteristics of iron ore transportation?

0 1 overview

The pig iron production capacity of China Iron and Steel Company in 20 18 is conservatively estimated to exceed 700 million tons, accounting for more than 60% of the world pig iron production capacity. The main smelting forms of pig iron are blast furnace and direct reduced iron, among which blast furnace ironmaking has an absolute advantage in China. The blast furnace consumes a huge amount of iron ore, because China iron ore has the characteristics of low grade, less rich ore, scattered distribution and high mining cost, which is also the reason why China imports a huge amount of iron ore every year.

The global iron ore trade volume is increasing year by year, especially in China. In 20 15, China imported 950 million tons of iron ore, and the world iron ore trading volume was 138 million tons, accounting for 68.84% of the former. Therefore, in the international iron ore trade, the China market occupies an absolute share.

Many technicians engaged in iron and steel industry are familiar with iron and steel technology, but their understanding of ore is very limited. This paper mainly introduces the basic knowledge and distribution of iron ore for you.

02 iron ore varieties

1, lead powder and lead block (lead powder/lead block):

Produced in Australia, also known as Pilbara mixed ore (operated by BHP Billiton), the grade of fine ore is about 6 1.5%, and some limonite has good sintering performance; The lumpiness is about 62.5%, which belongs to limonite with good reducibility and average thermal strength. Lead powder and lead block can be made by mixing the powders of Bai Zixuan mine, Palabudu mine, Malandu mine, Brookman mine, nnamdi mine and Xi 'angelas mine.

2.YandiFines:

Produced in Australia (operated by BHP Billiton), the grade is about 58%, the aluminum content is low, it belongs to limonite with high crystal water and high water demand for the mixture. Because of its loose structure and good sintering assimilation and reactivity, it can partially replace Newman Mountain fine ore or Brazilian fine ore. The content of Al2O3 is relatively low, and both kinds of mineral powder are coarser than those in Hammersley. They all have reasonable smelting performance, but poor sintering performance.

3.MacFines:

The normal grade of MAC powder is about 6 1.5%, and most of the market in China is about 58% at present. Part of it belongs to limonite, which has good sintering performance, contains about 5% crystal water, and has high burning loss during ironmaking. With the increase of its proportion, the sintering rate of sinter decreases gradually. According to the research of steel works, when the proportion of MAC powder is 15%-20%, the grade of sinter less than 5mm is low, and the sintering yield is the highest when the proportion is 20%.

4. NewmanFines/NewmanLumps:

Newman Hill Mine, located in Newman Town, East Pilbara, Australia, belongs to hematite with good sintering performance. The grade of fine ore is about 62.5% and the grade of lump ore is about 65%, which is produced by BHP Billiton in Western Australia, Australia.

5.RobeRiverFines/RobeRiverLumps:

Luobuhe Iron Mine United Company is produced in Australia; The composite water with a grade of about 57.5% and 3%-5% will lead to high fuel rate and low productivity; It belongs to limonite with poor sintering performance, but its sinter has good smelting performance.

6. Rocket powder:

Also known as FMG (FortescuemetalGroup(FMG)) powder, produced by FMG Company, the third largest iron ore producer in Australia; It is said that it is used as a component of rocket engine fuel, so it is called rocket powder. Its grade is about 58.5%, silicon is about 4, and aluminum is about 1.5. It belongs to limonite, with good sintering performance, large reserves, high grade of single firing and crystal water of about 8%. The chemical composition of FMG powder ore is better than that of yandi powder, but its sintering performance and pelletizing performance are not as good as that of yandi powder.

7. Rocket powder:

Rocket powder with a grade of about 57.5% produced by FMG Company contains about 5 silicon and 2 aluminum, and its other smelting properties are the same as those of rocket powder. The grade of super special powder is lower than that of rocket special powder (1), about 56.5%, about 6 for silicon, about 3 for aluminum, and about 8.5% for crystal water. Other smelting properties are similar.

8, atlas powder:

The iron ore produced by AtlasIron Company, Australia's fourth largest iron ore producer located in Pilbara mining area, Australia, belongs to limonite with a grade of 57.5%, crystal water of about 9% and high silicon content of about 8%. Its physical and chemical properties and smelting properties are similar to those of rocket powder.

9.KMG powder:

The mine, produced by KMG, an Australian private mining company, is located in Perth, Australia. It is the closest Western Australian mine to China and close to the northernmost port in Western Australia. The mine is expected to produce 67 million tons of ore in two years, mainly low-grade coarse hematite, containing 58-59% silicon, 8% silicon, 3% aluminum, 0.08% phosphorus and 0.03% sulfur. The performance is similar to that of rocket powder, but it is much higher than the silicon of rocket powder.

10, CSN powder, block:

The iron ore produced by Brazilian CSN Company (full name is Brazilian state-owned ferrous metal company) contains more than 65% iron and 1%-2% silicon.

1 1, SSFT powder:

The iron content of SSFT is about 65% and the silicon content is about 4.4% in the sintering powder specially made by Brazil's Vale Company for China market.

12, card powder:

Caragas powder is abbreviated as SFCJ powder, which is SINTERFEEDCarajas. The iron content is above 65% (65-67%) and the silicon content is 1%-2%. Aluminum is about 1%, phosphorus is about 0.033-0.045%, burning loss is about 1.6%, and moisture is about 8-9%. The iron ore produced by Caragas mine in Brazil is very popular in the international market. Because of its excellent quality, the price is higher than that of the southern mine source.

13, southern Brazil powder:

The mine is located in Brazil, and the south source is "Iron Corner", also known as Brazilian South Powder. The main mines in the southern mining area are Itabira, Mariana, MihasCentrals, Paraopebal, VargemGrande and Itabiritos, all of which are located in the four corners of Brazilian iron ore. The main mining method in southern mining area is open pit mining. This area is dominated by felsic with high hematite content and iron content of about 66%. It mainly includes SSFG powder (standard sintering powder in southern Brazil, iron grade 65%, silicon 3.2-3.8%, aluminum 1.2- 1.8%, phosphorus 0.049-0.065%, manganese 0.25-0.40% and water 6.5-8.5%.

14, Babu:

Refers to Brazilian coarse-grained fine ore, which is the general name of Brazilian coarse powder, including kafen, SSFT powder, CSN powder, southern powder and so on. The grade varies from 65% to 58%, and the smelting performance of the mineral powder produced by Southeast Tiejiao is the best.

15, printing powder:

Refers to fine-grained fine ore in India, but it does not meet the size standard of coarse grain in India. The grade ranges from 40% to 63.5%, belonging to hematite. The high-grade smelting performance is excellent, and the low-grade silicon-aluminum composition is high, which has high smelting value.

03 iron ore particle size classification

1, ore particle size:

The particle size and porosity of ore have great influence on the smelting process of blast furnace. If the particle size is too small, it will affect the permeability of the material column in the blast furnace and increase the gas rising resistance. Excessive particle size will affect the heating of burden and the reduction of ore. Because of the large particle size, the contact area between gas and ore is reduced, which makes it difficult to reduce the central part of ore, thus reducing the reduction speed and improving the coke ratio.

2. Coarse powder:

Basically, it is 0- 10 mm, but generally it does not exceed 10% above 10 mm, and it does not exceed 35% below 0. 15 mm. ..

3. Fine powder:

Basically, they are all made in China, below 200 mesh. Generally, foreign minerals used in China are coarse powders, but now they also use imported fine powders, such as Russian fine powders, Ukrainian fine powders and Brazilian SSFT powders. The refined powder should be not less than 70% and less than 0.074 mm.

4, lump ore:

There are two kinds, one is a standard block with a particle size of 6-40mm. The other is the mixed block, which generally needs to be screened and broken before it can be used.

5. rawore:

Raw ore refers to the ore mined from the mine without mineral processing or other technical treatment, but the particle size of raw ore is preferably not more than 300 mm, a few raw ores can be used directly, and most raw ores can be used only after mineral processing or other technical treatment. In mineral processing, the ore that enters the separation operation after grinding is called clean raw ore.

6. Fine ore:

Fine ore, English name: fine ore; Smalls, whose grade is lower than lump ore, needs crushing, grinding and sorting to turn lump ore into powder, which can meet the grade requirements, generally 60-67%, and the grade of Panzhihua Iron and Steel Company is 57%.

04 iron ore smelting type

1, acid sinter (between acids):

Sinter with alkalinity (Cao/SiO _ 2) less than 0.5 is formed by sintering iron concentrate or rich ore powder without adding or adding less flux. The iron-bearing minerals are magnetite and hematite, and the main binding minerals are fayalite (2FeO_SiO2) and fayalite (CaOFeOSiO2). Red-hot acid sinter will not be pulverized naturally during cooling. High mechanical strength, but high FeO, poor reducibility and low melting point. The use of this ore alone in furnace smelting requires the addition of a large amount of limestone; Moreover, the reduction is poor, resulting in low blast furnace output and high coke ratio. Except for some special cases, this kind of sinter is no longer used in modern blast furnaces.

2. Iron concentrate:

Through fine grinding and cleaning, iron ore powder with high iron content can be obtained from poor iron ore. Iron concentrate is a metallurgical raw material for producing man-made rich ore. According to different iron-bearing minerals, iron concentrate can be divided into magnetite concentrate, hematite concentrate and brown iron concentrate. According to different mineral processing methods, it can be divided into weak magnetic concentrate, strong magnetic concentrate, flotation concentrate and heavy magnetic concentrate. Usually, magnetite concentrate is obtained by magnetic separation treatment of magnetite; Treating hematite by gravity separation, flotation, high intensity magnetic separation, magnetic roasting-magnetic separation or a combined process to obtain hematite concentrate; Brown iron concentrate is obtained by gravity separation, high intensity magnetic separation or magnetic roasting-magnetic separation.

Usually there are four requirements for iron concentrate:

(1) has a high iron content. The iron content of magnetite concentrate should be above 65%, hematite concentrate should be above 60%, and brown iron concentrate should be above 50%. The fluctuation of iron content is less than 0.5%.

(2) The water content should be low. Moisture has great influence on storage and transportation, ore mixing and pelletizing. In general, the moisture content of magnetite concentrate should be lower than 10%, and that of hematite concentrate and brown iron concentrate should be lower than 12%.

(3) The particle size is appropriate. For the iron concentrate used to produce pellets, the particle size less than 0.074mm should account for more than 70%, and the specific surface area should be1200 ~ 2000 cm2/g. ..

(4) The lower the impurity content (such as harmful elements such as sulfur, phosphorus, lead, arsenic, zinc, copper, etc.). ), the better Generally speaking, S ≤ 0. 10% ~ 0. 19%, P ≤ 0.05% ~ 0.09%, Pb ≤ 0. 1%.

The pH of iron concentrate (including iron ore) refers to the pH of gangue components in the ore, specifically the ratio of calcium oxide to silicon dioxide. When Cao/SiO _ 2 is greater than 1, it is alkaline, and when Cao/SiO _ 2 is less than 1, it is acidic. If the content of magnesia and alumina in the ore is high, (Cao+MgO)/(SiO _ 2+Al _ 2O _ 3) is greater than 1, and vice versa.

The pH value of iron concentrate is related to the ironmaking index of blast furnace. If the blast furnace is smelted with alkaline slag (for better desulfurization), it is desirable to use alkaline ore. If the blast furnace adopts acid slag smelting (in order to improve the utilization rate of blast furnace and reduce coke consumption), it is best to use acid ore. At present, alkaline ore is widely used in domestic blast furnaces, that is, it is hoped that the alkalinity (CaO/SiO2 _ 2 value) of iron ore will be higher.

The pH value of iron concentrate is calculated by the following formula:

(CaO+MgO)/(SiO2+Al2O3)> 1.2; Alkaline ore;

(CaO+MgO)/(SiO 2+al2o 3)= 0.8 ~ 1.2； Autolytic ore;

(CaO+MgO)/(SiO 2+al2o 3)= 0.5 ~ 0.8； Semi-autolytic ore;

(CaO+MgO)/(SiO2+Al2O3)

It can also be simplified as CaO/SiO2 ratio for evaluation. Most domestic iron ores are acid ores with low calcium, low magnesium, high silicon and high aluminum.

Distribution and companies of iron ore in the world

5. 1 Global distribution of iron ore

At present, the main iron ore producing areas in the world have been basically controlled by iron ore oligarchs. The following table lists the famous iron ore enterprises and the mines they control.

Table (1) Iron Ore Origin and Holding Company

Figure (1) Main distribution of iron ore in the world

Figure (2) Main distribution areas of iron ore and manganese ore in the world and export routes of iron ore.

Figure (3) Distribution of Iron Ore in China

Figure (4) Distribution of Iron Ore in Europe

Figure (5) Distribution of iron ore in Africa

Figure (6) Distribution of iron ore in Russia and India.

Figure (7) Distribution of Iron Ore in North America

Figure (8) Distribution of Iron Ore in South America

Figure (9) Distribution of Iron Ore in Australia

5.2 Introduction of famous iron ore companies

1, Brazilian iron ore company:

Brazil's Vale: Brazil is rich in iron ore resources, accounting for 6.5% of the world's total reserves, and is the world's largest producer of rich minerals. CVRD is the largest iron ore producer and exporter in the world and the largest mining company in the American continent. It is known as Brazil's "crown jewel" and "the engine of the Amazon region". The company was established in June 1942, 1. At present, Vale's iron ore production accounts for 80% of Brazil's total national output. Its iron ore resources are concentrated in the "Tiesijiao" area in northern Brazil and the state of Bara, including Timber Pebe Iron Mine, Capanni Ma Iron Mine and Caragas Iron Mine. Iron ore reserves are about 4 billion tons, and its main minerals can last for nearly 400 years.

2, Australia imported ore:

1), BHP Billiton:

BHP Billiton, formed by the merger of two giant mining companies, is currently the largest mining company in the world and the second largest iron ore producer and exporter. Among them, BHP Billiton was founded in 1885, and its headquarters is in Melbourne. It is one of the oldest and largest companies in Australia. Billiton is a pioneer of international mining industry, which was once famous for its continuous innovation and intensive management. 200 1, the two companies merged to form BHP Billiton Mining Group, with BHP Billiton holding 58% and BHP Billiton holding 42%. The company operates in 20 countries around the world, and its main products are iron ore, coal, copper, aluminum, nickel, oil, liquefied natural gas, magnesium and diamonds. BHP Billiton is listed on Australian, London and new york stock exchanges.

BHP Billiton's mines are located in the Pilbara region, mainly including Newman, Yan Di and Godworthy.

2) Rio Tinto Mining Company:

At present, it is the third largest iron ore producer and exporter in the world. 1873 was founded in Spain, and RioTinto is Spanish, which means Yellow River. 1954, the company sold most of its Spanish business. From 1962 to 1997, the company merged several mining companies with global influence, and in 2000, it successfully acquired Australia Northern Mining Company, becoming a global leader in mineral resources exploration, mining and processing. At present, the company is headquartered in Britain and Australia is headquartered in Melbourne. The main mines of Rio Tinto's Hammersley Company in Pilbara area are Bai Zixuan Iron Mine, Palabudu Iron Mine, Chana Iron Mine and Malandu Iron Mine.

3) FMG Group Limited:

Is Australia's third largest iron ore exporter, the company was established in 2003. It has the largest exploration territory in Pilbara, Australia, and has found and owned 4.5 billion tons of iron ore resources in an area of 50,000 square kilometers with a total area of less than 15%, of which11000000 tons meets the reserve standard. The first phase of FMG Company's project has an annual output of 55 million tons and will be expanded according to market demand. A long-term agreement has been signed between the output of the first phase project and the output of the 50 million tons/year expansion project.

4) AtlasIronLtd Ore Company (Australia Atlantic Limited):

It is the fourth largest iron ore exporter in Australia, and its main iron ore reserves are in the northern part of the Pilbara mining area. 20 1 1 At the end of the year, the ore reserves were 2.047 billion tons. It is estimated that the annual output of iron ore in 20 12 will reach 9 million tons, and the output in 20 15 will increase to 120,000 tons. With the completion of the new berth of Atlas Silong Company in Hedlang Port in 20 15, the planned output of Atlas Iron Company in 20 17 will increase to 46 million tons.

5) Australian private company KMG:

It has the nearest Western Australian mine to China and is close to the northernmost port in Western Australia. The mine is expected to produce 67 million tons of ore in two years, of which 59% is mainly low-grade coarse powder, and the impurity contents are: Si8%, Al3%, P0.08% and S0.03%. Since April of 20 1 1 year, there are 1.5 million tons of communist mines, and the main destination is China. At present, the mine life is 6 years. KMG has its own infrastructure in the port. KMG mine is located in Perth, Australia, with an annual output of 6.5438+500,000 tons, which is 58% grade hematite. The long-term cooperative sales agreement negotiated by the company is different from the previous annual price and the current monthly price, but gives customers a certain degree of discount every month on the basis of Platts index monthly pricing.

3. Indian iron ore:

1), Ke Mei iron ore co., ltd.:

The mine is located in Karnataka, 67 kilometers away from the port of Mangalore. The proven iron ore reserves are 700 million tons. The ore type is magnetic hematite with an average Tfe grade of 38.6%. The mine scale is 20.6 million tons, with an annual output of 7.5 million tons of iron concentrate with TFE of 66.5-67%. The concentrate is transported to Mangalore Port through a 66.8km long pipeline. A joint venture pelletizing plant with a scale of 3 million tons/year was established in the port.

2) Radil Iron Mine:

Its mine is located in basta County, south of Madhya Pradesh, with an estimated reserve of 3 billion tons, of which 600 million tons of ore contains 65% iron. The comprehensive mining capacity of this mine is 1 1 10,000 tons/year. Besides being used by domestic steel enterprises, about 4 million tons are exported through Vizaga Patnam Port.

3) Dorimalan Iron Mine:

The mine is located in the Bellari area of Karnataka, with proven reserves of 654.38+55 million tons and average Tfe grade of 64.5%. The ore type is hematite-goethite-limonite, with a mining capacity of 4 million tons/year, and the ore is transported to the port of Madras, 560 kilometers away.

4) Goa:

The iron ore deposits in Goa area are small in scale and high in iron grade, belonging to hematite with good sintering performance. The mining industry in this area is basically small-scale mechanized or manual mining, and there are many production sites. At present, at least 80 mines in Goa mining area are being mined. The mines with an annual output of 500-2 million tons include iron mines such as Danpu, Salgo Card and Tudao. The iron ore export volume in this region remains at the level of 1 1 10,000-10.3 million tons, accounting for about one third of India's iron ore export volume.

5) Chiria Iron Mine:

Located in Singebon County, Bihar, the iron ore reserves are10.97 billion tons, the iron grade TFE is 62%-63%, and the ore type is oolitic iron ore. There is no large-scale mining in this mine, and the products are for domestic use. The mine has the potential to increase output and increase the export of commercial mines.

5.3 Typical composition of ore in each mine

Typical values of Australian ores are shown in the following table:

Table (2) Luobuhe Mine

Table (3)FMG Mine

Table 4: Mines in India

Table (5) South African mines 1

Table (6) South Africa Mine 2

Table 7: Mines in Chile

Table (8) North Korean mines

The influence of harmful elements

Harmful elements usually refer to sulfur (S), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), sodium (Na), lead (Pb), zinc (Zn), arsenic (as) and copper. Generally, the requirements for iron ore in blast furnace smelting are as follows:

1), lead < 0. 1%, zinc < 0. 1%, arsenic < 0.07%, copper < 0.2%, K2O+Na2O≤0.25%.

2), sulfur:

Sulfur is the most harmful component to steel, which makes steel "hot brittle". The high sulfur content in iron ore increases the cost of desulfurization in blast furnace, so the less sulfur in iron ore is, the better.

3), phosphorus (p):

Phosphorus is also one of the common elements harmful to steel, which makes steel "cold brittle". 100% phosphorus in iron ore enters pig iron during blast furnace smelting, and it cannot be dephosphorized after sintering. Controlling the phosphorus content in pig iron mainly depends on controlling the phosphorus content in iron ore. Dephosphorization can only be achieved by steelmaking, which increases the dephosphorization cost of steelmaking. Therefore, the lower the phosphorus content in iron ore, the better.

4), alkali metals:

Alkali metals mainly include potassium and sodium. The influence of potassium and sodium on blast furnace is not proportional. The blast furnace itself has a certain ability to discharge alkali, and alkali metals have little effect on the blast furnace within the control range. However, the alkali metal content in the iron ore charged into the blast furnace is too high, which exceeds the alkali discharge capacity of the blast furnace and will form alkali metal enrichment, resulting in the alkali metal content in the middle and upper parts of the blast furnace greatly exceeding the original level of the burden. Iron ore contains more alkali metals, which easily leads to the decrease of softening temperature and the upward movement of soft melt zone, which is not conducive to the development of indirect reduction and the improvement of coke ratio. Pellets containing alkali metals will cause abnormal expansion of pellets and serious pulverization, which will worsen the permeability of the material column. Alkali metals also have serious damage to coke performance. In addition, the alkali metal compounds in the middle and upper part of the blast furnace adhere to the furnace wall, which makes the furnace wall thick and nodular and destroys the brick lining. Therefore, the lower the alkali metal content in iron ore, the better.

5), lead (Pb):

Lead is almost completely reduced in the blast furnace, because the density is as high as 1 1.34t_m_, so it sinks under the dead iron layer, which is easy to damage the bottom brick joints and may cause the bottom to burn through.

6), zinc (Zn):

Zinc is easy to vaporize, and zinc vapor easily enters the cracks of bricks, oxidizes into ZnO and expands, destroying the refractory lining on the upper part of the furnace body.

7), arsenic (As):

Arsenic is also one of the harmful elements to steel, which makes it brittle and makes its weldability worse. Arsenic in iron ore is basically reduced to pig iron, which affects the quality of pig iron. In addition, arsenic volatilizes during the sintering process, which has a great impact on the environment.

8), copper (Cu):

Copper will make steel "hot brittle", and steel is not easy to roll and weld. A small amount of copper can improve the corrosion resistance of steel. In blast furnace smelting, all copper is reduced to pig iron.

9), titanium (titanium metal):

It can improve the wear resistance and corrosion resistance of steel. However, in blast furnace smelting, the properties of slag will become worse, and about 90% of titanium will enter the slag. When the titanium content is low, it has little effect on slag and smelting process. When the titanium content is high, the slag will be thickened, and the fluidity will be poor, which will have a great influence on the smelting process and will easily form furnace knots. Titanium has the function of furnace protection, and many blast furnaces specially buy titanium ore to join the blast furnace protection.

Brief introduction of the four major iron ore indexes in the world in 2007

There are four influential spot iron ore indexes in the international market, one is Platts' Platts Index, the other is SBB's TSI Index, the third is Metal Herald's (MB) MBIO Index, and the fourth is China's iron ore price index. Due to the different compilation methods of the four indexes, the quotations are different, and even the trend direction is different.

Platts index takes mines, traders, steel mills, freight forwarders, financial institutions and so on. As the object of inquiry. Every day, Platts editors will contact them to inquire about the trading situation of the day and their views on the price, and finally choose the price that is considered to be the most competitive on that day as the "evaluation price".

TSI index pays more attention to the actual transaction price every day. Steel mills, mines and traders are all their inquiry targets, and the proportion is basically two-thirds. They upload the actual transaction price every day. TSI analysts finally summed up the CIF prices of imported iron ore with two grades (62% and 58%) by sorting out calculations and giving them equal weight. This group only gives out 62% indexes.

The MBIO index is based on the 62% grade iron ore of China Qingdao Port (CFR), and all the 56% ~ 68% grade iron ore is converted into 62% grade.

China iron ore price index: 2011On September 20th, China Iron and Steel Industry Association, China Minmetals Chemical Import and Export Chamber of Commerce and China Metallurgical and Mining Enterprise Association jointly announced that China iron ore price index was officially launched. The index has been put into trial operation in August this year. China iron ore price index (CIOPI) consists of two sub-indices: domestic iron ore price index and imported iron ore price index, both of which are based on the price of April 1.994 (1.000 points). Among them, the domestic iron ore price index data is the tax-included price of iron concentrate market in the main producing areas of China, including 14 dry-basis iron concentrate prices in provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities and 32 mining areas; The price index data of imported iron ore is the CIF price of dry powder ore submitted by the member units of China Steel Association, and finally weighted with reference to the transaction price of imported iron ore in domestic ports.

Global transportation of iron ore in China.

Figure (10) Global ore trade volume

Figure (11) Quantity and average price of iron ore imported from China in 2015 years.

China's low-grade iron ore reserves rank fourth in the world, which is close to Brazil's ore reserves. China iron ore has the characteristics of low grade, dispersion, high impurity content, complex refining and high production cost, which is also the reason why China's own raw materials are mainly imported ore. At the same time, iron and steel enterprises are mostly located in coastal areas, and the cost of imported ore occupies the advantage of low shipping.

Figure (12) Proven iron ore reserves in major countries

Figure (13) Average iron grade of iron ore in different countries

China's iron ore purchase channels are all over the world, and the import volume varies greatly; Due to different grades, impurity contents and freight rates, iron ore prices vary greatly among countries in the world. The largest import volume is Australia, followed by Brazil, South Africa and Ukraine.

Figure (14) Iron ore imports and price changes in China.

China's domestic iron ore trading ports include Dalian, Yingkou, Jingtang Port, Caofeidian, Tianjin, Qingdao, Rizhao, Lianyungang, Beilun, Zhanjiang and Fangcheng. Do you know the major iron ore ports in the world? Do you know how long it takes for iron ore to reach China from its place of origin? The following table is for your confusion.

Table (9)