Global iron ore production is projected to reach 2,285.5 million tonnes (Mt) in 2020, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 2%, according to a report by Timetric.

Consumption of iron ore is also expected to increase to 2,101.2Mt in 2020, driven by India’s growing economy.

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Entitled ‘Global Iron Ore Mining To 2020‘, the report details the key projects such as the Central Eyre iron project in South Australia and the Marillana project in Western Australia, which will contribute to the global production total. Both projects are scheduled to begin operations in 2018.

"Iron ore production witnessed an increase of 2.3% last year due."

Other significant projects that are expected to boost the iron ore production are Brazil’s Carajas Serra Sul S11D project and Canada’s Lac Otelnuk project beginning in Q3-2016 and 2019 respectively.

Globally, iron ore production witnessed an increase of 2.3% last year due to an increasing contribution from Australia, with Brazil and India being the leading producers accounting for 36.9% and 21.6% of the total global production respectively. However, consumption of iron ore suffered from weak demand from China, resulting in a 1.7% decrease in 2015.

Iron ore reserves are estimated to be 185.1 billion tonnes (Bt) globally, with Australia having the largest reserves at 54Bt, followed by Russia (25Bt), Brazil and China (23Bt), US (11.5Bt) and India (8.1Bt).

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The report also highlights that Australia (755.1Mt) was the biggest exporter of iron ore and concentrates in 2014 with its main export destinations being China (578.7Mt), Brazil (344.4Mt), South Africa (67.2Mt), Ukraine (40.9Mt) and Canada (40.3Mt). China was the largest importer in 2014 at 932.4Mt, while Japan (136.4Mt), South Korea (73.5Mt) and Germany (43.5Mt) were other significant importers.