Businesses in the mining and quarrying sector

Data extracted in January 2025

Planned article update: February 2026

Highlights

The mining and quarrying sector in the EU employed 371 000 people in 2022.

The mining and quarrying sector in the EU generated €173.6 billion of net turnover in 2022, an increase of around 70% compared with the previous year.

Sectoral analysis of Mining and quarrying statistics (NACE Section B), EU, 2022
(% share of sectoral total)
Source: Eurostat (sbs_ovw_act)

This article presents an overview of statistics for European Union (EU) mining and quarrying, covering NACE Rev. 2 Section B. It belongs to a set of statistical articles on 'Business economy by sector'.

Structural profile

There were around 17 000 enterprises operating with mining and quarrying (Section B) as their main activity in the EU in 2022. Together they employed 371 000 persons, equivalent to 0.2% of all persons employed in the business economy (Sections B to N and P to R, as well as Divisions S95 and S96), while they generated €64.1 billion of value added which was 0.6% of the business economy total. Compared with 2021, the value added generated by mining and quarrying has increased by 71.2%, while in terms of net turnover, the increase was 70.5%, up to €173.6 billion.

The extraordinary increase of turnover and value added from 2021 to 2022 resulted partly from strong price increases for products of the mining and quarrying sector in 2022, due to the combined effects of an increased demand after the receding Covid-19 pandemic and Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine and ensuing trade restrictions. However, preliminary SBS data for the year 2023 show that this development has subsided to some extent. In 2023, the turnover of the EU's mining and quarrying sector is estimated to be €126,5 billion, i.e. 27.1% below the 2022 value but still 24.3% above the value of 2021 (€101.8 billion).

A table on key indicators, Mining and quarrying statistics for NACE Section B in the EU for 2022. The table shows the values for main indicators, the share in business economy total and derived indicators.

Table 1: Key indicators: Mining and quarrying statistics (NACE Section B), EU, 2022
Source: Eurostat (sbs_ovw_act)

The mining and quarrying sector was the smallest among the NACE sections within the business economy in terms of the number of enterprises. In terms of persons employed the mining and quarrying sector was the second lowest - only the repair of computers and personal and household goods registered lower values in 2022. For value added, the mining and quarrying sector was the third lowest as only 'repair of computers and personal and household goods' and 'other personal service activities' registered lower values in 2022.

The wage-adjusted labour productivity ratio combines apparent labour productivity and average employee benefits expense (average personnel costs) and shows the extent to which value added per person employed covers average personnel costs per employee. Due to the high productivity and only slightly elevated average personnel costs, the EU's mining and quarrying sector in 2022 had a wage-adjusted labour productivity ratio of 395.0%, which was the highest ratio across the NACE sections within the business economy.

Sectoral analysis

The 2 largest subsectors in terms of employment were the mining of coal and lignite (Division 05) and other mining and quarrying (Division 08), occupying 28.4% and and 43.3% of the mining and quarrying employment respectively.

In output terms, extraction of crude petroleum and natural gas (Division 06) accounted for 58.2% of EU sectoral net turnover, while 9.6% of sectoral turnover was derived from mining of metal ores (Division 07). The mining of coal and lignite accounted for 6.7% of the sector's turnover, while mining support service activities (Division 09) had the lowest share of turnover (4.8%) in 2022.

Figure 1: Sectoral analysis of Mining and quarrying statistics (NACE Section B), EU, 2022
(% share of sectoral total)
Source: Eurostat (sbs_ovw_act)

As seen in Figure 1, the contribution of the various subsectors to the EU's mining and quarrying total varied considerably depending on whether value added or employment was the basis for the analysis. The variation in the relative significance of the different subsectors was even more amplified for some of the derived indicators concerning personnel costs and labour productivity and profitability, as shown in Table 2b.

14 100 out of 17 000 enterprises within the EU's mining and quarrying sector extracted materials that were non-metallic and not fossil fuels and were therefore classified in other mining and quarrying subsector. These represented around 82.8% of enterprises active within the mining and quarrying sector in 2022 and generated also the highest value added among the 5 subsectors, 12.2 billion — see Table 2a.

Table 2a: Sectoral analysis of key indicators: Mining and quarrying statistics (NACE Section B), EU, 2022
Source: Eurostat (sbs_ovw_act)

The high apparent labour productivity is present in the subsector of extraction of crude petroleum and natural gas, where apparent labour productivity reached €1 900 700 per person employed, the second highest NACE division within the whole of the business economy and more than 3 times higher than in 2021, when it stood at €517 000. On the other hand, the sector of mining of coal and lignite recorded an apparent labour productivity of €78 300 per person employed, below the business economy average (€62 700 per person employed). At the NACE division level, employee benefits per employee in the EU was highest with an average of €97 700 per employee for extraction of crude petroleum and natural gas in 2022, ahead of mining support service activities (€60 100 per employee), above the business economy average (€41 100 per employee). A somewhat lower level of average personnel costs was recorded for the mining of coal and lignite (€35 000 per employee).

Table 2b: Sectoral analysis of key indicators, Mining and quarrying statistics (NACE Section B), EU, 2022
Source: Eurostat (sbs_ovw_act)

Wage-adjusted labour productivity ratios for EU mining and quarrying NACE divisions in 2022 exceeded the business economy average (152.6%), strongly pulled upwards in 2022 by the extraordinarily high value for extraction of crude petroleum and natural gas (1 945.5%). With 395%, this subsector achieved in 2022 the highest wage-adjusted labour productivity ratios among all of the NACE divisions within the whole of the business economy.

Country overview

Figure 2: Relative importance of Mining and quarrying statistics (NACE Section B), EU, 2022
(% share of value added and employment in the business economy total)
Source: Eurostat (sbs_ovw_act)

The Netherlands recorded the highest share (37.2%) of EU value added within the mining and quarrying sector in 2022. Poland was also a relatively large producer within the EU in value added terms (17.7%), followed by Germany, Italy and Sweden. The Polish mining and quarrying employment of 142 300 persons was equivalent to more than one-third (38.4%) of the EU total, and was followed by Germany (10.5%), Romania (7.1%) and Czechia and Bulgaria (each 5.1%).

Figure 3: Concentration of value added and employment: Mining and quarrying statistics (NACE Section B), EU, 2022
(cumulative share of the 5 principal EU countries as a % of the EU total)
Source: Eurostat (sbs_ovw_act)

The relative significance of the mining and quarrying sector across the EU countries tended to be highest among those countries specialised in the extraction of fossil fuels. These figures were closely linked to the geological distribution of fossil fuel deposits, which were scarce or non-existent in many of the EU countries. Bulgaria recorded the highest ratio in mining of metal ores, while Poland was the most specialised in mining of coal and lignite and Latvia in other mining and quarrying.

Table 3: Largest and most specialised EU countries in mining and quarrying (NACE Section B), EU, 2022
Source: Eurostat (sbs_ovw_act)

Among the EU countries, the highest apparent labour productivity in mining and quarrying in 2022 was recorded in the Netherlands, where this measure reached €2 996 800 per person employed. It was followed by Denmark, with €714 900 and Sweden with €381 700 per person employed. Norway had higher apparent labour productivity than any EU country (€3 386 400). Denmark recorded the highest level of average employee benefits expense within the mining and quarrying sector in 2022, €125 200 per employee, above the EU average of €43 700 per employee. Average employee benefits expense was lowest in Croatia with €17 800 per employee.

Combining these 2 indicators gives the wage-adjusted labour productivity ratio, which is a measure of labour productivity that takes into account the very different levels of pay and social charges between EU countries and activities. The highest such ratios were recorded in the Netherlands (2 522.1%), Hungary (702.6%) and Denmark (570.9%). The lowest wage-adjusted labour productivity ratios in mining and quarrying were registered in Greece (95.0%), Slovakia (137.9%) and France (155.1%).

Table 4a: Key indicators: Mining and quarrying (under NACE Section B), EU, 2022
Source: Eurostat (sbs_ovw_act)

a table on the key indicators, Mining and quarrying for NACE Section B in the EU for 2022 and some EFTA countries. The columns show apparent labour productivity and average personnel costs in thousands of euro per head, wage adjusted labour productivity, the gross operating rate and the investment rate.

Table 4b: Key indicators: Mining and quarrying (under NACE Section B), EU, 2022,
Source: Eurostat (sbs_ovw_act)

Source data for tables and graphs

Businesses in the mining and quarrying sector - 2022 data

Data sources and availability

Coverage

Mining and quarrying, covers NACE Rev. 2 Section B. This activity concerns the extraction of:

fossil fuels such as coal (Division 05), crude petroleum and natural gas (Division 06);
ferrous and non-ferrous metal ores (Division 07);
construction materials (for example, stone and sand) and other industrial materials such as salt, phosphates and gemstones (Division 08);
it also includes mining support service activities (Division 09).

Note that this article only covers extractive activities, and not the downstream processing of fuel, nor the manufacture of non-metallic mineral products, both of which are classified under manufacturing (Section C), nor the network supply of energy (Section D) (Section D).

Data sources

The analysis presented in this article is based on the main dataset for structural business statistics (SBS), size class data and regional data, all of which are published annually.

The main series provides information for each EU Member State as well as a number of non-member countries at a detailed level according to the activity classification NACE. Data are available for a wide range of variables. Structural business statistics cover the 'business economy', which includes industry, construction and many services (NACE Rev. 2 sections B to N, P to R as well as division S95 and S96). Structural business statistics do not cover agriculture, forestry and fishing, nor public administration.

Structural business statistics describe the business economy through the observation of units engaged in an economic activity; the unit in structural business statistics is generally the enterprise. An enterprise carries out 1 or more activities, at 1 or more locations, and it may comprise 1 or more legal units. Enterprises that are active in more than 1 economic activity (plus the value added and turnover they generate, the people they employ, and so on) are classified under the NACE heading corresponding to their principal activity; this is normally the 1 which generates the largest amount of value added.

In structural business statistics, size classes are generally defined by the number of persons employed. A limited set of the standard structural business statistics variables (for example, the number of enterprises, turnover, persons employed and value added) are analysed by size class, mostly down to the 3-digit (group) level of NACE. The main size classes used in this article for presenting the results are:

small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs): with 1 to 249 persons employed, further divided into:
- micro enterprises: with less than 10 persons employed;
- small enterprises: with 10 to 49 persons employed;
- medium-sized enterprises: with 50 to 249 persons employed;
large enterprises: with 250 or more persons employed.

Structural business statistics also include regional data. Regional SBS data are available at NUTS levels 1 and 2 for most of the EU Member States, Iceland and Norway, mostly down to the 2-digit (division) level of NACE. The type of statistical unit used for regional SBS data is normally the local unit, which is an enterprise or part of an enterprise situated in a geographically identified place. Local units are classified into sectors (by NACE) normally according to their own main activity, but in some EU Member States the activity code is assigned on the basis of the principal activity of the enterprise to which the local unit belongs.

The main SBS data series are presented at national level only, and for this national data the statistical unit is the enterprise. It is possible for the principal activity of a local unit to differ from that of the enterprise to which it belongs. Hence, national SBS data from the main series are not necessarily directly comparable with national aggregates compiled from regional SBS.

Context

The location of mining and quarrying generally reflects the spatial distribution of mineral deposits. However, there can be considerable cost differences between mines, for example, in relation to the depth at which deposits are found, or whether they are on land or at sea. Aside from geographical and geological cost differences, the decision of whether or not to (re-)open a mine may also depend, among others, on global, commodity prices, employment practices, as well as regulations concerning the environmental impact of mining or the disposal of its waste.

Opencast (or surface) mines and quarries are generally cheaper than deep mines — although they may be rejected in the planning stage due to their effect on local landscapes. All forms of mining and quarrying incur environmental costs, which may relate to the disposal of waste, increased pollution, potential for ground subsidence, or changes to the local supply and quality of water.

The mining and quarrying sector is characterised as a capital-intensive activity. This is particularly the case for projects that require exploration and test drilling in advance of the considerable investment required to establish a new mine or off-shore drilling facility. As such, the global mining and quarrying sector is characterised by a relatively small number of international enterprise groups that operate across the continents — some with extraction and/or support service operations in the EU. These large-scale producers are particularly common in the extraction of fossil fuels. The vast majority of hard coal and lignite that is extracted or imported into the EU is consumed as a transformation input, mostly used in conventional thermal power stations or in coke oven plants.

Over several decades the EU's coal mining activity has been in decline due to competition from coal imports and the substitution of other fuels to produce electricity, the latter stimulated in part by efforts to reduce emissions. Crude oil is essentially a transformation input, used in refineries.

Many of the products resulting from the activity of this sector are traded globally and prices are established on global markets. One of the most closely followed prices is the price of crude oil, which is not only of interest for this sector itself, but also for the many downstream activities that are intensive users of energy as well as the chemicals sector that uses petroleum as a raw material.

The extraction of construction materials is dominated by a large number of smaller enterprises, typically serving a local market in low-value, widely-available products. Whilst the EU is largely self-sufficient in the extraction of construction materials, there are a large number of other minerals that are essential for downstream manufacturing activities and for which there is no indigenous supply within the EU; for example the EU has high net imports of metallic minerals. Other industrial minerals are often further processed in downstream industrial sectors, for example, in the manufacture of glass, concrete and basic or agricultural chemicals. Minerals are also used in industrial processes and precious and semi-precious stones and metals are used in jewellery and for some industrial processes.

Policies related to energy and to climate change are particularly important for many parts of the mining and quarrying sector since they have important implications on the way extractive activities operate.

In 2023, the EU adopted a set of Commission proposals to make the EU's climate, energy, transport and taxation policies fit for reducing net Glossary:Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by at least 55% by 2030, compared with 1990 levels. Under the Regulation on the Governance of the Energy Union and Climate Action, the EU has adopted integrated rules to ensure planning, monitoring and reporting of progress towards its 2030 climate and energy targets and its international commitments under the Paris Agreement. The revised Renewable Energy Directive, adopted in 2023, raises the EU's binding renewable sources target for 2030 to a minimum of 42.5%. The EU Energy Platform was established in April 2022 to help Europe diversify away from Russian gas imports, improve energy security, and use our collective weight to negotiate more affordable energy supplies to maintain EU business' competitiveness and benefit European households. It pools demand of European users, coordinates infrastructure use, and works with international partners to prepare for joint gas and hydrogen purchases. Joint purchasing of gas is carried out via the AggregateEU service. With its Roadmap for moving to a competitive low-carbon economy in 2050 , the European Commission has looked beyond short-term objectives and set out a cost-effective pathway for achieving much deeper emission cuts by the middle of the 21st century.

See also article on the electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply sector.