Germany is the most industrialized state in Europe. This was achieved, despite the fact that there are not so many minerals in the country, on the basis of which it would be possible to create a large production.
Relief
It is geographical characteristics that are important for the origin or lack of natural resources. The relief features of Germany and minerals are closely interconnected. The country can be divided into three distinct regions. In the north are the lowlands formed after a period when a massive glacier was in this area for several thousand years. There are especially many ores. The lowland is called the North German. There are many ridges that formed after the ice melts. Sedimentary rocks form in the zander plains. In the west of this region there used to be many lakes and marshes with peat. However, the centuries-old human economic activity has led to their drainage and grinding.
In the center of the country, the foothills begin, passing into the Alps in the south, near the Swiss border, where Germany ends. Minerals are represented by a variety of metals.
Gas and oil
This is a small part of national resources. Germany, whose minerals are located in different regions of the country, has low oil and gas reserves. Available quantity is not enough for export abroad. These are about 90 gas fields and 130 oil fields. They are scattered in the pre-alpine regions and the Rhine basin. Development is decreasing every year, as the country focuses on alternative energy sources. In addition, the creation of large mining and processing complexes will not pay off when developing small volumes of these resources.
Ore minerals
The relief and minerals of Germany are closely interconnected. This is especially noticeable in the volumes of mined ores, in particular iron. In total, they are presented in the form of 44 deposits in different regions of the country. For resource-poor Europe, these are relatively large volumes. They are second only to Ukraine, the UK and Sweden. In Lower Saxony there is an area of orogenesis, due to which there are various natural resources.
Lead and zinc are found in significant quantities in Saxony, more precisely, in Freiberg near the border with the Czech Republic and the Sudeten Mountains. Polymetallic deposits - in large industrial areas near the foothills of the Harz. In local ores, gold, rubidium, indium and silver are often found. This is the answer to the question of what kind of minerals is rich in Germany.
In the south and west of Saxony there are deposits of silicate and potassium salts. Germany, whose natural resources are extremely fragmented and depleted, on this indicator, on the contrary, is the leader of Europe and the third country in the world.
Copper ores are located in the Saar region and Westphalia, where deposits have been developed for many decades. In the foothills of the Harz, this metal is widespread thanks to the schists and copper sandstones that Germany is rich in. Minerals in this region are of high quality.
Fluorite
The Harz, Thuringian Forest and Vogtland are also rich in barite and fluorite. They are used in metallurgy as a flux to create low-melting slag. In addition, high-quality fluorine and aluminum are made from fluorite in the chemical industry. It is also an important element for the production of ceramics, as it is required for the manufacture of glazes and enamels. Optics, where it is necessary for the production of lenses, cannot do without fluorite.
Of the more extraordinary natural resources worth mentioning is uranium. It appeared here thanks to deposits that developed in the Precambrian and Cretaceous era. They are rich in Germany, whose minerals are found in Bavaria and the Black Forest.
Coal
Coal and oil shale for many centuries have been actively used by the local population for household needs. Related to this is the fact that habitual resources in recent years are beginning to be depleted, and the remaining ones are at a greater depth. Nevertheless, several traditional coal mining regions are still actively exploited in Germany . This is Lower Saxony and the basin in the Lower Rhine region. Due to the deep occurrence of resources, their extraction is extremely complicated, since available deposits have already been developed. For example, Saxon coal lies at a depth of about 300 meters, which is much further than the usual industry indicators.
In the vicinity of Dresden and Cottbus are brown coal deposits. Unlike the stone "brother", this resource contains a greater amount of carbon and water. It burns better and produces much more smoke. Used as fuel. According to experts, the existing volumes will last for another 600 years.
Local oil shale is used to produce kerogen oil. It is produced using thermal exposure. In recent years, the volumes of extraction of these resources have been increasing, since it is precisely behind them - the future of many types of industry and production.