20 Mining Business Ideas That Will Make You Quick Cash

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Updated: April 14th, 2025

Would you like to start your own mining business or earn money on the side but still need to find the right business idea?

There are several profitable mining business ideas you can start in 2025. While it sounds exciting to start your own mining business, you must run with the right idea.

Your goal should be to build a mining business in a niche that is not only profitable but can also ensure your long-term success.

Hopefully, all of the mining business ideas listed here will give you inspiration, and a head start for the 2021 year.

1. Start a lead mining business

Lead mining is an old-age activity. However, global demand for lead has doubled. The increased demand for lead is a result of its unique properties, such as its abundance and low cost, making it ideal raw material in various industries.

Common uses of lead include in battery manufacturing, cable sheathing, manufacturing of weight lifting equipment, weight belts for diving, lead crystal glasses, and radiation protection.

With the high demand for lead in the manufacturing sector, starting a lead mining business can be profitable. To start lead mining, find lead mines and ensure you have met all the legal formalities and insurance requirements to start lead mining.

How much you can make: $40,000/month

How much does it cost to start: $4,000 (?)

How long does it take to build: 272 days (?)

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2. Start a fluorite mining business

According to statistics, China is the largest miner of fluorspar, producing up to 5.4 million metrics annually.

Fluorspar is currently witnessing a high demand as the number of fluorite uses keeps growing. Fluorite is the mineral form of calcium fluoride used as a flux in steel manufacturing, opalescent glass, camera lenses, and high-performance telescopes.

3. Start a copper mining business

Copper is the most critical metal in the energy sector. Over the last decade, demand for copper has been rising. The adoption of electric vehicles and deployment of green energy infrastructure are some factors responsible for the high copper demand.

Despite the high demand, the supply for copper has not caught up. Underinvestment in copper mining are some reasons behind the inability to meet its demand. Today, copper miners are upping reserves and securing underground copper.

Copper mining has become an especially capital-intensive industry. If you can go further into a field to find copper deposits, you stand an opportunity to earn good profits.

4. Start a gold mining business

Gold mining is a global business with operations on every continent except Antarctica. Demand for gold will continue growing. More than 90% of mined gold goes into jewelry, bullion, and coin making. The precious metal is also used in cosmetic dentistry for dental fillings and crowns as it is non-reactive and easy to insert into the human body.

If you plan to start a gold mining business, start small and expand as needed. Discover a valuable gold mine and claim its ownership. Register your gold mining company and ensure you have met all legal requirements and insured the business.

5. Start a silver mining business

Global silver consumption has risen to over 508.2 million ounces.

Photovoltaic sector Silver is the largest industrial user of silver. Other industries that use silver include silverware, jewelry, dental compounds, solder, brazing, batteries, and manufacturers of printed circuits. Silver is also highly valued by investors because it shares several characteristics with gold.

Therefore, starting a silver mining company can be a great business idea. To start silver mining, To begin silver mining business, you will need heavy machinery for underground excavation.

6. Start a granite mining business

Granite is the most common igneous rock found at the earth's surface. Granite is used to manufacturing items we interact with daily, including countertops, floor tiles, paving stones, curbing, stair treads, cemetery monuments, and building veneer.

Therefore, starting a granite mining business can be profitable. To start a granite mine, write down a business plan that covers all the aspects of your business. You must register the business and raise funding to purchase the mining equipment. Then, find a potential quarry where you can mine quality granite. Your target customers can be manufacturers of construction items such as countertops.

7. Start a zinc mining business

Zinc is the 23rd most abundant element in earth's crust and the 4th most widely used metal in the world after iron, aluminum, and copper. Zinc is used for:

-Coating steel, brass, and other metals to prevent corrosion - Manufacturing construction materials - Die casting the precision components - Making brass - Cosmetics and pharmaceuticals - Micronutrients for animals, human beings, and plants.

Given its usage in different sectors and different forms, starting a zinc mining business can be a profitable venture. Zinc mining occurs primarily underground, with more than 80% of all zinc found beneath the earth's surface.

To start a zinc mine, you must register your business and acquire the necessary certifications.

8. Start a quartz mining business

Quartz is a specific chemical compound with a specific crystalline form. It is found in all rock forms, including igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary. Quartz is physically and chemically resistant to weathering.

Quartz is commonly used in electronics applications because it contains several piezoelectric minerals.

Quartz mining is not as lucrative as mining gold and silver. However, mining quartz can be a lucrative business since it is used in everyday products.

Are you planning to begin quartz mining?

Quartz extraction involves using the open pit method, requiring backhoes and bulldozers.

9. Start a cobalt mining business

Cobalt is a chemical element found in the earth's crust. The global demand for cobalt has been rising over the past decade. Continued strong growth in demand for electric vehicles and the build-up of energy storage systems are reasons behind the high demand for cobalt.

Therefore, starting a cobalt mining business can be a profitable venture.

Cobalt mining is done across the world. However, a vast majority is produced as a by-product of large-scale copper and nickel mines. However, cobalt is still mined alone in countries like Morocco and Canada.

Cobalt mining technology includes underground and surface mining.

10. Start a coal mining business

Coal is a combustible brownish-black sedimentary rock burnt for fuel and used in electricity generation. The sedimentary rock is composed mostly of carbon and hydrocarbons, which contain energy released through combustion. Typically, the heat produced by coal combustion is used to convert water into high-pressure steam, which drives turbines and produces electricity.

Global coal consumption is set to keep rising through the next decade. To start a coal mining business, prepare a business plan and invest in the mining equipment. You can raise funding through loan lenders, savings, or the sale of some assets.

11. Start a kaolin mining business

Kaolinite is a clay mineral found on earth and used in industrial processes. Kaolin is used to manufacture porcelain, paper, rubber, paint, and other products.

Mining and processing kaolinite can be a lucrative business. Mining kaolinite is done with diesel or electric shovels or draglines and loaded in trucks to the processing plants.

You will need heavy capital to purchase or lease different mining equipment to start mining kaolinite. Besides, you need to hire experienced professionals and acquire licenses.

12. Start a bitumen mining business

Bitumen is a viscous substance that exists in a liquid to a semi-solid form of petroleum and is used in paving and roofing application.

The global demand for bitumen is primarily driven by the increased development of roads and snowballing property development industry. According to experts, the bitumen market size and share is growing at a CAGR of about 4.2% and will surpass the $65.8 million mark in a few years.

Therefore, starting a bitumen mining business can be profitable. The popular bitumen extraction methods are open pit mining and in-situ production. The bitumen extraction method depends mainly on how deep the deposits are below the surface. The in-situ extraction method recovers bitumen that lies too deep beneath the surface, while the open pit mining method applies where bitumen reserves are closer to the surface.

To start a bitumen mining business, register your brand and apply for the licenses and permits to begin mining in your region.

13. Start a diamond mining business

Diamond is a solid form of carbon with atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. It is the hardest naturally occurring substance and the most popular gemstone.

Because of its extreme hardness, diamond is ideal for various industrial applications, including jewelry. Other important uses of diamonds include bioimaging, beauty treatment, manufacturing, cutting, polishing, drilling, and making computer semiconductors.

Given its widespread use, diamond is a highly in-demand precious metal. Therefore, starting a diamond mining business could be a great venture. To start mining diamonds, you may purchase or lease mining equipment. Also, you need trained and experienced personnel to work at your diamond mine.

14. Start a bauxite mining business

Bauxite is a commercial ore for aluminum and exists on earth in the form of sedimentary rocks. Bauxite may be found in large quantities all around the globe. However, Australia, China, Brazil, India, Guinea, Jamaica, Russia, and Kazakhstan are the top bauxite producers.

Besides its use in making aluminum, bauxite is also used in the chemical industry, refractory brocks, abrasive, cement, steel, and petroleum industry.

Although bauxite has limited uses, starting a bauxite mining company can be a great business venture. To start bauxite production, you will need bulldozers and scrapers, the common machinery for open-cut mining.

15. Start a crude oil mining business

Crude oil is a naturally occurring petroleum product composed of hydrocarbon deposits and other organic materials. The largest share of crude oil is used for energy carriers that can be combined into gasoline, jet, fuel, diesel, and heating oils.

The global demand for crude oil is estimated at slightly below 100 million barrels per day.

With the high demand, starting a crude oil mining company could be a profitable business. To start, you will need crude oil mining equipment and a license from the regulatory arm of the government. Ensure you insure your mining equipment and staff, and meet the legal/licensure requirements.

16. Start a limestone mining business

Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed of calcium carbonate. Typical uses of limestone include:

Steel manufacturing
Mining
Paper production
Water treatment and purification
Plastic production

Experts project that the global lime market will grow by an annual CAGR of 2.7% to reach $49.17 billion in five years. Therefore, starting a limestone mining business in 2025 will be a great idea.

To start your limestone mining business, research the general mining industry and understand the legal formalities required in your region. Then, do a limestone analysis before you begin excavation to determine where there is a large limestone deposit.

17. Start a tin mining business

18. Start a gemstone mining business

19. Start an uranium mining business

20. Start an iron ore mining business

meet the author

Pat Walls

I'm Pat Walls and I created Starter Story - a website dedicated to helping people start businesses. We interview entrepreneurs from around the world about how they started and grew their businesses.

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