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Oil, Gas & Mining vocabulary · Exploration & Geology

Ore

Meaning in oil, gas & mining, with examples

/ɔːr/nounCore term

In oil, gas & mining, ore means: Rock that contains enough of a valuable metal or mineral to be mined and processed at a profit, for example iron ore or copper ore.

In Turkish: cevher, maden cevheri

How it is used

Whether rock counts as ore depends on grade, metal price and cost, so the line between ore and waste can move. Common phrases: iron ore, ore grade, run-of-mine ore, ore body and ore reserves. Ore is mined, hauled, crushed and processed.

Example sentences

  1. The trucks bring the ore to the primary crusher.

  2. Iron ore prices fell because of lower steel demand.

Common collocations

  • iron ore
  • copper ore
  • run-of-mine ore
  • ore reserves
  • high-grade ore
  • gradeThe amount of valuable metal or mineral in a rock, usually given as a percentage (for copper) or in grams per tonne (for gold and silver).
  • ore bodyA continuous mass of ore in the ground with a known shape, size and grade that can be mined as a unit.
  • depositA natural concentration of a mineral, metal, coal, oil or gas in the earth that may be large and rich enough to be worth mining or producing.
  • crusherA machine that breaks large rocks into smaller pieces. Crushing is the first step in ore processing, before grinding.
  • concentrateThe main product of a processing plant: a powder in which the valuable mineral is much richer than in the original ore, ready to be sold or sent to a smelter.

More terms: Exploration & Geology

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