In 2024, Laos was estimated to be the fourth-ranked producer of refined bismuth, accounting for 3.0% of global production, and the sixth-ranked producer of potash, accounting for 5.1% of global production. Other mineral commodities produced in the country included antimony, barite, cement, clays, copper, gold, gypsum, iron ore, lead, salt, sand and gravel, sapphire, silicon, silver, steel products, stone, tellurium, and tin. The mining and quarrying sector accounted for 2.8% of gross domestic product in 2024, compared with 3.3% in 2023. In 2023, the latest year for which data were available, Laos exported refined bismuth and articles thereof to China and the United States.
The legislative framework for the mineral sector in Laos is provided by the Law on Minerals of 2008, last amended in 2017. The Ministry of Energy and Mines oversees the mineral sector and manages extraction activities, mineral processing, and the trade of mineral commodities. Most mineral commodities were produced by private international companies. As of yearend 2024, production was idled at the sole bismuth refinery in Laos, operated by 5N Plus Lao Industrial Resources Co. Ltd. The Government sought to promote potash production in Laos following the launch of the Laos-China Railway, and granted exploration, mining, and processing rights to 18 companies in the country.
