AUSTIN, Texas, Sept. 28, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Philip N. Diehl (35th Director of the U.S. Mint and President of U.S. Money Reserve) says “peak gold” may have already been reached or at the very least is fast approaching. Peak gold is the point at which the maximum rate of gold extraction is reached, after which mining will slowly decline until gold can no longer be mined at a profit. Once peak gold is reached, gold supply will be limited, potentially increasing gold prices.
Why Diehl says peak gold could be close
Peak gold production is determined by a combination of availability (amount of gold discovered) and extractability (the amount of discovered gold that's worth producing). Both extractability and availability are down. For example, only 20 years ago, the cost of mining an ounce of gold was less than $200. Today, it's more than $700 and rising rapidly. Furthermore, over the past three decades, we've seen a decline in the discovery of large deposits of gold.
Click here to Read Diehl's in-depth analysis.
How much gold has been mined, and how much is left?
Archeological evidence from 4,200 BC indicates that gold mining could be at least 7,000 years old. Gold mining activity has risen exponentially since then. In 2019, the World Gold Council estimated that 190,040 tonnes of gold have been mined throughout history.
Mined gold is used for multiple purposes in multiple industries, such as for asset diversification in finances and in electronics manufacturing and jewelry making. Supplying this gold is expensive for producers because mining is extremely capital intensive.
Because of gold's ever-growing demand and finite quantity, concerns for depletion of the resource have gradually increased. The World Gold Council estimates that there are 54,000 tonnes of below-ground gold reserves waiting to be mined. As of 2019, approximately 20% of existing gold was yet to be mined, although new technologies and discoveries make this a moving target.
Watch the video below to learn more.
This article was originally published by Cision US Inc. PR Newswire.
