The World’s Looming Limestone Thirst: Vietnam Fortunately Holds a “Trump Card”

Vietnam’s huge limestone reserves are a significant advantage amidst the world’s increasing consumption of limestone.

Strong Increase in Limestone Demand

According to marketwatch.com, the global limestone market is projected to grow strongly with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.02% from 2022 to 2028.

The main growth driver for this market is the increasing demand for cement in the construction industry. With massive global investment in construction and infrastructure – driven by policies from governments of developing economies – the demand for cement and construction is ever-increasing.

Emerging economies in Southeast Asia have a strong demand for infrastructure projects, which in turn increases the demand for housing, construction materials, and related services. The recovery of the European construction industry is also making limestone a “hot commodity” for the future.

The world’s looming limestone thirst: Vietnam fortunately holds a trump card

However, there are still factors hindering growth momentum, such as the slowing development pace of major economies like China. Damage to structures and statues caused by acid rain (especially for products made from limestone) has made this stone less popular in residential constructions.

India is the largest importer of limestone, with a 48% market share, followed by Japan, South Korea, Germany, and the Netherlands. The demand for paper in India was expected to grow at a steady rate by 2020, due to the packaging industry and the increasing number of schools. The growing number of construction projects is expected to cause the construction industry to boom in India. This figure is predicted to contribute about 10% to India’s GDP.

Furthermore, as India’s pharmaceutical, food, and beverage industries continue to grow, the consumption of calcium carbonate in India is also expected to increase.

Vietnam’s Advantage

According to data compiled from the OEC website (affiliated with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA), in 2020, Vietnam was the second-largest limestone exporter in the world. Specific export volumes include: United Arab Emirates ($333 million), Vietnam ($90.2 million), Japan ($73.1 million).

Vietnam’s limestone customers are quite diverse, with the largest being: South Korea ($26.2 million), Indonesia ($15.6 million), India ($13.1 million), and China ($12.4 million).

A study conducted by Vietnamese and South Korean experts shows there is ample room for developing cooperation in the limestone sector between the two countries. Accordingly, South Korea’s land area is relatively small, so its natural mineral resources are somewhat limited. Significant mineral reserves such as zinc, anthracite coal, gold, iron ore, silver, graphite, tungsten, and lead account for 2/3 of the total mineral reserves in South Korea.

Meanwhile, Vietnam has quite abundant limestone resources. Four major limestone mining centers mentioned in the study are Hai Phong, Ninh Binh, Nghe An, and Kien Giang. In terms of quantity, Vietnam’s high-grade limestone reserves are about four times larger than South Korea’s. Additionally, the limestone distribution area in Vietnam is three times larger than in South Korea.

The world’s looming limestone thirst: Vietnam fortunately holds a trump card

Limestone in Vietnam covers 50,000-60,000 km2 of the mainland, equivalent to 20% of Vietnam’s territory. There are limestone regions that occupy half of the area, including Ninh Binh (53.4%), Cao Bang (49.5%), Tuyen Quang (49.9%), and Ha Giang (38.0%). In particular, areas such as Mai Chau (Hoa Binh province), Moc Chau, Son La (Son La province), Tua Chua, Tam Duong (Lai Chau province), Dong Van, Meo Vac (Ha Giang province) are entirely limestone regions. Most of Vietnam’s limestone is of biochemical origin.

Vietnam is rich in high-quality limestone reserves. To date, there are over 350 limestone mines in Vietnam. So far, 274 limestone mines have been surveyed, and the inventoried reserves are 47.5 billion tons. There are also 82 dolomite mines, of which 37 have been surveyed.

Based on scale, Vietnam’s limestone mines can be classified into large (100 million tons or more), medium (20 to 100 million tons), and small (under 20 million tons) mines, with the numbers of large, medium, and small mines being 91, 92, and 91, respectively. There are 190 mines containing high-quality limestone, with reserves of about 4 billion tons. However, some mines are located in restricted areas and cannot be exploited.

Nevertheless, the large mines with abundant reserves still hold undeniable potential for Vietnam as the world increases its use of limestone in the future. With appropriate strategies, Vietnam is fully capable of seizing the opportunity to maximize its limestone advantage.