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Sri Lanka Mining
Mining is carried out in both the public and private sectors.
The most valuable products are precious and semiprecious stones,
including sapphires, rubies, cats' eyes, topaz, garnets, and
moonstones. Official exchange earnings from gems were negligible
in the first two decades after independence because most of the
output was smuggled out of the country. The setting up of a
publicly owned State Gem Corporation in 1971 and export
incentives for those exporting through legal channels brought a
marked improvement. In 1986 legal exports were valued at Rs755
million, but many observers believed that a considerable quantity
was still being exported illegally. In the late 1980s, Japan
remained the most important market for Sri Lanka's gems. The
Moors traditionally have played an important role in the industry
(see Sri Lanka - Ethnic Groups
, ch. 2).
Graphite also is of commercial significance. Almost the
entire output is exported as crude graphite (plumbago). Ilmenite,
a mineral sand used in the manufacture of paint and the
fortification of metals, also is exported. Salt is produced by
evaporation for the domestic market. Thorium deposits have been
reported in Sabaragamuwa Province and in the beach sands of the
northeast and southwest coasts. Exploration also has disclosed
the presence of apatite (source of phosphate), dolomite
(fertilizer component) and small pockets of economically
extractable iron ore
(see
fig. 9).
Data as of October 1988
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