The Batra mine is a large

chromium Chromium is a chemical element with the symbol Cr and atomic number 24. It is the first element in group 6. It is a steely-grey, lustrous, hard, and brittle transition metal. Chromium metal is valued for its high corrosion resistance and hardne ...

mine located in central

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

in Dibër County, east of the capital,

Tirana Tirana ( , ; aln, Tirona) is the capital and largest city of Albania. It is located in the centre of the country, enclosed by mountains and hills with Dajti rising to the east and a slight valley to the northwest overlooking the Adriatic Sea ...

. Batra represents one of the largest chromium reserve in Albania and one of the largest in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

, having estimated reserves of 0.73 million tonnes of ore grading 38% chromium metal. The mine is part of the Bulqizë Massif, a area which has a

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

thickness between and and contains 65 verified

deposits and occurrences. The deposit has been explored to depths of up to and the geological reserves amount to 12 million tonnes of which 7.5 million tonnes grading over 38%

metal A metal (from Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electricity and heat relatively well. Metals are typicall ...

. The Batra mine began operating in 1967. Between 1964 and 1967 it produced chromium

ore Ore is natural rock or sediment that contains one or more valuable minerals, typically containing metals, that can be mined, treated and sold at a profit.Encyclopædia Britannica. "Ore". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Retrieved 7 April 2 ...

only from occurrences. In 1967 production from the

mine Mine, mines, miners or mining may refer to: Extraction or digging * Miner, a person engaged in mining or digging *Mining, extraction of mineral resources from the ground through a mine Grammar *Mine, a first-person English possessive pronoun ...

started. The total combined chromium ore production from the mine between 1967 and 2006 amounted to 5,561,000 tonnes. The deepest level of the mine is the Level +1560 which reaches a depth of . The chromium ore reserves of the mine are split into two

categories Category, plural categories, may refer to: Philosophy and general uses *Categorization, categories in cognitive science, information science and generally *Category of being *Categories (Aristotle), ''Categories'' (Aristotle) *Category (Kant) ...

above and below Level +1560. The proven ore reserves located above the Level +1560 amount to 730,000 tonnes of ore grading 38% chromium metal. The proven ore reserves located below the Level +1560 are currently not estimated or calculated but are expected to be grading 45% chromium metal. The mine was privatised in 1999.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Batra Mine Chromium mines in Albania Underground mines in Albania Bulqizë