The ten deepest active mines on Earth, led by South Africa's Mponeng gold mine at about 4 km below the surface.
Mponeng Gold Mine in South Africa is the deepest active mine in the world, at about 4,000 m below its entrance. TauTona Mine is second at about 3,900 m and Driefontein Mine third at 3,420 m. The ranking uses depth in metres from mine entrance to deepest excavated point, for mines marked active in Wikipedia's List of deepest mines, as of October 2026.
The deepest mines on Earth are almost all gold mines in South Africa's Witwatersrand Basin, where gold-bearing reefs run kilometres underground. Eight of the ten deepest active mines are there, led by Mponeng at about 4.0 km and its neighbour TauTona at about 3.9 km. The other two are in Canada: Agnico Eagle's LaRonde mine in Quebec (3,260 m) and Glencore's Kidd mine in Ontario (3,014 m). Several deeper mines, including Savuka (3.7 km), East Rand (3.585 km) and India's Kolar Gold Fields (3.217 km), are closed and excluded.
Mponeng, in South Africa's Witwatersrand Basin, is the deepest mine in the world at about 4.0 km below its entrance. Harmony Gold bought it from AngloGold Ashanti in 2020.
TauTona, Mponeng's neighbour, reaches about 3.9 km. The source lists it as active but grouped under Mponeng: AngloGold Ashanti wound down independent mining there around 2017–2018 and it passed to Harmony with Mponeng.
Sibanye-Stillwater's Driefontein mine reaches 3,420 m, making it the deepest mine in the world outside the Mponeng–TauTona complex.
Harmony Gold's Kusasalethu is listed at 3,388 m. Harmony has repeatedly shortened its planned life of mine, so its current status should be rechecked.
Sibanye-Stillwater's Kloof gold and uranium mine reaches 3,347 m.
Agnico Eagle's LaRonde complex in Quebec reaches 3,260 m, the deepest mine outside South Africa in the source's list of active mines.
The Blyvooruitzicht (Blyvoor) gold and uranium mine reaches 3,213 m.
Harmony Gold's Moab Khotsong gold and uranium mine reaches 3,052 m.
Glencore's Kidd mine at Timmins, Ontario, reaches 3,014 m, making it the deepest base-metal (copper-zinc) mine in the source's list.
Gold Fields' South Deep mine rounds out the ten at about 2,990 m.
| # | Name | Country | Primary resource | Status (per source) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mponeng Gold Mine | South Africa | Gold | Active |
| 2 | TauTona Mine | South Africa | Gold | Active (grouped under Mponeng) |
| 3 | Driefontein Mine | South Africa | Gold | Active |
| 4 | Kusasalethu Mine | South Africa | Gold | Active |
| 5 | Kloof Mine | South Africa | Gold, uranium | Active |
| 6 | LaRonde Mine | Canada | Gold, copper, silver, zinc | Active |
| 7 | Blyvooruitzicht Mine | South Africa | Gold, uranium | Active |
| 8 | Moab Khotsong Mine | South Africa | Gold, uranium | Active |
| 9 | Kidd Mine | Canada | Copper, zinc | Active |
| 10 | South Deep Mine | South Africa | Gold | Active |
Mines are ranked by depth in metres — the difference in elevation between the mine entrance and the deepest excavated point — exactly as given in Wikipedia's List of deepest mines (checked October 2026), which rounds some depths to the nearest 10 or 100 m. Only mines the source marks as active are included. Morro Velho in Brazil (listed at 3.0 km and marked active) is excluded because Wikipedia's own Morro Velho article and Encyclopaedia Britannica both say its deep workings closed in 2003–2004. Statuses for TauTona and Kusasalethu come from the source and could not be independently confirmed.
Mponeng Gold Mine in South Africa, at about 4.0 km below its entrance. Eight of the ten deepest active mines are in South Africa's Witwatersrand Basin.
The Witwatersrand Basin's gold-bearing reefs extend to great depth, so mines have followed them down for more than a century. Most of the world's deepest workings, active and closed, are there.
Among active mines in the source, LaRonde in Quebec, Canada, at 3,260 m. The closed Kolar Gold Fields in India reached 3,217 m.
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