China discovered 3.52 billion tonnes of proven iron ore reserves in 2009, the Ministry of Land and Resources said on its Web site. 

 
That was among the 398 medium to large-sized mineral deposits newly discovered in 2009, an almost 10-year high, the statement said.
It also said newly-found proven oil reserves hit 1.12 billion tonnes and newly-discovered natural gas reserves reached a record 723.4 billion cubic meters. Proven iron ore reserve totalled nearly 10 billion tonnes in major deposits in the provinces of Liaoning, Hebei, Shandong, Sichuan and Anhui, the statement said. 

 
Domestic supplies of iron ore have been increasing in recent years, iron ore output had increased to 880 million tonnes in 2009 from 260 million tonnes in 2003, which means it will reduce Chinese mills' dependence on foreign iron ore suppliers