Minas Ragra

The Minas Ragra was a large vanadium mine in the Pasco Region of Peru. The deposit was discovered by a United States Geological Survey expedition on November 20. 1905. Members of this expeditions were Donnel Foster Hewett and José J. Bravo In this deposit the mineral patrónite was first discovered by a member of the expedition Antenor Rizo-Patron. A mine was established in very short time by the Vanadium Corporation of America. By 1914 75% of the world vanadium ore production was coming from the Minas Ragra in Peru, making the mine the world leading producer of vanadium. With the production of vanadium as side product of uranium mining from carnotite the mine had to close in 1955.