In 2022, reserves of lithium in Chile amounted to an estimated 9.3 million metric tons, the largest worldwide. That same year, the United States had total lithium reserves of approximately one million metric tons.
Lithium reserves by country
Lithium is a soft, silver-white metal within the alkali metal group on the periodic table. In nature, lithium occurs only in compounds due to its high reactivity. Chile has the largest lithium reserves worldwide by a large margin. Australia comes in second, with reserves estimated at 6.2 million metric tons in 2022. Mineral reserves are defined as those minerals that were extractable or producible at the time of estimate. Australia was the top country in terms of lithium mine production in 2022, with an output of 61 thousand metric tons of lithium that year.
Lithium and the battery metals rush
Batteries account for the largest share of lithium end-usage. Propelled by the growth in the electric vehicle market, powered by rechargeable lithium batteries, global lithium demand is forecast to reach one million metric tons by 2025, and surpass two million tons by 2030. As of 2022, Chinese CATL and Korean LG Energy Solution were the top producers of lithium battery cells, combined accounting for more than half of the global market.
