Global Lithium Supply Map: Which Nations Control the Battery Metal Market?

The race to secure lithium reserves has become central to the global energy transition. As demand for lithium-ion batteries surges across electric vehicle production and energy storage systems, understanding where the world’s largest lithium deposits are located is critical for investors and industry players alike.

Benchmark Mineral Intelligence projects that 2025 will see EV and energy storage-related lithium demand climb by more than 30 percent year-on-year. This explosive growth underscores why countries sitting on vast lithium reserves wield significant geopolitical and economic advantage. Currently, total global lithium reserves reach 30 million metric tons, according to the latest US Geological Survey data.

The Lithium Triangle Dominance

Three nations form what’s known as the Lithium Triangle: Chile, Argentina, and Bolivia. Together, they account for more than half of the world’s lithium reserves. This concentration of resources has reshaped global battery supply chains and positioned these countries as essential players in the clean energy economy.

Chile leads by a significant margin, holding 9.3 million metric tons of lithium reserves—by far the world’s largest stockpile. The Salar de Atacama region alone contains roughly one-third of global lithium reserves. Despite this enormous reserve advantage, Chile ranked only as the second-largest lithium producer in 2024, generating 44,000 MT. Major mining operations by SQM and Albemarle operate in the Atacama salt flats, but Chile’s strict mining regulatory framework has constrained production growth relative to its reserve base.

A major shift came in April 2023 when President Gabriel Boric announced plans to partially nationalize the lithium industry. State-owned mining company Codelco has since negotiated larger stakes in both SQM and Albemarle’s assets. In early 2025, the government opened bidding for lithium contracts across six salt flats, with winners expected to be announced in March 2025.

Australia’s Production Advantage

While Australia holds 7 million metric tons of lithium reserves—the second-largest in the world—it achieved something Chile hasn’t: the top lithium-producing position in 2024. The difference lies in deposit type. Australia’s reserves consist primarily of hard-rock spodumene deposits in Western Australia, enabling faster extraction than the brine-based reserves found in Chile and Argentina.

The Greenbushes lithium mine, operated by a joint venture involving Talison Lithium, Tianqi Lithium, IGO, and Albemarle, exemplifies Australia’s production capacity. Operating since 1985, Greenbushes has become a cornerstone of global lithium supply. However, recent price declines have forced some Australian producers to curtail operations pending market recovery.

Emerging research suggests significant untapped potential beyond Western Australia’s established mines. A 2023 University of Sydney study, conducted with Geoscience Australia, mapped lithium concentrations across Australian soils and identified previously overlooked regions in Queensland, New South Wales, and Victoria as potential future extraction zones.

Argentina’s Cost Advantage

Argentina ranks third globally with 4 million metric tons of lithium reserves and fourth in production, generating 18,000 MT in 2024. The country has pursued an aggressive expansion strategy: in May 2022, the government committed US$4.2 billion to boost lithium output over three years. This investment strategy continued into 2024, when the government approved Argosy Minerals’ expansion at the Rincon salar, aiming to increase production from 2,000 to 12,000 MT annually.

Mining giant Rio Tinto intensified its presence in late 2024, announcing a US$2.5 billion investment to expand operations at the Rincon salar, with capacity growing from 3,000 to 60,000 MT by 2028. Argentina hosts approximately 50 advanced lithium projects, reflecting the country’s positioning as a long-term growth engine. Cost competitiveness gives Argentina a structural advantage—the nation maintains profitability even during price downturns.

China’s Strategic Position

China holds 3 million metric tons of lithium reserves, the fourth-largest globally. Unlike other major reserve holders, China’s deposits consist of a diversified mix: primarily lithium brines, supplemented by hard-rock spodumene and lepidolite reserves.

What distinguishes China isn’t reserve size but production scale and market dominance. In 2024, China produced 41,000 MT, a 5,300 MT increase year-over-year. The country currently imports most lithium for battery production from Australia, yet controls roughly 60 percent of global lithium-ion battery manufacturing capacity and hosts the majority of the world’s processing facilities.

This market concentration triggered controversy in October 2024 when the US State Department accused China of predatory pricing—deliberately flooding markets to eliminate competitors. Recent Chinese media reports claim the nation has substantially expanded its reserve estimates. According to these accounts, national deposits now represent 16.5 percent of global resources, up from 6 percent, driven partly by discovery of a 2,800-kilometer lithium belt in western regions containing over 6.5 million tons of proven lithium ore reserves and potential resources exceeding 30 million tons.

Secondary Reserve Holders

Beyond the top four, several nations maintain meaningful lithium reserves:

• United States: 1.8 million MT
• Canada: 1.2 million MT
• Zimbabwe: 480,000 MT
• Brazil: 390,000 MT
• Portugal: 60,000 MT (Europe’s largest)

Portugal produced 380 MT of lithium in 2024 and represents the highest-reserve nation in Europe. Note that while reserves in India and other emerging markets have garnered investor attention, they remain below the globally significant threshold compared to established reserve holders.

Future Market Implications

As lithium demand accelerates, production capacity has become the binding constraint. Reserve-rich nations like Chile face regulatory hurdles that limit extraction rates, while efficient producers like Australia dominate output despite smaller reserves. Argentina’s cost advantage positions it as a long-term production growth story, while China’s vertical integration across extraction, processing, and battery manufacturing creates structural competitive advantages.

The concentration of reserves within the Lithium Triangle—Chile, Argentina, and Bolivia—ensures these nations will remain central to global battery supply chains through the 2030s and beyond.