World lithium reserves by country 2015

This statistic shows the countries with the largest lithium reserves worldwide as estimated in 2015. In that year, it was estimated that the United States has total lithium reserves of approximately 38.000 metric tons.

Worldwide 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. According to the United States Geological Survey Mineral Commodity Summaries of 2016, Chile had the largest lithium reserves worldwide in 2015, by a large margin. Chile had an estimated 7.5 million metric tons of lithium reserves. China came in second with reserves estimated at 3.2 million metric tons. The USGS defined mineral reserves 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 2015, producing 13,400 metric tons of lithium that year.

Lithium is used primarily in batteries, glass and ceramics, with other uses including rocket fuel and lasers. The global lithium battery market is projected to grow substantially in coming years, from 1.5 billion U.S. dollars in 2011 to over 15 billion U.S. dollars in 2020. The electric vehicle market will propel the growth of the lithium market as the number of hybrid and electric vehicles powered by rechargeable lithium batteries picks up. In 2015 the top producers of lithium battery cells are expected to be Panasonic Sanyo, AESC, and Samsung. By 2025, it is projected that global clean energy demand will account for over half of global lithium carbonate demand, with U.S. clean energy demand accounting for eight percent of lithium demand. It is expected that Germany, China, Japan and France will be leading electric vehicle producing countries.

All figures are estimates.