Lithium · Li
battery_metal · primary
Battery metal at the centre of the EV transition. Production has tripled since 2018 - Australian spodumene + South American brine dominate. US output is climbing (Silver Peak NV; Thacker Pass under construction) but remains <2% of global supply.
5,716 facility records across 28 countries, 567 of them operating. United States leads operating plants with 68% of the 567 operating.
Supply chain · topology
Who's involved, stage by stage
The full value chain as one map - the facilities strata sees at each stage, shaded by how completely we cover it. Strong stages carry a named facility roster (click to expand); partial stages have a country / trade / demand-side proxy; thin stages are the gaps.
- MineStrong· 567 facilities
Operating plants + mines (operators, reserves, grades)
Qinghai Misc Brines · Golden Eagle · Wodgina mine · James Bay
- Qinghai Misc Brines
- Golden EagleGolden Eagle UG
- Wodgina mineMineral Resources Limited (MinRes)
- James BayRio Tinto
- Electra's Canadian RefineryElectra Battery Materials Corp.
- KitotoloZaire Government (50% Of Zairetain)
- Mutaka
- Norwich Lithia Mine
- Glencore Sudbury Nickel SmelterGlencore
- Thunder Bay ShipyardAvalon Advanced Materials
- ConcentrateStrong· 82 facilities
Concentrator facilities
Albemarle Corporation Salar de Atacama / Planta Salar · Albemarle Corporation Silver Peak Production Site · Albemarle U.S. Inc. Salar de Atacama Plant / Brine Concentration Site
- Albemarle Corporation Salar de Atacama / Planta SalarAlbemarle Limitadaoperating
- Albemarle Corporation Silver Peak Production SiteAlbemarle Corporationoperating
- Albemarle U.S. Inc. Salar de Atacama Plant / Brine Concentration SiteAlbemarle Limitadaoperating
- Refining / SmeltingStrong· 74 facilities
Smelter / refinery facilities, owners + China-share concentration
10,000-ton Lithium Salt plant (Wanhang), Xinyu · Albemarle Corporation Kings Mountain Production Site / Lithium Conversion Facility · Albemarle Corporation Silver Peak Production Site · Arcadium Lithium (Livent) Bessemer City
- 10,000-ton Lithium Salt plant (Wanhang), XinyuGanfeng Lithium Group Co., Ltd.lithium hydroxide
- Albemarle Corporation Kings Mountain Production Site / Lithium Conversion FacilityAlbemarle Corporationoperating
- Albemarle Corporation Silver Peak Production SiteAlbemarle Corporationoperating
- Arcadium Lithium (Livent) Bessemer CityRio Tinto Lithiumoperating
- Chemical ProcessingStrong· 294 facilities
Chemical-processing plants (precursor, separation)
10,000-ton Lithium Salt plant (Wanhang), Xinyu · ACCUREC-Recycling GmbH Krefeld Lithium Battery Recycling / Lithium Recovery Plant · Albemarle Corporation Kings Mountain Production Site / Lithium Conversion Facility · Albemarle Corporation La Negra conversion plant
- 10,000-ton Lithium Salt plant (Wanhang), XinyuGanfeng Lithium Group Co., Ltd.lithium hydroxide
- ACCUREC-Recycling GmbH Krefeld Lithium Battery Recycling / Lithium Recovery PlantACCUREC-Recycling GmbHoperating
- Albemarle Corporation Kings Mountain Production Site / Lithium Conversion FacilityAlbemarle Corporationoperating
- Albemarle Corporation La Negra conversion plantAlbemarle Limitadaoperating
- Albemarle Corporation Langelsheim production plantAlbemarle Germany GmbHoperating
- Albemarle Corporation New Johnsonville plantAlbemarle Corporationoperating
- Albemarle Corporation Qinzhou lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide facilityAlbemarle Corporationoperating
- Albemarle Corporation Rockwood Lithium Taiwan plantRockwood Lithium Taiwan Co., Ltd.operating
- Albemarle Corporation Silver Peak Production SiteAlbemarle Corporationoperating
- Albemarle Corporation Xinyu lithium hydroxide facilityAlbemarle Corporationoperating
- Albemarle Kings Mountain lithiumAlbemarle U.S. Inc.operating
- Albemarle U.S. Inc. Salar de Atacama Plant / Brine Concentration SiteAlbemarle Limitadaoperating
- American Battery Technology Company Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling FacilityAmerican Battery Technology Companyoperating
- Arcadium Lithium (Livent) Bessemer CityRio Tinto Lithiumoperating
- Ascend Elements Base 1Ascend Elementsoperating
- Ascend Elements Novi CAM finishing / cathode sintering siteAscend Elementscathode active material (CAM), NMC cathode material
- Ascend Elements R&D Center / pilot pCAM facilityAscend Elements, Inc.NMC precursor cathode active material (pCAM)
- Fabrication / semisPartial· 56 facilities
Other downstream plants; no named forming stage in this vintage
Amperex Technology Limited (ATL) / Dongguan Amperex Technology Ltd. ATL Dongguan manufacturing base, 1 West Industrial Road, Songshan Lake · Amperex Technology Limited (ATL) / Ningde Amperex Technology Ltd. ATL Ningde manufacturing base, 1 Xingang Road, Zhangwan Town, Jiaocheng District
- Amperex Technology Limited (ATL) / Dongguan Amperex Technology Ltd. ATL Dongguan manufacturing base, 1 West Industrial Road, Songshan LakeDongguan Amperex Technology Limited / Amperex Technology Limited (ATL)lithium-ion battery cells, battery packs
- Amperex Technology Limited (ATL) / Ningde Amperex Technology Ltd. ATL Ningde manufacturing base, 1 Xingang Road, Zhangwan Town, Jiaocheng DistrictAmperex Technology Limited (ATL)rechargeable lithium-ion battery cells, lithium-ion battery packs
- Recycling / secondaryStrong· 77 facilities
Secondary-supply plants recovering this commodity from scrap or spent product
ACCUREC-Recycling GmbH Krefeld Lithium Battery Recycling / Lithium Recovery Plant · American Battery Technology Company Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Facility · Ascend Elements Base 1 · BASF Battery Materials Schwarzheide Black Mass Plant
- ACCUREC-Recycling GmbH Krefeld Lithium Battery Recycling / Lithium Recovery PlantACCUREC-Recycling GmbHoperating
- American Battery Technology Company Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling FacilityAmerican Battery Technology Companyoperating
- Ascend Elements Base 1Ascend Elementsoperating
- BASF Battery Materials Schwarzheide Black Mass PlantBASF Schwarzheide GmbHoperating
- ComponentsStrong· 534 facilities
Cathode / anode / cell / magnet plants
ACC - Automotive Cells Company ACC Nersac Pilot Line / Industrial Excellence Center · AESC France AESC Douai Gigafactory · AESC Group AESC Japan Zama battery plant · AESC Ibaraki Plant
- ACC - Automotive Cells Company ACC Nersac Pilot Line / Industrial Excellence CenterAutomotive Cells Company (ACC)lithium-ion EV battery cells, prototype EV batteries
- AESC France AESC Douai GigafactoryAESCEV lithium-ion battery cells / batteries
- AESC Group AESC Japan Zama battery plantAESC Japan Ltd.lithium-ion batteries for EVs, batteries for ESS
- AESC Ibaraki PlantAESC Japan Ltd.lithium-ion batteries, EV batteries
- AESC Smyrna battery plantFixx EnergyLFP ESS battery cells, LFP winding prismatic cells
- Albemarle Corporation Kings Mountain Production Site / Lithium Conversion FacilityAlbemarle Corporationoperating
- Amita Technology (Thailand) Co., Ltd. Amita Lithium-ion Battery Factory, EA FacilityAmita Technology (Thailand) Co., Ltd.lithium-ion batteries, battery systems
- Amperex Technology Limited (ATL) / Dongguan Amperex Technology Ltd. ATL Dongguan manufacturing base, 1 West Industrial Road, Songshan LakeDongguan Amperex Technology Limited / Amperex Technology Limited (ATL)lithium-ion battery cells, battery packs
- Amperex Technology Limited (ATL) / Ningde Amperex Technology Ltd. ATL Ningde manufacturing base, 1 Xingang Road, Zhangwan Town, Jiaocheng DistrictAmperex Technology Limited (ATL)rechargeable lithium-ion battery cells, lithium-ion battery packs
- Anqing Derun New Energy Materials Co., Ltd. Anqing lithium iron phosphate cathode-material plantAnqing Derun New Energy Materials Co., Ltd.Lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cathode material
- Ascend Elements Novi CAM finishing / cathode sintering siteAscend Elementscathode active material (CAM), NMC cathode material
- Ascend Elements R&D Center / pilot pCAM facilityAscend Elements, Inc.NMC precursor cathode active material (pCAM)
- Automotive Cells Company ACC Billy-Berclau Douvrin gigafactoryACC - Automotive Cells Companylithium-ion battery cells, battery modules
- BASF Battle Creek cathode active materialBASF Toda America LLCcathode active materials for lithium-ion batteries, NCM cathode materials
- ManufacturingPartial
Deployment / demand side only - not a supply census
- Final TechnologyStrong
Top end-use technologies by projected mineral demand · IEA Critical Minerals Dataset (CMO 2025)
Electric vehicles · Other uses · Grid battery storage
- Electric vehicles993 kt · APS 2040
- Other uses119 kt · APS 2040
- Grid battery storage88 kt · APS 2040
Both ends connect: the demand-intensity seam (GCAM x strata intensities) maps final-technology demand back to mineral demand - the standing gap is the supply-side middle (components + manufacturing facility censuses).
Stage counts are not mutually exclusive - a facility spanning several stages is counted under each. The Mine count is the operating roster; the Sankey below counts the full components census, so the two can differ by a few facilities.
Supply chain · lifecycle
Value-chain lifecycle (the contract)
The value chain as one uniform contract: every commodity carries the same canonical stages, each flagged covered / partial / gap by the authoritative data strata holds. Copper is the reference fill (ICSG World Copper Factbook); others fill from their own authoritative sources (nickel from the INSG World Nickel Factbook + USGS MCS), gaps surfaced.
Mine production: Australia 37%, Chile 20%, China 17% (2024)
Australia 37%Chile 20%China 17%Zimbabwe 9%Argentina 8%Australia / Zimbabwe / Brazil = hard-rock (spodumene); Chile / Argentina = brine; China both.
China refines ~65% of lithium chemicals (2024)
China 65%Rest of world 35%Australia mines the rock; China refines it (estimates 60-90% by scope).
- FabricationGap
No fabrication / first-use capacity census in scope
Batteries ~87% of lithium use (2024)
Batteries 87%Ceramics & glass 5%Lubricating greases 2%Other (air treatment, casting, medical) 6%Very low - a low-single-digit % of supply (2024)
Very low: recycling met a low-single-digit % of lithium supply (2024); EOL battery-recycling plants are being built. No settled global rate (USGS / IEA).
Supply chain · companies & concentration
Companies & concentration across the value chain
The whole topology as one flow - each stage sized by how many facilities strata maps there, with the leading companies ranked by captured contained-metal capacity, ending at projected end-use demand. The strip below shows how concentrated the captured capacity is and who controls it.
- Corporación Nacional del Cobre de Chile …39 kt
- Ganfeng Lithium Group Co., Ltd.37 kt
- Chengxin Lithium Group Co., Ltd.27 kt
- Albemarle Corporation26 kt
- Sinomine Resource Group Co., Ltd.17 kt
- Tianqi Lithium Corporation16 kt
By ultimate owner, Chinese parents control ~30.5% of mapped lithium mine output (output-weighted) - a different lens from where capacity is physically located (the share above). Chinese control reaches assets outside China: Greenbushes (AU), Mt Marion (AU), Cauchari-Olaroz (AR). Per-asset control + sources are on the Ownership tab (strata ownership-control, curated from public ownership records).
110 facilities · 64 firms · 41 kt disclosed
82 facilities · 48 firms · 15 kt disclosed
6 facilities · 4 firms · 23 kt disclosed
68 facilities · 54 firms · 178 kt disclosed
294 facilities · 194 firms · 441 kt disclosed
534 facilities · 399 firms · 249 kt disclosed
56 facilities · 49 firms · 22 kt disclosed
77 facilities · 61 firms · 80 kt disclosed
3 technologies · 1.2 Mt
- Electric vehicles993 kt
- Other uses119 kt
- Grid battery storage88 kt
Bands are sized by the number of facilities strata maps at each stage; the ribbons trace the canonical value chain, not measured shipments between firms (the customs-observed company shipments below are the only inter-firm evidence, and cover only the reporter countries strata archives). Companies are ranked by captured contained-metal capacity where an official source states it. Captured-capacity totals (including the strip above) sum across stages from mine to refining, so they count the same metal more than once and reflect a partial, public-source census - not a clean single-stage refining figure. Final Technology shows projected mineral demand by end-use (IEA Critical Minerals Dataset (CMO 2025)).
Facilities · observed chain links
Observed shipments by value-chain stage
Stage-typed customs shipments observed by Colombia DIAN export declaration bases - declared company-to-company records; the product's value-chain stage is typed from its HS code, and no processing role is inferred for the receiving company. Contained tonnes are MODELED (net weight x a representative metal-content coefficient per HS code), not declared at source.
Facilities
Mines · smelters · refineries
Evidence tiers
How each facility's link to this commodity was established.
Each facility sits in exactly one tier. Only the top two feed the country, operator and sample rankings below; the weaker tiers stay mapped but are excluded, so the geography reflects real supply, not how thoroughly a registry was scraped.
- Corroborated51 · 1%
two or more independent sources assert this commodity at the site
6 samples
- 🇨🇳Qinghai Misc Brines
- 🇨🇩KitotoloKatangaZaire Government (50% Of Zairetain) · Geomines (50% Of Zairetain)
- 🇺🇬Mutaka
- 🇺🇸Norwich Lithia MineMassachusetts
- 🇦🇷Salar de Olaroz mineJujuySalar de Olaroz · Industrias Quimicas Baraderos
- 🇦🇷Muerto NorthSalar del Hombre Muerto
- Observed516 · 9%
a single source records the facility type - a plant, smelter or producing mine
6 samples
- 🇦🇺Golden EagleGolden Eagle UG
- 🇦🇺Wodgina mineCassiterite NE Node · Atlas Iron
- 🇨🇦James Bay
- 🇨🇦Electra's Canadian RefineryONElectra Battery Materials Corp.
- 🇨🇦Glencore Sudbury Nickel SmelterONGlencore
- 🇨🇦Thunder Bay ShipyardONAvalon Advanced Materials · ONTARIO SHIPYARDS (TB) INC.
- The following tiers are held out of the rankings below.
- Catalogued537 · 9%
tagged to this commodity, but the facility type is unconfirmed
6 samples
- 🇺🇸Globe MineNew MexicoContinental Mine Products Co. · Continental Mine Products Co.
- 🇺🇬Wampero Mine
- 🇺🇸Lower Jumbo MineArizona
- 🇺🇦Kruta Balka Lithium Deposit
- 🇺🇸Kings Mountain mineNorth CarolinaCyprus Amax Minerals Co. 9100 E Mineral Cir. Englewood · Foote Mineral Co.
- 🇦🇺Bald Hill Central (South)
- Crosswalk21 · <1%
commodity guessed from a NAICS industry code - no source confirms it, so a broad code can mis-tag an unrelated plant
6 samples
- 🇺🇸L BAR SITE NORTHWEST ALLOYSWANORTHWEST ALLOYS INC
- 🇺🇸HALLIBURTON CORPUS CHRISTI GRINDING PLANTTXHalliburton Energy Services, Inc.
- 🇺🇸RUPERT IRON WORKS INCLA
- 🇺🇸CLIMAX MOLYBDENUM-HENDERSON MILLCOFREEPORT MCMORAN INC. · FREEPORT-MCMORAN INC.
- 🇺🇸HALLIBURTON, GRINDING PLANTLAHalliburton Energy Services, Inc.
- 🇺🇸JR SIMPLOT CO - DON SIDING COMPLEXIDJ. R. SIMPLOT COMPANY, LLC · SIMPLOT LEASING CORP
- Occurrence4,591 · 80%
a USGS-MRDS prospect, claim, pit or mining title - a deposit, not a built facility
6 samples
- 🇺🇸Morning Star ProspectArizona
- 🇺🇸Burroughs Feldspar MineColoradoL. T. Burroughs
- 🇺🇸Bazooka QuarryColorado
- 🇺🇸Highview ProspectSouth DakotaMaywood Chemical Co.
- 🇺🇸Morefield ProspectVirginiaPowhatan Mining Co. · Silas V. Morefield
- 🇺🇸Lepidolite ShaftNew MexicoZummach, Gus
Facility census across the chain
Distinct facilities at each value-chain stage, by evidence source.
Census = source-catalogued, geolocated facilities (ICMM / MRDS / MSHA). Midstream = the midstream-components seed (web-verified, downstream detail incl. precursor / cathode / cell). The two are shown apart, never summed - so the trusted census stays clean while the midstream tier fills the downstream the census can't see.
- Extraction329110
- Beneficiation1282
- Smelting36
- Refining9868
- Chemical137315
- Precursor (pCAM)–7
- Cathode / anode202217
- Battery cell–289
- Recycling12377
Top countries
- 1🇺🇸387United States
- 2🇨🇦102Canada
- 3🇦🇺22Australia
- 4🇲🇽10Mexico
- 5🇦🇷7Argentina
- 6🇿🇼6Zimbabwe
- 7🇧🇷5Brazil
- 8🇨🇱5Chile
- 9🇨🇳3China
- 10🇺🇬3Uganda
Top US states
- California39
- Michigan35
- Nevada25
- Texas24
- North Carolina21
- Tennessee21
- Ohio18
- Georgia14
- Alabama13
- Arizona13
Top operators by facility count
By raw site count in this census, not capacity. For the capacity leaders, see the concentration strip above.
- 1Vale Canada Ltd.naatbatt8
- 2Enchem America LLCnaatbatt6
- 3Elevra Lithium Ltd (formerly Sayona Mining + Piedmont)curated_operator:elevra lithium ltd formerly sayona mining piedmont5
- 4Ford Motor Companynaatbatt5
- 5Glencorenaatbatt5
- 6AESCnaatbatt4
- 7Albemarle Corporationnaatbatt4
- 8BASF Toda America LLCnaatbatt4
- 9Birla Carbonnaatbatt4
- 10ENTEKnaatbatt4
SEC-listed companies in this value chain
US-listed SEC filers classified in this commodity's processing industries (Industrial Inorganic Chemicals). Industry-level (SEC SIC code), not a precise operator list - the cluster-resolved operators above are that. Source: SEC EDGAR.
- AEC1 INCSIC 2810🇺🇸 US-NH
- ALCOA INTERNATIONAL HOLDINGS COSIC 2810🇺🇸 US-DE
- AMERICAN PACIFIC CORPBQ 100013928010SIC 2810🇺🇸 US-DE
- AMERICAN PLASTICS & CHEMICALS INCBQ 100013905459SIC 2810🇺🇸 US-DE
- ATMI INCSIC 2810🇺🇸 US-DE
- AUTOLINE GROUP INCSIC 2810🇺🇸 US-UT
- AVECIA GROUP PLCSIC 2810🇬🇧 GB
- AZONIC CORPBQ 100041828273SIC 2810🇺🇸 US-NV
- Air Products and Chemicals, Inc.BQ 100000416476SIC 2810🇺🇸 US
- Ampac Fine Chemicals LLCBQ 100000622324SIC 2810🇺🇸 US-CA
- BCAC Holdings IncSIC 2810🇺🇸 US-DE
- BEARD COSIC 2810🇺🇸 US-OK
Top SEC-anchored parent firms
US-listed parents only, by site count - reached via FF's alias / lineage walk (≤3 hops, LOW edges excluded). Not capacity, and not the global owners (see the concentration strip). The badge flags how the link was made - a heuristic name match versus a source-stated filing.
- 1EAGLE PICHER TECHNOLOGIES LLCBQ 1000027854010001059576last filed 2005name-match3
- 2OM GROUP INC0000899723last filed 2017rollup3
- 3General Motors CoBQ 1000679062720001467858last filed 2025rollup2
- 4ACTion Battery Technologies Inc0002049082last filed 2024name-match1
- 5BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY INCBQ 1000011147870001067983last filed 2024rollup1
- 6BP AMERICA INCBQ 1000013348330000790303last filed 2021name-match1
- 7BP PLC0000313807last filed 2025name-match1
- 8CABOT CORP0000016040last filed 2025rollup1
- 9CYPRUS AMAX MINERALS CO0000769589name-match1
- 10EASTERN ENERGY GAS HOLDINGS LLC0001603291last filed 2025rollup1
Source provenance · curated matches
Where the 5,600 first-party facilities for this commodity were sourced. The NAICS-inferred (Crosswalk) candidates shown above are excluded here, so the breakdown reflects curated commodity provenance, not broad industry-code nets.
- anm_sigmine-4,356 · 78%
Source not in strata-web's lookup - see strata for context.
- nrel_naatbatt-786 · 14%
Source not in strata-web's lookup - see strata for context.
- usgs_mrds_facilities_2016-393 · 7%
Source not in strata-web's lookup - see strata for context.
- WikidataWikimedia Foundation155 · 3%
Open structured data - global coverage, variable depth.
- icmm_global_mining-87 · 2%
Source not in strata-web's lookup - see strata for context.
- EPA FRSUS Environmental Protection Agency83 · 1%
Facility Registry Service - NAICS-coded US industrial facilities.
- MSHAMine Safety and Health Administration14 · 0%
US mine + operator registry, operating + closed status, employment.
- mn_mrpam_licenses-2 · 0%
Source not in strata-web's lookup - see strata for context.
All rows passed FF synthesis · cross-source merge + NAICS commodity crosswalk
Counts overlap when a facility is matched across multiple registries - an MRDS-identified mine also tagged by MSHA appears in both rows. The sum can exceed 5,600 first-party facilities.
Provenance
Where this data comes from
- BGS World Mineral Statistics
- iea cmo 2024
- IEA Critical Minerals Dataset (CMO 2025)
midstream_components_seed
mofcom_most_catalogue_2025
oecd_export_restrictions_2026
ownership_control_seed
sec_edgar_ex96_pdf
- Statistics Canada Table 16-10-0022
- USGS DS-140 (constant 1998 USD)
- USGS DS-140 (nominal)
- USGS MCS (Price, annual average-real, ba)
- USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026
- USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries World Data (legacy wide format, 2023-2025 vintages)
- USGS Minerals Yearbook OFR 2025-1047
- USGS Minerals Yearbook Vol III, reference year 2019
- usgs myb1 lithium 2021
- usgs myb1 lithium 2022
usgs_critmin_deposits_v3
usgs_mine_waste
usgs_mrds_2016
usgs_pp1802_global
usmin_critical_deposits
25 sources · titles open the source card · url opens the publisher