U.S. On The Cusp Of Lithium Boom To Weaken China's EV Grip

The United States is gearing up for a significant increase in lithium production, with projects advancing in Nevada and California.

The Biden administration recently approved Nevada’s Rhyolite Ridge lithium-boron mine and granted a $2.6 billion loan to Thacker Pass amid some environmental and Native American groups having raised concerns about the ecological impact and cultural implications of the new mining projects. I Photo: Great Basin Resource Watch

The Biden administration recently approved Nevada’s Rhyolite Ridge lithium-boron mine and granted a $2.6 billion loan to Thacker Pass, another Nevada mine, Catherine Boudreau reported for Business Insider.

Additionally, a project at California’s Salton Sea began construction earlier this year, with the three sites expected to be operational between 2026 and 2028.

This development will vastly expand the US’s lithium supply, which currently depends on just one operating site, Silver Peak in Nevada, since the 1960s.

This effort to ramp up domestic lithium production aims to reduce US reliance on China, which currently dominates lithium processing and EV-battery manufacturing. While Australia and South America produce most of the world’s lithium, China processes about two-thirds of the global supply.

The US, in turn, relies on China for approximately 70% of its lithium-ion batteries. However, some environmental and Native American groups have raised concerns about the ecological impact and cultural implications of the new mining projects.