Lithium resources Lithium is a soft, silver-white metal used in pharmaceuticals, ceramics, grease, lubricants and heat-resistant glass. It’s also used in lithium-ion batteries, which power everything from cell phones to laptops to EVs — demand for lithium from this sector is growing rapidly. Lithium is found globally in hard-rock deposits, evaporated brines and clay deposits. There’s some contention as to which type of deposit is superior, but generally there are tradeoffs for any option. The world’s largest hard-rock mine is the Greenbushes mine in Australia, and the bulk of the world’s lithium brine production comes from salars in Chile and Argentina. Most large lithium reserves are in Chile, and the prolific “lithium triangle” spans Chile, Argentina and Bolivia. Australia was once again the world’s largest lithium producer in 2020, followed by Chile and China.