China ranks second in the world in lithium reserves

Shanghai. China’s lithium reserves increased from 6 to 16.5 percent of the world’s total, making it the second largest holder of this resource in the world, only behind Chile, state media reported on Wednesday.

Beijing, the world’s largest consumer of this metal for batteries, depends largely on imports, and in recent years has promoted national exploration.

Lithium is widely used in rechargeable batteries for electronic devices, electric vehicles and renewable energy storage systems, as well as in ceramics, glass and pharmaceutical applications.

The newly discovered mines include a 2,800-kilometer-long spodumene mine in the Xikunsong-Pan-Ganzi region of Tibet and some lithium salt lakes on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, Xinhua news agency reported. With the salt lakes discovered, China is now also home to the third largest salt lake resources in the world, after the lithium triangle of South America and Western America, according to the report. The salt lake is a low-cost source of lithium.