Rising Lithium Demand Could Require 134 New Mines by 2050

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Written by Paul Wiseman for IIR News Intelligence (Sugar Land, Texas)

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Summary

The expansion of electric vehicles (EVs) and battery energy storage systems (BESS) is expected to triple the demand for lithium. Today's worldwide mining supply chain will need significant help to handle that. Industrial Info Resources is tracking 171 lithium mining projects worldwide with completion dates by 2050, with a total investment value (TIV) of $53.72 billion.

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More, More, More Lithium

The expansion of electric vehicles (EVs) and battery energy storage systems (BESS), the latter largely to supplement intermittent generation sources like wind and solar, is expected to triple the demand for batteries' foundational mineral, lithium. Today's worldwide mining supply chain will need significant help to handle that.

Because of that, supply chain research firm Benchmark Minerals sees a need for 134 new lithium mines to be producing by 2050. EVs are expected to account for 76% of demand despite rapid growth of the BESS market. Benchmark also sees China surpassing Australia as the world's largest producer, while North America's share of production expands from 1.7% to 13% in that time frame.

Industrial Info Resources is tracking 171 lithium mining projects worldwide with completion dates by 2050, with a total investment value (TIV) of $53.72 billion.

To Benchmark's prediction that North America's share of lithium mining activity will increase greatly by 2050, Industrial Info Resources' data does show the region greatly leads the world in new projects. North America is home to 36 of the world's 168 lithium mining projects being tracked, with TIV of $19.4 billion, 37.4% of the world's TIV.

South America is second with 39 projects totaling just under $13.7 billion, while Asia is third with 34 projects and TIV of $12.3 billion.

By nation, the U.S. is number one, at $13.8 billion, followed by China with $12.32 billion.

While the Industrial Info project count is higher than Benchmark's listed number, the company's Vice President of Research, Metals and Minerals, Joe Govreau, points out that many of the tracked projects are in early exploration stages and may never reach FID or production, due to a variety of factors.

Australia, currently the world's lithium production leader, has languished somewhat in recent years. But this October 23, 2026 Industrial Info Resources news story, Australia's Lithium Comeback Boosted by Pilgangoora Expansion, shows that there are seven Pilgangoora lithium projects worth more than US$1.53 billion in investment.

Currently the U.S. has only one significant producing lithium mine, Albemarle's Silverpeak Lithium Solution Mine in Nevada. Subscribers can learn more from a detailed plant profile.

Mining Alternatives Required

Traditional lithium mining and refining methods have been as slow as watching water evaporate (literally), while also requiring much water and producing thousands of gallons of toxic waste. Hard-rock mining and solar evaporation ponds could take months or years to process each load, with low recovery rates. The process is also very costly.

With lithium's rush to provide clean energy, production methods must get faster and cleaner, and new procedures are providing exactly those results. Direct lithium extraction (DLE), among the most popular currently developing methods, extracts lithium from brines in hours or a few days, with 90-95% recovery rates.

But wait, there's more. In this August 27, 2026 story Assisted by Halliburton, Two Startups Slash Costs of Critical Minerals Refining, Industrial Info's Frankie Vo explains California-based startup Electroflow Technologies' new, streamlined method. "Electroflow has developed an electrochemical process that goes from extracting lithium from brine to refining it into lithium iron phosphate in three steps instead of the traditional 10-step process."

Oil industry service giant Halliburton is assisting Electroflow with its development.

One significant new source of lithium involves brines, both naturally occurring and from wastewater associated with oil and gas production. Many oil companies are investing in the Smackover Formation in southeast Arkansas and east Texas, for its mineral-rich brines that include lithium. For more information on that, see this September 9 Industrial Info Resources story Black Gold to White Gold: U.S. Oil Industry Invests in Lithium.

DLE From Oil and Gas Wells

In the oil field itself, each oil well produces many times more water than it does oil. That water, while rich with other minerals, is also laden with brines, unrecovered oil, and other toxins that have led companies in the past to simply inject it underground, theoretically out of harm's way. That process has led to earthquakes in high production areas such as the Permian Basin of west Texas and southeast New Mexico.

So, finding a way to capture useful minerals, clean the rest, and repurpose that for industrial or other use would help many industries.

To that end, as in this Monday October 19 Industrial Info Resources story, Texas Plant to Extract Lithium from Oil Wastewater, getting lithium from produced oilfield water is also on the horizon. In the story Element3, the system operator, says once it is fully operational, this one project could match half the U.S.'s current lithium production.

The investment and project numbers currently are well below the suggested count, but there are still just over 23 years before 2050. Governments worldwide are investing and otherwise easing the way for new mines, so things could change.

By the Numbers:

134: Number of new mines required by 2050 to meet demand

168: Number of new lithium mining projects tracked by Industrial Info Resources, although many are in early planning stages and may never be completed

Key Takeaways

Lithium mining will have to ramp up greatly to keep up with demand growth from EVs and BESS installations.

About IIR News Intelligence

IIR News Intelligence is a trusted source of news for the industrial process and energy markets, powered by Industrial Info Resources' Global Market Intelligence (GMI).

About Industrial Info Resources

Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 250,000 current and future projects worth $30.2 Trillion (USD).