Following the growth of lithium batteries that are consumed in the electric vehicle industry, the production and trade of lithium metal has undergone significant changes and the largest share of the production of this metal in the world belongs to Australia; while most lithium reserves are found in Bolivia.
The global volume of lithium reserves is reported to be around 22Mt in 2021, and the largest reserves of this element are located in the countries known as the lithium triangle. It is worth mentioning that, South Korea and China are the largest global importer and exporter of lithium, respectively. The application of this metal, which is light and has superconducting properties, is mostly in the field of rechargeable batteries. Due to the market growth of electric and consumer vehicles in which lithium is used in the batteries of these vehicles, the production volume and its demand is expected to increase over the coming years.