Asia’s largest lithium deposit discovered in China – Kommersant
[ad_1]
China has discovered nearly a million tons of lithium ores in Yajiang, southwest China’s Sichuan province, making the deposit Asia’s largest source of pegmatite-type monomeric lithium ores, the agency said. Xinhua with reference to a statement from the country’s Ministry of Natural Resources.
Lithium is one of the key resources needed to produce batteries, solar panels and electric vehicles. China, in turn, is the world leader in lithium processing – the country accounts for about 60% of global lithium production.
In mid-July last year, the International Energy Agency reportedthat the market for metals and minerals needed to make electric vehicles, wind turbines, solar panels and other clean technologies has doubled over the past five years. At the same time, the demand for lithium has tripled.
According to some estimates, China is already significantly ahead of Western countries in investments in the extraction of rare earth elements, which are needed for innovative energy and transport, semiconductor production, the military industry, and so on. At the beginning of July, the American investment bank Goldman Sachs statedthat Western countries need to invest at least $25 billion in rare earth mining to catch up with China in this regard.
[ad_2]
Source link