SQM - 7 Biggest Lithium-mining Companies in 2024

2024-06-25 16:55:00 ET

For a long time, most lithium was produced by an oligopoly of producers often referred to as the Big Three: Albemarle (NYSE: ALB ), Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile ( SQM ) (NYSE: SQM ) and Arcadium Lithium (NYSE: ALTM ), formerly Livent .

These US-listed companies remain major entities in the lithium sector; however, the space has expanded significantly in recent years, and interested investors should cast a wider net to look at global companies — in particular those listed in Australia and China, as companies in both countries have become major players in the industry.

While Australia has long been a top-producing country when it comes to lithium, China has risen quickly to become not only the top lithium processing and refining country, but also a major miner of the commodity. In fact, China was the third largest lithium-producing country in 2023 in terms of mine production, behind Australia and Chile.

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