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Visualizing the World’s Largest Iron Ore Producers

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Visualizing the World’s Largest Iron Ore Producers

Visualizing the World’s Largest Iron Ore Producers

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Iron ore comprised roughly 93% of the 2.7 billion tonnes of metals mined in 2021.

It is used primarily (98%) to make steel, with the remaining 2% becoming magnets, auto parts, and catalysts.

Using data from the U.S. Geological Survey, the above infographic lists the world’s largest iron ore producers in 2021.

Pilbara and Carajás Iron Ore

Iron is the fourth most abundant element on the planet after oxygen, silicon, and aluminum, constituting about 5% of the Earth’s crust.

Australia produced 35% of the iron ore mined last year. Almost 90% of identified iron ore resources in the country occur in Western Australia, especially in the Pilbara region.

The large and dry region is known for its Aboriginal peoples and also for its red earth as a result of a chemical reaction of iron exposed to air and water. The three major Pilbara iron ore producers are also among the top mining companies in the world: BHP Group, Rio Tinto Ltd, and Fortescue Metals.

Country2021 Production (Tonnes)
🇦🇺 Australia900,000,000
🇧🇷 Brazil380,000,000
🇨🇳 China360,000,000
🇮🇳 India240,000,000
🇷🇺 Russia100,000,000
🇺🇦 Ukraine81,000,000
🇨🇦 Canada68,000,000
🇿🇦 South Africa61,000,000
🇰🇿 Kazakhstan64,000,000
🇮🇷 Iran50,000,000
🇺🇸 United States46,000,000
🇸🇪 Sweden40,000,000
🇨🇱 Chile19,000,000
🇲🇽 Mexico17,000,000
🇵🇪 Peru16,000,000
🇹🇷 Turkey16,000,000
🌐 Other countries90,000,000

After Australia, Brazil is the second biggest producer, with iron ore accounting for 80% of the country’s mining exports.

Brazil’s biggest public company, Vale, is the world’s largest producer of iron ore and nickel. The company runs the Carajás mine, the largest iron ore mine in the world. Located in the state of Pará, in the north of the country, the mine is operated as an open-pit mine and is estimated to contain roughly 7.2 billion metric tons of iron ore.

Together, Australia and Brazil dominate the world’s iron ore exports, each having about one-third of total exports.

China is the largest consumer of iron ore, used to feed its steel industry.

Despite being the third largest producer, China still imports around 80% of the iron ore it uses each year. The country brought in 1.12 billion tonnes of the commodity last year.

Iron Ore’s Role in the Green Economy

Iron ore demand is expected to rise in the coming years as steel plays a crucial role in producing and distributing energy.

Steel is used extensively in agriculture, solar and wind power, and also in infrastructure for hydroelectric.

Furthermore, steel is used for the production of transformers, generators, and electric motors, along with ships, trucks, and trains.

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Mining

White Gold: Mapping U.S. Lithium Mines

In this graphic, Visual Capitalist partnerered with EnergyX to explore the size and location of U.S. lithium mines.

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Teaser graphic of a map that shows the sizes of the top U.S. lithium mines.

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The following content is sponsored by EnergyX

White Gold: Mapping U.S. Lithium Mines

The U.S. doubled imports of lithium-ion batteries for the third consecutive year in 2022, and with EV demand growing yearly, U.S. lithium mines must ramp up production or rely on other nations for their supply of refined lithium.

To determine if the domestic U.S. lithium opportunity can meet demand, we partnered with EnergyX to determine how much lithium sits within U.S. borders. 

U.S. Lithium Projects

The most crucial measure of a lithium mine’s potential is the quantity that can be extracted from the source.

For each lithium resource, the potential volume of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) was calculated with a ratio of one metric ton of lithium producing 5.32 metric tons of LCE. Cumulatively, existing U.S. lithium projects contain 94.8 million metric tons of LCE.

RankProject NameLCE, million metric tons (est.)
1McDermitt Caldera21.5
2Thacker Pass19.1
3Tonopah Flats18.0
4TLC Lithium10.7
5Clayton Valley (Century Lithium)6.3
6Zeus Lithium6.3
7Rhyolite Ridge3.4
8Arkansas Smackover (Phase 1A)2.8
9Basin Project2.2
10McGee Deposit2.1
11Arkansas Smackover (South West)1.8
12Clayton Valley (Lithium-X, Pure Energy)0.8
13Big Sandy0.3
14Imperial Valley/Salton Sea0.3

U.S. Lithium Opportunities, By State

U.S. lithium projects mainly exist in western states, with comparatively minor opportunities in central or eastern states.

StateLCE, million metric tons (est.)
Nevada88.2
Arkansas4.6
Arizona2.5
California0.3

Currently, the U.S. is sitting on a wealth of lithium that it is underutilizing. For context, in 2022, the U.S. only produced about 5,000 metric tons of LCE and imported a projected 19,000 metric tons of LCE, showing that the demand for the mineral is healthy.  

The Next Gold Rush?

U.S. lithium companies have the opportunity to become global leaders in lithium production and accelerate the transition to sustainable energy sources. This is particularly important as the demand for lithium is increasing every year.

EnergyX is on a mission to meet U.S. lithium demands using groundbreaking technology that can extract 300% more lithium from a source than traditional methods.

You can take advantage of this opportunity by investing in EnergyX and joining other significant players like GM in becoming a shareholder.

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