{"id":529,"date":"2026-08-03T16:39:05","date_gmt":"2026-08-03T16:39:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thirstier.news\/?p=529"},"modified":"2026-08-03T16:39:05","modified_gmt":"2026-08-03T16:39:05","slug":"usgs-lithium-in-carolinas-could-replace-imports-for-a-century-or-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thirstier.news\/?p=529","title":{"rendered":"USGS: Lithium in Carolinas Could Replace Imports for a Century or More"},"content":{"rendered":"
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USGS: Lithium in Carolinas Could Replace Imports for a Century or More
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\n By Communications and Publishing<\/a>
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\n June 18, 2026
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RESTON, Va. <\/strong>\u2014 The southern Appalachian region of the eastern United States contains an estimated 1.43 million metric tons of undiscovered, economically recoverable lithium oxide, enough to replace 201 years of U.S. imports at last year\u2019s level, according to new research by the U.S. Geological Survey.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The lithium is concentrated in the Carolinas, according to estimates in a new USGS scientific paper published in Natural Resources Research, <\/em>companion to a similar study<\/u><\/a> that estimated 900,000 metric tons of lithium oxide in the northern Appalachians. The lithium is present in pegmatites, large-grained rocks similar to granite.<\/p>\n

World lithium production has grown more than 40 times in the past 30 years, driven by the need for lithium-ion batteries that power computers, military equipment, vehicles, phones, electric tools, and energy-grid storage, as well as in aerospace alloys. The USGS study estimated the undiscovered total that could be produced at current prices to meet lithium demand.<\/p>\n

Before the boom in lithium demand, North Carolina\u2019s Kings Mountain and Hallman-Beam mines produced lithium from pegmatites but closed in the 1990s when production shifted to lower-cost sources such as lithium from dried lakebeds in South America and pegmatites in Australia.\u00a0At the time, lithium was principally used for ceramics, glass and lubricating grease.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis research shows that the Carolinas contain enough lithium to help meet the nation\u2019s growing needs \u2013 a major contribution to U.S. mineral security, at a time when global lithium demand is rising rapidly,\u201d said USGS Director Ned Mamula.<\/strong> \u201cUSGS mineral science is the leading edge in the effort to restore America\u2019s mineral independence by mapping our nation\u2019s mineral resources. Everything else follows on the science: permitting reform and other policy changes to support investment in clean, responsible mining to 21st<\/sup> century standards, and mining workforce training for new American jobs. The United States was the dominant world producer of lithium three decades ago when North Carolina\u2019s lithium mines were active, and while the USGS is assessing many other lithium resources, this research highlights the abundant domestic potential.\u201d<\/p>\n

The estimated 1.43 million metric tons of lithium oxide in the southern Appalachian region would be enough lithium for batteries in:\u00a0<\/p>\n