The price of lithium fell 86% in three years
Battery-grade lithium carbonate, real annual average, thousand US$ per tonne, 2021–2025; 2025 is a USGS estimate.
Battery-grade lithium carbonate averaged US$63,700 a tonne in 2022 and an estimated US$9,000 in 2025.
World lithium mine output outside the US rose an estimated 31% in 2025, to about 290,000 tonnes.
The 2025 average fell below 2021's US$11,700: cheaper battery metal, thinner margins for new mines.
the numbers & method
| Year | lithium carbonate (k) |
|---|---|
| 2021 | 11.7 |
| 2022 | 63.7 |
| 2023 | 39.0 |
| 2024 | 11.8 |
| 2025 | 9.0 |
Claim types Fact · Estimate · Interpretation
Salient Statistics—United States, row 'Price, annual average-real, battery-grade lithium carbonate, dollars per metric ton': 2021 11,700; 2022 63,700; 2023 39,000; 2024 11,800; 2025 9,000. USGS footnote: lithium carbonate price assessments for spot and long-term contracts, source Benchmark Mineral Intelligence Ltd. The table marks 2025 as estimated (2025e). The edition's text gives the 2025 fixed-contract price as $9,000 per ton, 'a decrease of 31% from that in 2024', which differs from the table's 2024 value (11,800, i.e. −24%); the chart uses the table only. Earlier editions used a different price source (Industrial Minerals, large contracts) and are not charted. World mine production (excluding the US): 222,000 t in 2024 and an estimated 290,000 t in 2025, World Mine Production and Reserves table, same edition. USGS does not define 'real' in the row label. Percent changes (−86%, −23%) are progrss calculations. Takeaway 3's second clause is a progrss interpretation.
Published 4 Nov 2026
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