Lithium is an important metal used to manufacture the batteries that power everything from mobile phones and laptops to EVs, power tools, and much more. It also has a variety of industrial and medical applications, and it’s a substance that many Americans benefit from every day. The U.S. is not one of the world’s major lithium producers, trailing behind nations like Chile, Australia, and China. A discovery in the Appalachian Mountains, however, has revealed that the nation’s lithium reserves are larger than previously thought. But that’s not quite the end of the story.

According to estimates from the U.S. Geological Survey, around 2.3 million metric tons of lithium oxide deposits are present across parts of Maine, New Hampshire, and North Carolina. But the problem is that this lithium lies within hard rock formations known as pegmatites, which aren’t easily accessible. As of this writing, those rocks are not being mined, and quite a bit of work would need to be done before the lithium could be extracted and put to good use.

In contrast, China’s dominant lithium-ion battery industry puts it far ahead of the U.S., at least for now. But even if America’s newfound lithium deposits can be developed, establishing a secure domestic supply chain would require rebuilding much of the existing infrastructure. So this discovery, while potentially a positive for the U.S. moving forward, doesn’t do much to change the current imbalance that exists between America and other countries.

The recent discovery of lithium oxide deposits across several states seems to bode well for the U.S., which depends on rare earth elements for electric cars. Extraction issues aside, the U.S. Geological Survey’s 2.3 million metric ton estimate is also based on a 50% confidence level. This means there’s an equal chance of there being more or less lithium than estimated. The only way to confirm the total is through further development and analysis. Even then, the USGS’ projection does not account for how much of the lithium can actually be extracted.

Currently, the U.S. has a limited lithium production base despite holding 4.4 million metric tons in reserve. As of 2026, the nation only has one active lithium mine in Silver Peak, Nevada, which produced around 1,000 metric tons of lithium in 2025. That output is extremely small compared to China, which produced 62,000 metric tons of lithium in 2025. China also has a slightly larger reserve of 4.6 million metric tons.

However, there is a second mine under construction in Nevada as of mid-2025. The Thacker Pass Lithium Mine received its permits in 2022 after years of review, public forums, and revisions to the original applications. The mine is scheduled to begin operations in 2028, with an expected annual output of around 40,000 metric tons of lithium.