Argentina doubled its running lithium mines since 2021 while Chile stayed at 2

The mine count reversed

Lithium is drawn from pools of salty underground water called brine, and a mine only counts as running once it is actually producing, not merely approved or still under construction. The United States Geological Survey, the federal agency that tracks mineral production worldwide, counted 2 running brine operations in Argentina and 2 in Chile in the report covering 2021 and 2022. Its newest report counts 4 running in Argentina and still 2 in Chile. The Secretariat of Mining, the mining agency inside the Ministry of Economy in Argentina, names the same 4 projects as in production, Cauchari Olaroz, Fenix, Mariana and Sal de Oro, confirming the United States count with its own separate list.

Fewer sites still means more lithium

More mines running has not made Argentina the bigger producer. Cochilco, an agency of the Chilean Ministry of Mining, reports Chile produced 296,908 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent in 2024, the standard unit used to compare lithium output regardless of the chemical form it is mined in. The Argentine Chamber of Mining Companies, an industry group known as CAEM, told Reuters that Argentina produced 74,600 tons of the same unit that year. Chile produced about 4 times as much lithium as Argentina in 2024, a MAOWCE calculation from those 2 figures. The 2 operations in Chile, run at the Salar de Atacama by SQM and Albemarle, are older, larger and draw from richer brine than most of the newer sites in Argentina, several of which are still ramping up toward full output.

What drove the new production

Alejandra Cardona, executive director of the Argentine Chamber of Mining Companies, known as CAEM, named the specific projects behind the growth in a statement reported by Reuters.

The higher volumes (in 2024) are due to the expansion of operations at Salar de Olaroz, the Fenix mine, and the ramp-up carried out by Cauchari Olaroz

Alejandra Cardona, executive director of the Argentine Chamber of Mining Companies, known as CAEM. Source 5.

Argentina is targeting 130,800 tons of lithium carbonate equivalent for 2025, a 75% increase over 2024, according to the same Reuters report citing CAEM. Chile forecasts 300,000 tonnes for 2025 through Cochilco, still more than double the Argentine target.

Who still supplies the United States

Even though Argentina now runs more mines, most United States lithium imports still come from Chile. The United States Geological Survey states that from 2021 to 2024, 54% of United States lithium imports came from Chile, 43% came from Argentina and 3% came from other sources. The same United States survey lists 9,200,000 metric tons of lithium reserves in Chile against 4,400,000 metric tons in Argentina, so Chile also holds more lithium still in the ground. Buyers still lean on Chile because its 2 older mines outproduce the 4 newer mines in Argentina, not because Argentina supplies less of the United States market by choice.