Editing Lithium (section)

==== Hard-rock deposits ====
Since 2018 the [[Mining industry of the Democratic Republic of the Congo|Democratic Republic of Congo]] is known to have the largest lithium [[spodumene]] hard-rock deposit in the world.<ref>{{Cite news |date=December 10, 2018 |title=This Congo project could supply the world with lithium |work=[[MiningDotCom]] |url=https://www.mining.com/one-congo-project-supply-world-lithium/ |access-date=26 March 2021 |archive-date=14 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210414030827/https://www.mining.com/one-congo-project-supply-world-lithium/ |url-status=live}}</ref> The deposit located in [[Manono, Democratic Republic of the Congo|Manono]], [[Democratic Republic of the Congo|DRC]], may hold up to 1.5 billion tons of lithium spodumene hard-rock. The two largest pegmatites (known as the Carriere de l'Este Pegmatite and the Roche Dure Pegmatite) are each of similar size or larger than the famous Greenbushes Pegmatite in [[Western Australia]]. Thus, the [[Mining industry of the Democratic Republic of the Congo|Democratic Republic of Congo]] is expected to be a significant supplier of lithium to the world with its high grade and low impurities.

On 16 July 2018 2.5 million tonnes of high-grade lithium resources and 124 million pounds of uranium resources were found in the Falchani hard rock deposit in the region Puno, Peru.<ref>{{cite news |title=Plateau Energy Metals Peru unit finds large lithium resources |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/peru-lithium/update-1-plateau-energy-metals-peru-unit-finds-large-lithium-resources-idUSL1N1UC0XF |work=Reuters |date=16 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180726204758/https://www.reuters.com/article/peru-lithium/update-1-plateau-energy-metals-peru-unit-finds-large-lithium-resources-idUSL1N1UC0XF |archive-date=26 July 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref>
In 2020, Australia granted Major Project Status (MPS) to the [[Finniss Lithium Project]] for a strategically important lithium deposit: an estimated 3.45 million tonnes (Mt) of mineral resource at 1.4 percent [[lithium oxide]].<ref name=miningnews20210317>{{cite news |title=Australia grants MPS for Core Lithium's Finniss lithium project |url=https://www.miningmetalnews.com/20210317/1786/australia-grants-mps-core-lithiums-finniss-lithium-project |last=Matthis |first=Simon |work=MiningMetalNews |date=17 March 2021 |access-date=13 October 2022 |archive-date=13 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221013033439/https://www.miningmetalnews.com/20210317/1786/australia-grants-mps-core-lithiums-finniss-lithium-project |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=primero20221013>[https://primero.com.au/projects/finniss-lithium/ CORE Lithium : Finnis Lithium] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221013033439/https://primero.com.au/projects/finniss-lithium/ |date=13 October 2022 }}, retrieved 13 October 2022</ref> Operational mining began in 2022.<ref name=miningtech202201>{{cite news |title=Finniss Lithium Project, Northern Territory, Australia |url=https://www.mining-technology.com/projects/finniss-lithium-project/ |work=Mining Technology |date=13 January 2022 |access-date=13 October 2022 |archive-date=13 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221013033440/https://www.mining-technology.com/projects/finniss-lithium-project/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

A deposit discovered in 2013 in Wyoming's [[Rock Springs Uplift]] is estimated to contain 228,000 tons.{{clarify|date=September 2023}} Additional deposits in the same formation were estimated to be as much as 18 million tons.<ref>{{cite web |first=John C.K. |last=Daly |publisher=OilPrice.com |date=26 April 2013 |title=Researchers Have Stumbled On A Massive Lithium Mine That Could Meet All US Demand |url=http://www.businessinsider.com/new-wyoming-lithium-deposit-could-meet-all-us-demand-2013-4 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130503085509/http://www.businessinsider.com/new-wyoming-lithium-deposit-could-meet-all-us-demand-2013-4 |archive-date=3 May 2013 |website=[[Business Insider]] |location=New York City, U.S.}}</ref> Similarly in Nevada, the [[McDermitt Caldera]] hosts lithium-bearing volcanic muds that consist of the largest known deposits of lithium within the United States.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Benson |first1=Tom |title=Lithium enrichment in intracontinental rhyolite magmas leads to Li deposits in caldera basins |journal=Nature Communications |date=16 August 2016 |volume=8 |issue=1 |page=270 |doi=10.1038/s41467-017-00234-y |pmid=28814716 |pmc=5559592}}</ref>

The [[Pampean Pegmatite Province]] in Argentina is known to have a total of at least 200,000 tons of [[spodumene]] with [[lithium oxide]] (Li<sub>2</sub>O) [[ore grade|grades]] varying between 5 and 8 wt %.<ref name=minerals>{{Cite journal |title=The Li-Bearing Pegmatites from the Pampean Pegmatite Province, Argentina: Metallogenesis and Resources |journal=Minerals |publisher=[[MDPI]] |last1=Galliski |first1=Miguel Ángel |last3=Roda-Robles |first3=Encarnación |last4=von Quadt |first4=Albrecht |doi=10.3390/min12070841 |year=2022 |last2=Márquez-Zavalía |first2=María Florencia |volume=12 |issue=7 |page=841 |bibcode=2022Mine...12..841G |doi-access=free}}</ref>

In Russia the largest lithium deposit Kolmozerskoye is located in [[Murmansk]] region. In 2023, Polar Lithium, a joint venture between Nornickel and Rosatom, has been granted the right to develop the deposit. The project aims to produce 45,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate and hydroxide per year and plans to reach full design capacity by 2030.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Polar Lithium awarded right to develop Russia's largest lithium deposit |date=9 February 2023 |url=https://metals-news.com/breaking-news/polar-lithium-awarded-right-to-develop-russias-largest-lithium-deposit/ |access-date=22 July 2023 |archive-date=22 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230722162141/https://metals-news.com/breaking-news/polar-lithium-awarded-right-to-develop-russias-largest-lithium-deposit/ |url-status=live}}</ref>