Why in News?

• Chile, country with the largest lithium reserves worldwide, is ready to partner with India on tapping into the lithium value chain.
• This includes potentially extending technical expertise in exploiting the newly established “inferred” lithium resources of 5.9 million tonnes in India.
• In February 2023, the Geological Survey of India (GSI), for the first time, had established availability of lithium-inferred resources of 5.9 million tonnes in Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir.

What’s in today’s article?

• About Lithium (Properties, Applications, Availability, Top Producers, etc.)
• Discovery of Lithium Reserves in India (Location, Quantity, Significance, etc.)

About Lithium:

• Lithium is a chemical element with the symbol Li and atomic number 3.
• It is a light and soft (can be cut with a kitchen knife), silvery-white alkali metal.
• Lithium is a special metal in many ways. It is so low in density that it floats on water.

Applications of Lithium:

• The most important use of lithium is in rechargeable batteries for mobile phones, laptops, digital cameras and electric vehicles (EVs).
  • Lithium is often dubbed as “white gold” for electric vehicles.
• Lithium metal is made into alloys with aluminium and magnesium, improving their strength and making them lighter.
  • Aluminium-lithium alloys are used in aircraft, bicycle frames and high-speed trains.
• Lithium has no known biological role. It is toxic, except in very small doses.

Where is Lithium Found Naturally?

• Lithium makes up a mere 0007 per cent of the Earth's crust and it's only found locked up in minerals and salts.
• With 9.3 million tonnes, Chile has the world’s largest known lithium reserves.
• Chile is followed by Australia (6.2 million tonnes), Argentina (2.7 million tonnes) and China (2 million tonnes).
  • NOTE – This was before the discovery of 5.9 million tonnes of reserves in J&K.
• Global lithium production surpassed 100,000 tonnes for the first time in 2021, quadrupling from 2010.
• Currently, Australia alone produces 52% of the world’s lithium.

Future of Lithium Production:

• As the world produces more batteries and EVs, the demand for lithium is projected to reach 1.5 million tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) by 2025 and over 3 million tonnes by 2030.
• Based on the above demand projections, production needs to triple by 2025 and increase nearly six-fold by 2030.

Discovery of Lithium-reserves in India:

• The GSI, during preliminary exploration stage, found 5.9 million tonnes of Li in Salal-Haimana area of Reasi district, J&K.
  • As part of efforts to augment local reserves of the critical mineral, the GSI has carried out 14 projects on lithium during last five years.
• India now has the third largest resource of lithium globally, but it will take time to convert it to reserves.

Strategic Significance of this Discovery:

• This is the first significant discovery of lithium in India, as previously only a small reserve had been discovered in Karnataka.
• Lithium deposits are critical for India as the country puts its focus on electric mobility for both public and private transport.
  • The country’s imports of lithium and lithium-ion in FY21 stood at Rs 8,900 crore in FY21 and increased to Rs 13,800 crore in FY22.
  • This will also help reduce India’s dependence on China — “a major concern for many in the current political climate”.
• The ongoing Russia-Ukraine has disrupted the supply chain, resulting in high cost of the minerals.
• The discovery of lithium in J&K is expected to give a major fillip to the country’s self-sufficiency in EV Batteries.
  • Experts say the discovery could lead to not only a reduction in India’s dependence on foreign countries but also bring down the cost of such batteries in the future.
  • The cost of a battery is around 45-50 per cent in an EV.
• It will also help India to boost its climate action plan.
  • In order to decarbonise the transport sector, India aims to grow EV sales to capture the markets of 30 per cent of private passenger cars, 70 per cent of commercial vehicles, and 80 per cent of two and three-wheelers by 2030.
  • This will put India on track to reaching its goal of net zero emissions by 2070.