This Supervolcano Could Make America the Saudi Arabia of Lithium

The Find Could Reshape Americas Battery Future

Beneath an ancient volcanic crater on the Nevada-Oregon border sits enough lithium to power America’s electric vehicle revolution for decades.

Scientists now believe the McDermitt Caldera holds the world’s largest lithium deposit, with an estimated value of $1. 5 trillion.

The soft white metal buried in clay could free the U.S. from its heavy reliance on Chinese batteries.

But getting it out of the ground has already sparked lawsuits, protests, and a fight over sacred land where Native Americans were massacred 160 years ago.

Scientists Confirm 20-40 Million Metric Tons

A new study argues that McDermitt Caldera may host about 20 to 40 million metric tons of lithium, likely the largest deposit yet identified.

Using the recent United States’ average contract price for lithium carbonate, about $37,000 per ton, that estimate comes out to be nearly $1.5 trillion.

The research was led by Thomas Benson at Lithium Americas Corporation, along with scientists from Oregon State University and GNS Science.

If accurate, this single deposit would dwarf every other known lithium source on Earth.

A Supervolcano Built This Treasure Trove

The deposit sits inside a caldera, a large volcanic crater formed when a magma chamber collapses.

The caldera is about 28 miles wide north to south and 22 miles wide east to west.

It was preceded by a lava dome built by volcanic eruptions of rhyolite starting about 19 million years ago, which collapsed into a caldera between 16. 37 and 16.41 million years ago.

McDermitt Caldera is possibly the oldest of a sequence of calderas formed by the Yellowstone hotspot.

Millions of Years of Chemistry Made It Happen

After the eruption, the crater held a long-lived lake that collected volcanic ash and mud.

Deep below the basin, magma continued to release hot fluids long after the main eruption, leaching lithium and other elements from volcanic glass and carrying them upward into the wet lake sediments.

Scientists measured lithium concentrations reaching about 1 percent by weight, roughly twice as rich as most other clay-based lithium deposits around the world.

The Deposit Dwarfs Bolivia’s Salt Flats

If the study is accurate, the caldera contains nearly double the lithium deposits found in Bolivia’s salt flats, which holds the record for the world’s largest deposit.

Bolivia’s Salar de Uyuni, the world’s largest salt flat, covers about 10,582 square kilometers. But Bolivia has struggled for decades to extract its lithium due to political issues and technical challenges.

Bolivia makes up less than one percent of global production, while Chile and Argentina produce around forty-five percent.

America Imports Most Batteries from China

The US still imports the majority of its lithium-ion batteries, and nearly 70% of those imports are from China.

According to 2024 data, China controls 70% of the world’s battery pack assembly.

China makes roughly three-quarters of lithium-ion cells, and it’s even more dominant in components: 80% of the world’s cathode materials are made in China, along with over 90% of anode materials.

A domestic lithium supply could change that picture dramatically.

Thacker Pass Mine Is Under Construction

The Thacker Pass lithium mine is a development project in Humboldt County, Nevada, which is the largest known lithium deposit in the US.

Construction began in March 2023 after an emergency appeal was denied by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.

The project site covers 18,000 acres, with less than 6,000 acres being mined, on a site 21 miles west-northwest of Orovada, Nevada.

The mine sits in the southern section of the caldera.

The Feds Put $2.26 Billion Behind It

In October 2024, the U.S. Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office announced a $2.26 billion loan to Lithium Americas to help finance construction of facilities for manufacturing lithium carbonate at Thacker Pass.

General Motors announced a joint venture agreement with Lithium Americas, providing a separate $192 million and $100 million in cash.

It’s the largest federal investment in a lithium mine to date.

Native Tribes Call the Site Sacred Ground

According to stories told by elders, Thacker Pass is called Peehee Mu’huh, meaning “rotten moon” in Paiute, a place made sacred by the bones of ancestors.

On September 12, 1865, the 1st Nevada Cavalry raided a campsite and slaughtered at least 31 Paiutes, including men, women, and children.

The Fort McDermitt tribe descends from essentially two families who, hiding in Thacker Pass, managed to avoid being sent to reservations farther away from their ancestral lands.

Tribal Members Fought the Mine in Court

In 2021, the Fort McDermitt Paiute and Shoshone Tribe formally resolved to cancel a Project Engagement Agreement with Lithium Nevada, citing threats to land, water, wildlife, hunting and gathering areas, and sacred sites.

The Reno-Sparks Indian Colony, Burns Paiute Tribe, and Winnemucca Indian Colony all challenged the legality of the project in federal court.

Environmental groups also filed lawsuits citing inadequate environmental review.

Courts Cleared the Way in 2023

On July 17, 2023, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals denied the bid to block construction of the lithium mine, deferring to the expertise of the Bureau of Land Management.

In November 2023, the district judge dismissed the second lawsuit brought by the three tribes.

On December 12, 2023, the second case was dismissed with prejudice after the three tribes failed to submit an amended complaint within the required thirty days.

Production Could Begin by 2028

Once construction of the initial phase is complete by late 2027, Thacker Pass is expected to single-handedly produce eight times the current total U.S. output of lithium carbonate.

Phase 1 is expected to create approximately 1,800 direct jobs during its three-year construction period and 360 jobs in operations for its 40-year mine life.

There are about 130 proposed lithium projects across the Western U.S., including 82 in Nevada and several within the McDermitt Caldera alone.

Visiting the McDermitt Caldera, Nevada

The caldera that holds America’s largest lithium deposit sits in one of the most remote corners of the lower 48 states.

The town of McDermitt is located on U.S. Route 95, at the tip of Nevada near the confluence of Nevada, Oregon, and Idaho. Winnemucca, Nevada is 70 miles to the south.

The caldera supports intact sagebrush habitats and is home to greater sage-grouse, pronghorn, mule deer, golden eagles, and threatened Lahontan cutthroat trout.

There are no visitor centers or formal tours. Bring supplies, water, and a full tank of gas.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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