What this place is
West Africa went from no lithium production to a visible share of world supply in about two years, almost entirely through Chinese-financed spodumene projects.
Grade. Spodumene pegmatite comparable to Australian deposits.
“Grade” is the percentage of the useful stuff in the rock. A copper mine at 0.5% grade throws away 199 tonnes of rock for every tonne of copper it sells. That single number decides whether an orebody is a mine or just an interesting piece of geology.
What comes out
A “by-product” is a metal recovered because it happens to be in the same rock, not because anyone went looking for it. Its supply therefore follows the primary metal’s economics, not its own.
Who owns it
| Company | Role | Interest |
|---|---|---|
| Ganfeng Lithium | Chemical | Majority owner |
As publicly reported by the operators. Ownership of large mines changes; verify against current company filings before relying on it.