Lithium: A Discourse on Global Reserves, India's Ascendancy, and Substitutes for a Verdant Future

The growing need for lithium, driven by the quick rise in the use of electric vehicles (EVs) and grid-scale energy storage systems, shows how important it is to look closely at its global supply chain. Lithium's superior electrochemical properties allow battery energy densities to exceed 160 Wh/kg by weight and 400 Wh/L by volume. This makes it a key part of global efforts to reduce carbon emissions. There are 30 million metric tonnes (MT) of lithium reserves around the world, and 115 million MT of resources, mostly in the Lithium Triangle (Chile, Argentina, Bolivia) and Australia. These two areas make up more than 54% of the reserves. In 2024, production reached 240,000 MT, mostly from hard-rock pegmatites in Australia and brine deposits in South America. To meet clean energy goals, production needs to increase to 1.5–11.2 million MT by 2050, according to Net Zero Emissions (NZE) projections. Demand is expected to rise to 1.7 million MT by 2050, mostly because of EVs (58–69%) and battery storage (23–29%). Without major investments and recycling contributions (10–30%), there could be supply shortages of up to 728 kt. India's reserves, which are thought to be 114,100 MT, are ready to be used after recent changes to the law. By 2050, domestic demand is expected to rise 57-fold to 92,760 tonnes, mostly from EVs (43–69%), while the country relies heavily on imports (over 70% from China). A SWOT analysis shows that there are chances for recycling and working with other countries, but there are also geopolitical weaknesses. Emerging alternatives such as sodium-ion, aluminum-ion (with theoretical densities of 1,060 Wh/kg), graphene (up to 1,000 Wh/kg), and nuclear betavoltaic batteries present promising avenues to reduce lithium dependency, promoting diversified and sustainable energy paradigms.