The Largest Lithium Deposit on Earth Is Frozen

Beneath Bolivia's Salar de Uyuni — the world's largest salt flat — lies the largest single lithium deposit on Earth: about 23 million tonnes, roughly a fifth of all identified lithium. Yet Bolivia produces less than 1% of the world's supply. In 2024, the race to unlock it began: a unit of China's CATL, the world's biggest battery maker, signed a $1 billion contract for two direct-lithium-extraction plants at Uyuni, and Russia's Uranium One (Rosatom) signed a $976 million deal for another. Nearly $2 billion committed. Then it all stalled. Indigenous communities sued over consultation rights and a village court briefly froze both deals. Bolivia's congress never ratified the contracts. And in late 2025, new president Rodrigo Paz took office promising to review the country's opaque lithium deals — while pivoting toward Washington. Next door, Chile and Argentina export billions in lithium every year. Bolivia — sitting on more of it in one place than anyone — still waits. Follow Money Maps for more geopolitics, mapped. #Bolivia #Lithium #SalarDeUyuni #China #Russia #CriticalMinerals #Geopolitics #MoneyMaps #Shorts