Salar de Atacama (SQM): a lithium operation in Chile
Salar de Atacama (SQM) is a brine operation producing lithium in the Salar de Atacama, Antofagasta Region, Chile, operated by SQM. The sources report 184 thousand metric tons lithium carbonate produced (Lithium Chemical Plant, from Salar de Atacama brine) for CY2025; the basis is 100% of SQM's Chilean carbonate plant output (SQM consolidates Nova Andino Litio). In lithium content, whole-operation output for CY2025 is about 34,600 tonnes (derived here, not printed by the source): about 12% of world lithium output in 2025 and about 62% of Chile's; it is one of 8 operations on this site whose output can be stated in lithium content.
Who owns and operates it?
How much does it produce?
| Period | Output | Basis | Where in the source |
|---|---|---|---|
| CY2025 | 184 thousand metric tons lithium carbonate produced (Lithium Chemical Plant, from Salar de Atacama brine) | 100% of SQM's Chilean carbonate plant output (SQM consolidates Nova Andino Litio) | Item 4 (Properties), Extraction Yields table, 'Metric tons of lithium carbonate produced' (table headed 'in thousands') · Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile S.A. (SEC EDGAR) |
| CY2024 | 179.5 thousand metric tons lithium carbonate produced | Whole operation | Item 4 (Properties), Extraction Yields table · Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile S.A. (SEC EDGAR) |
How the lithium-content figure is worked out. 184,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate times 0.1878 tonnes of lithium per tonne of carbonate (the factor Albemarle states in its 10-K) is about 34,600 tonnes of lithium. Lithium sulfate, a separate stream, is not included. World mine production of lithium in 2025 was 290,000 tonnes (USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026); Chile produced 56,000 tonnes.
Status: operating, as of 31 March 2026.
- The figure counts lithium carbonate only. SQM also produced 105,900 tonnes of dry lithium sulfate at the salar in 2025, a separate stream sold to refiners that holds roughly 13 thousand tonnes of lithium. It is not included, so the lithium content and the shares of world and Chilean output are lower than for the whole operation. USGS and the operators may also count on different bases: this operation and Albemarle's together come to 87% of USGS's figure for Chile.
How does it compare?
Other lithium operations on this site: Greenbushes, Pilgangoora, Wodgina, Kathleen Valley, Salar de Atacama (Albemarle), Cauchari-Olaroz, Goulamina, Qarhan salt lake (Qinghai Salt Lake Industry). In Chile: Salar de Atacama (Albemarle). See where lithium comes from for the country totals, the country page for Chile, and SQM for its other operations here.
Sources
- Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile S.A. (SEC EDGAR): Form 20-F for fiscal year ended 31 December 2025 (annual report (20-F), CY2025). Opened 3 November 2026; used: cover; Item 4.A (Nova Andino Litio JV, Mt Holland JV); Item 4 (Properties) Extraction Yields table; Item 4 Mining property coordinates; Item 5 Lithium and Derivatives sales volumes.
- U.S. Geological Survey: Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Lithium (government statistical summary, 2025 (world and country mine production)). Opened 3 November 2026; used: world and country mine production table.
Method and limits
- Reported, not estimated. Output is the figure the operator or owner published, in the unit it used. This site does not estimate output where none is published.
- Shares. A share divides output in lithium content by the USGS world or country total for 2025. Where the operator's year is a fiscal year or the unit is a concentrate or a carbonate equivalent, the share is approximate or not given.
- Whole operation or owner's share. The basis column says which. A joint venture's output is never counted twice.
- Partial list. Only operations with a published figure are listed, so the rank is among those on this site, not among every lithium mine. Shares of a country's output mix periods and bases, so treat them as indicative.
- Made with AI assistance, checked against sources. The facts were gathered from the documents above by AI-assisted research and re-checked against those documents by a second, independent pass; the page text is generated from the data. No professional review took place. How the site is made. To report an error, contact us; fixes are logged on the corrections page.