Tianqi Lithium Corporation (SZSE: 002466 / HKEX: 9696) holds a ~51% controlling stake in Talison Lithium, owner and operator of the Greenbushes Lithium Project in Western Australia — making the Tianqi Lithium Greenbush position the single most strategically significant hard-rock lithium asset under Chinese majority ownership. Greenbushes is the world’s largest hard-rock lithium mine and the highest-grade operating spodumene deposit globally, at over 5.5% Li₂O. In FY2025, Tianqi recorded revenue of RMB 10.35 billion (~$1.43 billion) and returned to profit after a RMB 7.9 billion net loss in 2024.
Company Overview
Tianqi Lithium was founded in 1992 in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, and listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange in 2010. A Hong Kong listing followed in 2018. The company is founder-controlled — Jiang Weiping and family hold a significant stake — and is not a state-owned enterprise, though it operates within the framework of Chinese industrial policy on lithium, including MIIT and NDRC guidance.
The company’s two defining assets are its controlling position in the Greenbushes hard-rock mine in Australia and a ~23.77% equity stake in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile (NYSE: SQM), giving Tianqi exposure to the Atacama brine — the world’s largest and lowest-cost lithium deposit. Combined, these two positions provide access to over 30% of global lithium supply capacity.
A 2020 restructuring addressed the debt burden accumulated through the $4.3 billion SQM acquisition in 2016–2018. Balance sheet pressure returned in 2023–2024 as lithium prices collapsed, producing the RMB 7.9 billion net loss. FY2025 saw a partial recovery driven by lithium price stabilisation, SQM dividend income, FX gains, and lower impairment charges.
Tianqi Lithium Greenbush — The Crown Jewel Asset
The Greenbushes Lithium Project in Western Australia is operated by Talison Lithium, in which Tianqi holds approximately 51%, Albemarle (NYSE: ALB) approximately 25%, and IGO Limited approximately 25%. The joint venture structure gives Tianqi majority control, though Albemarle and IGO hold minority governance rights that constrain unilateral operational decisions.
The deposit’s scale is exceptional. Total resources stand at 440 million tonnes at an average grade of 1.5% Li₂O, equating to approximately 16 million tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE). Reserves are 172 million tonnes at 1.9% Li₂O, representing approximately 8.1 million tonnes LCE. Annual spodumene concentrate capacity has reached 2.14 million tonnes per year following commissioning of Chemical Grade Plant 3 (CGP3) — the fourth beneficiation plant at the site. Greenbushes accounts for approximately 18.9% of global hard-rock lithium production.
The Kwinana lithium hydroxide refinery in Western Australia, a joint venture with Albemarle and IGO, processes Greenbushes spodumene concentrate into battery-grade lithium hydroxide monohydrate (LiOH·H₂O). Nameplate capacity is 50,000 tonnes per year. Greenbushes product sells into both Chinese and international battery supply chains.
The fact that the world’s largest hard-rock lithium mine operates under Chinese majority ownership is a live concern for Western supply chain strategists. Australia has applied national security conditions to mining investments, but Greenbushes has not been subject to forced divestment proceedings. The asset remains a central data point in Western critical minerals policy discussions. See CMN’s coverage of the world’s top lithium mining companies for broader context on the global hard-rock lithium landscape.
SQM Stake and Chilean Lithium Exposure
Tianqi acquired its ~23.77% stake in SQM in two tranches: a 2.1% position in 2016 and a further 21.67% in 2018 for a combined consideration of approximately $4.3 billion. SQM operates in the Atacama Desert in Chile, where it holds extraction rights to the world’s largest known lithium brine deposit at the lowest reported production costs in the industry.
The stake is a financial investment rather than an operational one — Tianqi does not control SQM’s production or commercial decisions. SQM dividends and investment income contributed materially to Tianqi’s FY2025 recovery. However, the position has attracted Western policy scrutiny: a Chinese-listed company holding a near-24% equity stake in the largest Chilean lithium producer raises questions about indirect Chinese capital exposure to South American brine supply. The Chilean government’s restructuring of SQM’s Atacama quota arrangement with Codelco proceeded independently of Tianqi’s shareholding.
Chinese Operations and Lithium Chemical Capacity
Tianqi operates lithium chemical manufacturing facilities in Sichuan Province, producing lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide for battery-grade applications. Total lithium chemical production capacity across Chinese operations stands at 121,600 tonnes per year.
The Cuola spodumene mine in Sichuan is in development. It carries lower ore grades than Greenbushes and is unlikely to replicate the cost or quality profile of the Australian operation, but represents a domestic resource base that reduces reliance on the JV structure at Greenbushes.
Tianqi in the Global Lithium Supply Chain
Tianqi’s combination of Greenbushes control and the SQM stake gives the company a supply chain footprint that is structurally difficult to replicate. No other single entity has majority ownership of a tier-one hard-rock deposit and a near-quarter equity stake in a tier-one brine operation simultaneously.
For Western battery manufacturers and OEMs seeking to reduce upstream Chinese ownership concentration, the Greenbushes position is a complicating factor. Spodumene concentrate from Greenbushes flows into both Chinese processing capacity and international converters, including the Kwinana refinery. The practical supply chain exposure is therefore more distributed than the ownership structure alone suggests — but the governance question remains.
For investors tracking the lithium price cycle, Tianqi’s earnings are a direct proxy for lithium market health. The swing from a RMB 7.9 billion loss in 2024 to a RMB 463 million profit in FY2025 reflects the partial price recovery from the 2023–2024 trough, not a structural change in the company’s operating leverage to lithium spot rates.
Risks and Recovery Outlook
Tianqi’s balance sheet remains leveraged to lithium spot prices. The 2024 loss was driven by price-related impairments and writedowns; any renewed price weakness would compress margins at Greenbushes and reduce SQM dividend income simultaneously. The debt load from the SQM acquisition, while restructured, is still a relevant factor in credit analysis.
Chinese regulatory exposure adds a second dimension of risk. Tianqi is subject to MIIT production guidance and NDRC oversight on lithium chemical output — policy interventions that have historically affected domestic pricing and export dynamics. As a private rather than state-owned enterprise, Tianqi has somewhat more commercial flexibility, but is not insulated from Chinese industrial policy.
The JV governance structure at Greenbushes, where Albemarle and IGO hold minority rights, constrains Tianqi’s ability to make unilateral decisions on production volumes, capex, or downstream processing strategy. This is a structural feature of the asset rather than a short-term risk.
Company Snapshot
| Detail | Data |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1992, Chengdu, Sichuan, China |
| Headquarters | Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China |
| Stock listing | SZSE: 002466 (A-shares) / HKEX: 9696 (H-shares) |
| Ownership | Founder-controlled (Jiang Weiping family) — not state-owned |
| Primary minerals | Lithium (spodumene concentrate, lithium hydroxide, lithium carbonate) |
| Key asset 1 | ~51% stake in Talison Lithium / Greenbushes, Western Australia |
| Key asset 2 | ~23.77% equity stake in SQM (NYSE: SQM), Chile |
| FY2025 revenue | RMB 10.35 billion (~$1.43 billion) |
| FY2025 net profit | RMB 463 million (~$64 million) — turnaround from RMB 7.9bn loss in 2024 |
| Lithium chemical capacity | 121,600 t/year (China operations) |
| Spodumene capacity | 2.14 million t/year concentrate (Greenbushes) |
What does Tianqi Lithium produce?
Tianqi Lithium produces spodumene concentrate at the Greenbushes mine in Western Australia and processes lithium chemicals — primarily lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate — at its Sichuan facilities and the Kwinana refinery in Western Australia. Total lithium chemical capacity is 121,600 tonnes per year.
Does Tianqi Lithium own Greenbushes?
Tianqi holds approximately 51% of Talison Lithium, the joint venture that owns and operates the Greenbushes Lithium Project. Albemarle holds approximately 25% and IGO approximately 25%. Greenbushes is the world’s largest hard-rock lithium mine, with spodumene grades exceeding 5.5% Li₂O.
What is Tianqi Lithium’s stake in SQM?
Tianqi holds approximately 23.77% of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile (NYSE: SQM), acquired in two tranches between 2016 and 2018 for a combined ~$4.3 billion. SQM operates in Chile’s Atacama Desert, the world’s largest and lowest-cost lithium brine operation. The stake is a financial investment — Tianqi does not control SQM’s operations.
Is Tianqi Lithium a state-owned company?
No. Tianqi Lithium is a privately held, founder-controlled company. Jiang Weiping and the founding family retain a significant equity position. It is listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange (A-shares) and Hong Kong Stock Exchange (H-shares) but is not a state-owned enterprise. It operates under Chinese industrial policy guidance from MIIT and NDRC, as all domestic lithium producers do.
Why did Tianqi Lithium make a large loss in 2024?
Tianqi reported a net loss attributable to shareholders of RMB 7.905 billion in FY2024, driven primarily by the collapse in global lithium prices from 2023 highs, which triggered significant asset impairments and writedowns across its operations and investment portfolio. The FY2025 recovery to a RMB 463 million profit reflects partial lithium price stabilisation, SQM dividend income, FX gains, and reduced impairment charges — not a fundamental shift in earnings structure.
