- Four vanadium producing countries account for all recorded mine output
- China at 82,000 t, roughly 72% of 2025 supply
- Russia second at 21,000 t, almost all from steel slag
- Brazil now third on Largo’s Maracás Menchen output
- South African output down 38% as producers retrench
- US secondary recovery larger than Brazilian mine output
- Australia with the largest reserves but no operating mine
Vanadium producing countries number just four on the official record. China, Russia, Brazil and South Africa accounted for all estimated 2025 world mine production of 110,000 tonnes of contained vanadium, according to the US Geological Survey, with China alone supplying roughly 72%. Most of that metal ends up in steel, where it is added as ferrovanadium or nitrided alloys to raise strength.
That concentration is why this ranking stops at four mine producers rather than ten. We add the two countries that matter most outside the mine column: the United States, which recovers vanadium from refinery and power-station waste, and Australia, which holds the world’s largest reported reserves but has no operating mine. Current spot quotes and history are tracked on the CMN vanadium price page.
How we ranked the vanadium producing countries
Rankings use estimated 2025 mine production from the USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 vanadium chapter, measured in metric tonnes of contained vanadium. Shares are calculated against the unrounded sum of the four country estimates (113,300 t), because the USGS rounds its world total to 110,000 t. All 2025 figures are estimates and subject to revision.
Companies usually report output as vanadium pentoxide (V2O5) equivalent. To compare company volumes with the country figures, multiply V2O5 tonnage by 0.56, the conversion factor the USGS uses. Secondary production from ash, residues and spent catalysts is reported separately and is not counted in the mine rankings for any of the vanadium producing countries below.
1. China: 82,000 t (about 72%)
China, the largest of the vanadium producing countries, produced an estimated 82,000 t of vanadium in 2025, down from a revised 84,000 t in 2024. The USGS raised its 2024 China figure significantly on the basis of a government report, which is why rankings built on the previous edition still show China at 70,000 t. Most Chinese output is a co-product of vanadiferous titanomagnetite ore processed during steelmaking, with smaller volumes from stone coal.
Two state-linked groups dominate slag extraction: Pangang Group Vanadium Titanium & Resources (SZSE: 000629) in Sichuan and HBIS Chengde in Hebei, part of HBIS Co. (SZSE: 000709). Both have added vanadium electrolyte capacity for the battery market. China’s position across other processed metals is covered in our China critical minerals hub.
Domestic demand is changing shape. Industry association Vanitec estimates energy storage took about 20% of China’s vanadium consumption in 2025 and could pass 30% in 2026 as vanadium redox flow batteries scale up. China holds 5.8 million tonnes of reserves, second only to Australia.
2. Russia: 21,000 t (about 19%)
Russia held second place at an estimated 21,000 t in both 2024 and 2025. Output is dominated by Evraz, which mines titanomagnetite at its Kachkanar complex in the Sverdlovsk region, recovers vanadium slag at the Nizhny Tagil steelworks, and converts it into pentoxide and ferrovanadium at EVRAZ Vanady Tula.
Evraz has been building a second slag-processing plant in the Uzlovaya special economic zone in Tula, designed to handle up to 100,000 t of feedstock a year and produce about 19,000 t of V2O5. Its London listing was suspended in 2022 after the UK sanctioned the group, and Western buyers have since cut exposure: Russia supplied only 6% of US ferrovanadium and pentoxide imports over 2021 to 2024. Russian reserves total 5 million tonnes.
3. Brazil: 5,300 t (about 5%)
Brazil moved into third place in 2025 with an estimated 5,300 t, up from 5,190 t, as South African output fell. Almost all of it comes from one operation: the Maracás Menchen mine in Bahia, run by Largo Inc. (TSX: LGO; NASDAQ: LGO) and among the highest-grade primary vanadium deposits in production.
Largo produced 9,150 t of V2O5 equivalent in 2025, roughly 5,100 t of contained vanadium, and guides 10,500 to 12,000 t of V2O5 for 2026. Second-quarter 2026 output rose 28.5% year on year to 2,900 t, and the company began copper-PGM concentrate production from the same plant in August 2026.
Trade is the main risk. A 50% US tariff on many Brazilian imports, including high-purity vanadium but not ferrovanadium, took effect on 6 August 2025 and caused delays and defaults on Largo’s high-purity contracts, according to the USGS. Brazil supplied 47% of US pentoxide imports over 2021 to 2024, and Largo’s own disclosures list its ability to continue as a going concern among forward-looking risks. The country’s wider mineral base is covered in our Brazil critical minerals guide.
4. South Africa: 5,000 t (about 4%)
South Africa fell from 8,050 t in 2024 to an estimated 5,000 t in 2025, a 38% drop and the steepest decline among the vanadium producing countries. Unlike China and Russia, South African producers mine primary titaniferous magnetite ore from the Bushveld Complex, which puts them towards the high-cost end of supply when prices are weak.
Bushveld Minerals placed its South African operating subsidiaries, including the Vametco mine, into business rescue in November 2024, citing sustained losses and failed funding efforts. Glencore (LSE: GLEN) included its Rhovan operation near Brits in a Section 189 retrenchment process that began on 1 September 2025, while telling employees the complex would keep operating with a different product mix. South Africa still supplied 43% of US pentoxide imports over 2021 to 2024, and our Africa critical minerals hub covers the regional picture.
Two more vanadium producing countries to watch
5. United States: 7,500 t of secondary output
The US has had no primary vanadium mining since uraniferous sandstone production in Utah stopped in early 2020. It still recovered an estimated 7,500 t of vanadium in 2025 from petroleum residues, spent catalysts and utility ash processed in Arkansas, Delaware, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas. On a contained-metal basis, that is more than Brazil or South Africa mined.
Secondary output has more than doubled since 2021, and net import reliance fell from 61% of apparent consumption to 41% over the same period. The federal policy push behind domestic supply is covered in our USA critical minerals overview. US reserves are small at 50,000 t.
6. Australia: largest reserves, no mine output
Australia reported no vanadium mine production in 2025 but holds 10 million tonnes of reserves, close to half the world total of 21 million tonnes. The USGS puts JORC-compliant or equivalent reserves at a smaller 2.3 million tonnes. Vanadium appears on Australia’s Critical Minerals List, which makes projects eligible for federal support programmes.
Australian Vanadium (ASX: AVL), which absorbed Technology Metals Australia, is targeting an optimised feasibility study for its Western Australian project in the second half of 2026 and already operates a vanadium electrolyte plant in the state. None of the listed Australian developers has announced a final investment decision. Our Australia critical minerals hub tracks the wider project pipeline.
Vanadium production by country: summary tables
The first table ranks the four vanadium producing countries with recorded mine output. The second covers the two non-mining countries included above.
| Rank | Country | 2024 mine output (t V) | 2025e mine output (t V) | Share of 2025e | Reserves (kt V) | Main feedstock | Leading producers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | China | 84,000 (est.) | 82,000 | 72.4% | 5,800 | Steelmaking slag from titanomagnetite, stone coal | Pangang Vanadium Titanium, HBIS Chengde |
| 2 | Russia | 21,000 (est.) | 21,000 | 18.5% | 5,000 | Steelmaking slag from titanomagnetite | Evraz |
| 3 | Brazil | 5,190 | 5,300 | 4.7% | 94 | Primary titanomagnetite ore | Largo Inc. |
| 4 | South Africa | 8,050 | 5,000 | 4.4% | 520 | Primary titaniferous magnetite ore | Glencore (Rhovan), Bushveld Minerals (in business rescue) |
| Country | 2025e mine output | Other 2025e supply | Reserves (kt V) | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | None | 7,500 t from ash, residues and spent catalysts | 50 | Secondary producer, 41% net import reliance |
| Australia | None | None | 10,000 (2,300 JORC) | Pre-production, feasibility stage |
The outlook for vanadium producing countries in 2026
The top two places are not at risk: China produces roughly four times as much as Russia, which produces about four times as much as Brazil. The movement is lower down, where Largo’s guidance implies Brazilian output of about 5,900 to 6,700 t of contained vanadium in 2026, while any South African recovery depends on the Bushveld rescue process and Rhovan’s future product mix.
Prices remain the constraint on new supply. The USGS puts the 2025 average Chinese V2O5 price at $5.02/lb, against $9.29/lb in 2022, a level that has already pushed South African primary producers into restructuring. Some high-strength steels can substitute niobium for vanadium (see our niobium explainer), which limits how far steel demand can carry prices higher.
Flow batteries are the variable to track. If energy storage keeps taking a larger share of Chinese consumption, less Chinese material is likely to reach export markets. That would shift the balance among vanadium producing countries and raise the strategic value of Brazilian output, US secondary recovery and the first Australian mine to reach a final investment decision.
Which country produces the most vanadium?
China is the largest vanadium producer by a wide margin. It supplies roughly three-quarters of global mine output, mostly as a co-product of steelmaking from vanadium-bearing titanomagnetite ore. See the production table above for the latest USGS estimates.
How many countries mine vanadium?
Only four countries report vanadium mine production to the USGS: China, Russia, Brazil and South Africa. Other countries, including the United States, produce vanadium from secondary sources such as refinery residues and spent catalysts rather than from mines.
Why does the United States have no vanadium mines?
US primary production came from uraniferous sandstones on the Colorado Plateau in Utah, which stopped in early 2020. The US now recovers vanadium from petroleum residues, spent catalysts and utility ash, and imports the rest, largely from Brazil, South Africa and Canada.
Which company produces Brazil’s vanadium?
Almost all of Brazil’s vanadium comes from Largo Inc.’s Maracás Menchen mine in Bahia state, one of the few primary vanadium mines in the world. Largo reports output in vanadium pentoxide equivalent. Multiply by 0.56 to convert to contained vanadium.
What could change the ranking of vanadium producing countries?
The main variables are a restart or sale of South Africa’s distressed operations, Largo’s output growth in Brazil, a first Australian mine reaching production, and how much Chinese material is absorbed by domestic flow battery demand rather than exported.
