The lithium deposit highlighted in this claim is beneath the McDermitt Caldera, which straddles Nevada and Oregon. It is a major lithium resource, but the available sources do not establish that it is definitively the world’s largest or that it is worth €413 billion. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) describes it as the largest single lithium resource in the United States, at approximately 2 million metric tons—a resource estimate, not a reserve or a market valuation.
Where is the lithium deposit?
The McDermitt Caldera is a broad volcanic depression on the Nevada–Oregon border. Lithium-bearing clay sediments occur within the caldera, including around Thacker Pass, also known as Kings Valley. The USGS calls the caldera an early feature in the Yellowstone hotspot track. It formed about 16.4 million years ago.
“Supervolcano” describes the large volcanic system associated with the caldera; it does not mean that an eruption is imminent. The lithium story concerns ancient volcanic activity and the sediments it left behind.
How did lithium become concentrated there?
The proposed explanation links volcanic material, fluids, water and a former lake basin. Lithium-bearing volcanic rocks and magmatic or hydrothermal fluids supplied lithium. Water moving through the caldera system mobilized it, and conditions in a closed basin helped concentrate it in altered sediments and clay minerals.
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A 2023 peer-reviewed study examines lithium-rich, illite-bearing claystones at Thacker Pass and discusses the potentially large lithium inventory in McDermitt sediments. That geological inventory is not, by itself, a measure of what a mine could economically extract.
How much lithium is estimated to be there?
The figures reported for McDermitt refer to different kinds of estimates and should not be treated as interchangeable.
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| Figure | What it describes | What it does not establish |
|---|---|---|
| Approximately 2 million metric tons | USGS’s characterization of the McDermitt caldera clay resource as the largest single lithium resource in the United States; the USGS page was accessed in 2026. | It is not automatically an economically recoverable reserve, planned production, or a valuation. USGS: Lithium from Source to Sink |
| 25–150 million metric tons | A 2025 study’s model estimate of lithium potentially present in magmatic fluid from 100 cubic kilometers of resurgent magma, as summarized by USGS. | This is modeled geological output, not measured mineable lithium or a reserve estimate. USGS publication record: Lithium from magma to mine |
The much larger modeled figure concerns potential lithium in magmatic fluid under a specified geological scenario. It should not be substituted for USGS’s approximately 2-million-metric-ton resource estimate: the two figures describe different quantities and have different evidentiary status.
Is it the world’s largest lithium deposit?
The sources support calling McDermitt exceptionally large and among the world’s largest, but the evidence cited here does not establish an unqualified number-one global ranking. Nature’s 30 April 2025 research highlight describes the site as “one of the world’s largest deposits of lithium,” not the single largest.
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A reliable global ranking would require like-for-like comparisons: the same reporting category, units, estimation methods and cutoff dates. Figures for elemental lithium cannot be directly compared with lithium carbonate equivalent without conversion, and a modeled inventory is not comparable to a reserve estimate. The available sources do not provide a standardized worldwide comparison that resolves those differences.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Is the deposit worth €413 billion?
The cited USGS and peer-reviewed geological sources do not substantiate a €413 billion valuation. That number should be treated as unverified, not as an established value of the deposit.
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A defensible valuation would need to state the lithium price and date used, the conversion basis (elemental lithium or lithium carbonate equivalent), the proportion that could be recovered, and the costs and constraints involved in processing and developing the resource. A resource estimate alone does not answer those questions, so it cannot be turned into a project’s economic value simply by multiplying it by a commodity price.
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What the claim gets right—and what it overstates
- Supported: A major lithium-bearing clay resource lies beneath the McDermitt Caldera on the Nevada–Oregon border, in an ancient volcanic system.
- Supported with a U.S.-only qualification: USGS characterizes it as the largest single lithium resource in the United States, at approximately 2 million metric tons.
- Overstated: The evidence cited here does not prove it is the world’s largest deposit.
- Unverified: The cited sources do not support the €413 billion figure.
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
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