Limited tungsten mine pipeline as China dominates supplies
Tungsten supply is one of the most concentrated critical mineral markets in the world with global mine of tungsten production was about 85,000 tonnes in 2025. China produced 69,000 tonnes, or 79% of global supply.
However, the latest research by Canaccord suggests a limited pipeline of new projects with a market in deficit until 2030.
Why are tungsten prices rising so sharply?
“Our research suggests a limited new project pipeline, and with our forecast 47% demand growth to 2035, we expect the tungsten market to remain in structural deficit” — Canaccord Genuity.
Global tungsten reserves are also concentrated, estimated at more than 4.7Mt, with China holding about 2.5Mt, or 53%, while Australia holds about 570,000 tonnes, or 12%, despite producing only about 1% of global supply.
The same imbalance appears downstream. China controls 80–85% of tungsten mining and beneficiation, 70–85% of APT refining, 70–85% of powder metallurgy and 60–75% of fabrication and alloys, according to Canaccord.
This is why the tungsten market narrative now looks similar to rare earths, gallium, germanium and antimony: the mine and processing supply is concentrated in one increasingly insecure chokepoint.
From 2021-2024, US imports of tungsten ores, concentrates, and other forms were from:
- China, 26%
- Germany, 14%
- Bolivia, 8%
- Vietnam, 8%
- and other, 44%
In total, countries classified as “politically unstable” and “extremely unstable” account for 96% of global supply.
