Review of global lithium landscape: deposits, extraction technologies, environmental and economic considerations, and the prospects in Saudi Arabia

Lithium plays a critical role in electrification because it provides high-performance rechargeable batteries used in electric vehicles, grid storage, and portable electronics. Although Li resources are widespread, supply is less limited by crustal abundance than by the ability to convert diverse ores and brines into products that meet purity, cost, environmental, and permitting requirements. This review synthesizes global evidence on Li deposits, extraction technologies, and environmental and economic aspects. Pegmatites, brines, and clay-hosted deposits are compared in terms of mineralogy, geochemistry, impurity behavior, and process suitability. Conventional hard-rock leaching and brine solar evaporation remain the most proven routes, but they often require high energy input, long residence times, large land footprints, substantial water demand, and significant waste management. Direct lithium extraction (DLE) methods offer shorter residence times and potentially smaller footprints, but their performance depends on brine chemistry, fouling control, reagent and water cycles, sorbent or membrane durability, product purity, and field-scale validation. For Saudi Arabia, our review reveals evidence of Li‑enriched granites and pegmatites across the Arabian Shield, together with prospective low- to moderate-grade brines in Red Sea rift settings, geothermal waters, oilfield produced water, and desalination concentrates. These occurrences must be interpreted as targets for systematic exploration and pilot testing, not as validated reserves. The priority is to integrate geological screening with process-oriented sampling, representative DLE pilots, local refining capability, and strict water- and waste-minimization strategies appropriate to arid conditions.