Latin America Dominates Global Mining Investment Boom
Latin America is catching the eyes of investors worldwide when it comes to mining, as the region has vast critical mineral reserves and low operating costs. The region is home to the “lithium triangle”, as well as vast copper, zinc, and other mineral reserves, making it highly attractive to investors looking to strengthen their supply chains as the global demand for these materials increases.
In the first three quarters of 2025, global mining mergers achieved $30 billion, with 74 percent of this value going into Latin America, according to a recent report from McKinsey & Company and the Future Minerals Forum. McKinsey’s Future Minerals Barometer Report 2025, which tracks supply-chain readiness across Africa, West Asia, Central Asia and Latin America, showed that Latin America is attracting high levels of investment to its mining sector.
McKinsey collaborated with S&P Global Market Intelligence, Global AI, and GlobeScan to develop a barometer that integrates stakeholder sentiment, data, market intelligence, and project-level evidence, creating a single platform to support investor decision-making. The report showed that while around half of the world’s critical mineral reserves are in Africa, West Asia, and central Asia, the lowest level of exploration investment is being dedicated to these regions.
Meanwhile, since 2021, mining agreements in the Latin American region have increased by over 200 percent, as investors move away from higher-risk areas. This has resulted in investment in the African mining sector decreasing by almost 80 percent.
The global demand for critical minerals, which are needed for a wide range of applications, from computers to renewable energy equipment and electric vehicles (EVs), is increasing year on year. A 2025 International Energy Forum (IEF) report suggested that the global demand for critical minerals (copper, nickel, cobalt, lithium, and rare earth elements) could rise from 28 million tonnes in 2021 to nearly 41 million by 2040.
The report suggests that around $5 trillion in cumulative investment will be needed globally by 2035 to meet critical minerals demand. It also states that exploration spending is roughly 40 percent to 50 percent below what is required.
Critical mineral supply chains are feeling the increasing strain of this increasing demand, as mining operations are not expanding fast enough to meet the global demand for several resources. Long permitting timelines, infrastructure gaps, capital intensity, and policy uncertainty can all slow project development. In addition, critical mineral mining is currently concentrated in just a few regions of the world, meaning that the sector has major supply chain risks.
Latin America is home to an area known as the Lithium Triangle, an area that traverses Argentina, Chile, and Bolivia, which is thought to hold 68 percent of the world’s lithium reserves. Brazil, Peru, and Mexico also hold smaller lithium reserves. Lithium is the critical mineral used to produce the lithium-ion batteries that are used in many electronics, battery storage projects, and EVs. As the global demand for these products increases, so too does the demand for lithium.
China has become a major investor in mining in the Lithium Triangle and is the biggest lithium refiner globally, contributing around 70 percent of the world’s supply. Chinese companies invested more than $16 billion in South American lithium projects between 2018 and 2024. Chinese FDI in lithium extraction across the region has quadrupled since 2020, according to data from the China Global Investment Tracker.
In December, the president of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Ilan Goldfajn, said the countries across Latin America are developing their lithium refining and processing capabilities to enhance regional supply chains, rather than exporting critical minerals to Asia for refining.
In 2024, the IBD launched a joint initiative in conjunction with the European Union to increase responsible investment and develop value chains for critical minerals in Latin America and the Caribbean. The EU provided $7.3 million in investment for the project, which is expected to unlock around $140 million in IDB funding for mineral-related projects across the region.
In addition to Latin America being a powerhouse for lithium, copper, and other critical mineral mining, Brazil is home to the world’s second-largest rare earths reserves. However, at present, output is limited due to technical and commercial challenges to production. With the demand for rare earths expected to triple by 2035, and China dominating mining and refining, Brazil could be an attractive location for investment in the coming years.
In January, reports suggested that the United States may be pursuing a rare earths partnership with Brazil to reduce the U.S. reliance on China for critical minerals. Officials from both countries have held preliminary meetings on the matter. “There’s nothing but opportunity here,” one official told Financial Times reporters. “Brazil’s government is open to a deal on critical minerals.”
Investment in critical mineral mining has grown significantly in recent years, a trend which is set to continue as global demand for metals and minerals continues to grow. While investors expand operations in the Lithium Triangle, there is also great promise for Brazil’s rare earths industry, as well as for development in other countries across the region with large reserves of critical minerals.
