Si14Critical-Minerals.si
    All minerals
    56
    Ba
    Barite
    AdequateIndustrial minerals & gasesMinimal

    Barite

    A dense mineral used mainly to weight oil-and-gas drilling fluids, and in medical imaging.

    Supply risk index
    27
    / 100
    Top producer
    India
    34%
    China share
    25%
    US import reliance
    >75%
    World output 2025
    8.7M t
    +9% y/y
    On national lists
    2 / 10
    Why it matters for AI infrastructure
    Minimal — No meaningful direct role in AI infrastructure

    Minimal direct role.

    Adequate
    Diversified, well-supplied market

    Where it's produced

    Share of 2025 world mine production (thousand metric tons). Source: USGS MCS 2026.

    Share of world output
    India
    34%
    China
    25%
    Morocco
    11%
    Kazakhstan
    8.0%
    Iran
    3.4%
    Mexico
    3.4%
    Laos
    3.0%
    Turkey
    3.0%

    Who calls it critical

    Membership on each government list. “Strategic” marks a higher tier where the list has one; “group” means included as part of a group such as rare earths or PGMs.

    US
    United States
    U.S. Geological Survey (Dept. of the Interior) · 2025
    critical    EU
    European Union
    European Commission — Critical Raw Materials Act (Reg. 2024/1252) · 2024
    critical
    DOE
    United States (DOE)
    Not listed
    GB
    United Kingdom
    Not listed
    CN
    China
    Not listed
    JP
    Japan
    Not listed
    KR
    South Korea
    Not listed
    IN
    India
    Not listed
    AU
    Australia
    Not listed
    CA
    Canada
    Not listed

    Barite: key questions

    Where is barite mined or produced?
    According to USGS 2025 data, the largest producers are India (34%), China (25%) and Morocco (11%) of world mine production. China accounts for about 25%.
    Is barite a critical mineral?
    Barite appears on 2 of the 10 official lists we track (United States, European Union).
    Is barite in short supply?
    Our supply status: Adequate. null
    Why does barite matter for AI infrastructure?
    Minimal direct role.

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