Scandium — Supply structure report
Production and refining by country, the processing chokepoint, export-control status, and which producers can actually sell to a third party rather than consuming their own feed.
At a glance
- Largest producer
- WLD 50%
- USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026
- Top 3 producers
- 89%
- share of world output
- Concentration (HHI)
- 3,578
- highly concentrated
- Producing countries
- 6
- 1 supply half
- Export measures
- 0
- USGS compilation, Jan 2026
- US import reliance
- 100%
- net, 2025 (USGS)
Key findings
What the evidence shows
Scandium Global Supply: China Leading Producer
Global production was estimated to be about 80 metric tons of scandium oxide equivalent in 2025 (USGS MCS 2026, p. 159). China is the leading producer. Scandium is produced mainly from nickel and titanium processing streams and tailings; no specific country production breakdown is reported by USGS.
How concentrated supply is
The Herfindahl-Hirschman index over country shares is 3,578 (highly concentrated). The top three producers hold 89%; 1 country supplies half.
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Create a free accountThe rest is in the full report
5 sections with numbered sources: Supply structure: mine production by country; Processing and refining: where the value and the leverage sit; Merchant availability: which producers can sell to a third party and more.
Full analysis and cited sources
Supply structure: mine production by country
China is the largest producer of scandium, at 62.9 percent of the output recorded across producing countries in 2024. It is followed by Russia at 15.7 percent, Philippines at 9.1 percent and Ukraine at 4.3 percent. The country figures sum to 35 metric tons Sc2O3 equivalent.
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Change grade, recovery and costs to test a flowsheet.
Typical off-spec deductions for deleterious elements (As, Bi, Sb, etc.).
Model cargo financing, letters of credit and landed cost.
Primary overland rail, transshipment port pairs, and ocean freight routing.
What’s in the full report
5 sections · approximately 430 more words
- 01Supply structure: mine production by country
- 02Processing and refining: where the value and the leverage sit
- 03Merchant availability: which producers can sell to a third party
- 04Export controls and trade measures in force
- 05What would have to change for the structure to change
Executive Briefing & Strategic FAQ
Essential empirical supply-chain and geopolitical questions for market participants and intelligence analysts.
Which countries dominate global mining and refining for Scandium?▼
Global Scandium production is characterized by high geographical concentration in both raw extraction and chemical processing, as documented in MiningBridge's empirical supply-chain models.
What are the critical supply chain bottlenecks and geopolitical risks for Scandium?▼
Key geopolitical and operational risks include export licensing constraints, high chemical conversion barriers, and long lead times for developing non-concentrated commercial refining capacity.
What are the primary commercial uses for Scandium, and can it be substituted?▼
Scandium is essential across energy transition, advanced electronics, and defense systems. While direct substitutes exist in select low-performance applications, replacing Scandium in mission-critical hardware incurs significant metallurgical and cost trade-offs.