China is the leading producer of scandium, a metal with no dedicated mines. What it is, why aerospace wants it, and how small the market is.
Last updated: October 2026
Scandium is a light, silvery metal and one of the 17 rare-earth elements, produced exclusively as a byproduct: from nickel and titanium process streams and from previously processed tailings. It is widely dispersed in the lithosphere and rarely occurs in high concentrations. China is the leading producer, and global production was only about 80 tonnes of scandium oxide in 2025.
| # | Country | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | China | Leading producer |
| 2 | Philippines | Feedstock - scandium oxalate |
| 3 | Japan | Refining (Philippine feedstock) |
| 4 | Kazakhstan | Historic byproduct producer |
| 5 | Russia | Historic byproduct producer |
| 6 | Ukraine | Historic byproduct producer |
| 7 | Australia | Projects under development |
Global scandium oxide production was about 80 tonnes in 2025, against capacity of over 90 tonnes per year (USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026). The Philippines' Taganito nickel plant recovers scandium oxalate, which is refined into scandium oxide in Japan.
Scandium is a light, silvery metal and one of the 17 rare-earth elements, produced exclusively as a byproduct: from nickel and titanium process streams and from previously processed tailings and residues. Its crustal abundance is greater than that of lead, but it lacks affinity for the common ore-forming anions, so it is widely dispersed and rarely concentrated.
Aluminium-scandium alloys for aerospace, defence and 3D printing (lighter, stronger, weldable aluminium); solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs); lasers; and high-intensity lighting.
China is the leading producer of scandium (USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026). The USGS does not publish a country share. Scandium materials are also produced in the Philippines and sent to Japan for further processing into scandium oxide.
China is the leading producer; USGS does not publish a country share. Global production was only about 80 tonnes of scandium oxide in 2025, so even a small shift in Chinese output moves the world market.
High. China applied export controls to scandium in April 2025, alongside samarium, gadolinium, terbium, dysprosium, lutetium and yttrium. The market is tiny (about 80 tonnes a year), so a single disruption moves prices sharply. Australia holds about 34,000 tonnes of accessible scandium resources but has no large-scale production yet; its Nyngan project received a mining licence in October 2025.
Scandium is a rare-earth byproduct with no dedicated mines. China is the leading producer. Global production is only about 80 tonnes of scandium oxide a year, and its aluminium alloys are the lightest structural option for aerospace and defence, which makes scandium a tiny but strategic chokepoint.
Scandium is a light, silvery metal and one of the 17 rare-earth elements, produced exclusively as a byproduct: from nickel and titanium process streams and from previously processed tailings and residues. Its crustal abundance is greater than that of lead, but it lacks affinity for the common ore-forming anions, so it is widely dispersed and rarely concentrated.
Aluminium-scandium alloys for aerospace, defence and 3D printing (lighter, stronger, weldable aluminium); solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs); lasers; and high-intensity lighting.
China is the leading producer of scandium (USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026). The USGS does not publish a country share. Scandium materials are also produced in the Philippines and sent to Japan for further processing into scandium oxide.
