Chain

Gallium

Gallium is a byproduct metal: primary low-purity gallium is extracted from the sodium-aluminate liquor of alumina refineries, then refined to high purity and made into MOCVD precursor chemicals and compound-semiconductor crystals and wafers. This chain traces gallium from host process streams to the last gallium-defined products; epitaxy, chip fabrication, and device manufacture are customers.

Facts on this page last re-verified Aug 15, 2026 — the oldest verification date among its current claims. How we verify.

Stage diagram

China accounted for 99% of world primary low-purity gallium production in 2025 (an estimated 900,000 kg world total, with Japan and Russia the only other producers at about 3,000 and 6,000 kg), and the United States has recovered no primary gallium since 1987, standing at 100% net import reliance (USGS MCS 2026, Gallium chapter, pp. 82-83). Byproduct recovery at allied alumina refineries is the binding upstream constraint.

Materials at this stage: Bayer Process Liquor (Gallium-Bearing), Gallium-Bearing New Scrap, Crude (Low-Purity) Gallium

Facility-line flow trace

Facility / line	Location	Stage and derived state	Input → output
Atlantic Alumina Gramercy gallium pilot Continuous gallium recovery pilot	Gramercy, Louisiana United States	Byproduct recovery Announced	Bayer Process Liquor (Gallium-Bearing) → Crude (Low-Purity) Gallium
ElementUS Gramercy demonstration facility Bauxite-residue gallium recovery demonstration	Gramercy, Louisiana United States	Byproduct recovery Announced	Bayer Process Liquor (Gallium-Bearing) → Crude (Low-Purity) Gallium
Found Energy Charleston gallium pilot Direct Bayer Extraction pilot	Charlestown, Massachusetts United States	Byproduct recovery Announced	Bayer Process Liquor (Gallium-Bearing) → Crude (Low-Purity) Gallium
Indium Corporation Clinton gallium recycling pilot Gallium scrap recycling pilot	Clinton, New York United States	Recycling Announced	Gallium-Bearing New Scrap → Crude (Low-Purity) Gallium
Indium Corporation Rome metals operation Gallium pure-metal line	Rome, New York United States	High purity refining Operating	Crude (Low-Purity) Gallium → High-Purity Gallium
Indium Corporation Utica metals operation Gallium pure-metal line	Utica, New York United States	High purity refining Operating	Crude (Low-Purity) Gallium → High-Purity Gallium
Kunin Technologies Chattanooga gallium pilot Gallium-bearing metal-stream recovery pilot	Chattanooga, Tennessee United States	Recycling Announced	Gallium-Bearing New Scrap → Crude (Low-Purity) Gallium
Alcoa Wagerup gallium project Wagerup gallium recovery project	Wagerup, Western Australia Australia	Byproduct recovery Announced	Bayer Process Liquor (Gallium-Bearing) → Crude (Low-Purity) Gallium
Rio Tinto Vaudreuil gallium demonstration Vaudreuil Bayer-liquor gallium demonstration	Saguenay, Quebec Canada	Byproduct recovery Announced	Bayer Process Liquor (Gallium-Bearing) → Crude (Low-Purity) Gallium
Teck Trail Operations strategic-metals lines Trail proposed gallium recovery line	Trail, British Columbia Canada	Byproduct recovery Announced	Polymetallic smelter process stream → Crude (Low-Purity) Gallium
METLEN Agios Nikolaos gallium project Agios Nikolaos gallium production facility	Agios Nikolaos, Central Greece Greece	Byproduct recovery Announced	Bayer Process Liquor (Gallium-Bearing) → Crude (Low-Purity) Gallium
Akita Rare Metals gallium and germanium operation Gallium recycling line	Akita, Akita Japan	Recycling Operating	Gallium-Bearing New Scrap → Crude (Low-Purity) Gallium
Korea Zinc Onsan gallium and germanium projects Onsan gallium recovery line	Onsan, Ulsan South Korea	Byproduct recovery Announced	Polymetallic smelter process stream → Crude (Low-Purity) Gallium

Sources

U.S. Geological Survey · published Feb 1, 2026 · retrieved Aug 15, 2026 · archive unavailable: Wayback capture queued at record creation 2026-08-15; archive verification deferred to a weekly pass