China is expanding its use of marine resources, moving beyond the traditional extraction of salt from seawater to the emerging extraction of metals like lithium and uranium. This evolution signifies a strategic upgrade from seeking "water from the sea" to pursuing "minerals from the sea."
On World Oceans Day, June 8th, the Ministry of Natural Resources released a report detailing the nation's progress in seawater utilization. The report highlights that China's seawater desalination and comprehensive utilization industry, recognized as a strategic emerging sector, is experiencing robust growth. Significant advancements have been made in large-scale project implementation, breakthroughs in core technologies, industry chain development, and the establishment of policy and standard frameworks.
The report further notes that research institutions, universities, and enterprises are actively engaged in studies to extract trace elements such as lithium, uranium, and deuterium from seawater. Breakthroughs have been achieved in fundamental theoretical research and key technological development. Notably, in 2025, China successfully extracted uranium products on a kilogram scale in real marine environments.
Industry estimates suggest the total uranium reserves in seawater are approximately 4.5 billion tons, over a thousand times greater than terrestrial uranium deposits, earning it the moniker "blue uranium reservoir." The economically efficient development of this seawater uranium resource holds profound long-term significance. This progress marks China's accelerated transition in seawater resource utilization from a singular focus on "freshwater supply" to a dual-driven strategy encompassing both "freshwater and strategic resources."
Xiang Wenxi, Director of the Tianjin Institute of Seawater Desalination and Multipurpose Use under the Ministry of Natural Resources, stated that China currently operates 167 seawater desalination projects with a total daily capacity of 3.077 million tons. Annual seawater cooling water usage has reached 193.36 billion tons, an 86.4% increase from 2020. This "blue spring" has effectively secured water supplies for major coastal industries such as thermal power, nuclear power, and steel, as well as for residents in water-scarce island regions.
He emphasized that seawater desalination, with its stable supply and flexible scalability, is a crucial pathway to addressing the global water crisis, making "seeking water from the sea" a global consensus. Beyond being a vital "water tap," desalination also represents a "liquid mine" of strategic resources. Regions including Tianjin, Hebei, and Shandong are actively promoting the comprehensive utilization of concentrated brine from large-scale desalination projects. Large-scale projects for extracting potassium and bromine from seawater are steadily advancing, while technologies for extracting strategic elements like lithium and deuterium are being continuously developed. Tianjin has initiated an international cooperation project on "Key Technologies for Magnesium Extraction from Seawater/Brine with Saudi Arabia," contributing to the formation of an industrial landscape focused on the efficient, multi-dimensional development of marine resources.
Xiang Wenxi indicated that during the upcoming national development period, efforts will persist in strengthening innovation-driven development. The focus will be on promoting the iterative upgrade of domestic technology and equipment, and bolstering the technological reserves for extracting strategic elements from seawater, aiming to contribute a "Chinese solution" to addressing global shortages of freshwater and strategic resources.
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