Barite: Criticality

Why a common mineral lands on critical lists

What this tab covers How exposed economies are to a supply disruption: the EU, US and India listings, the concentration score, and a quantified exposure for the US, EU, India, China, Japan, Latin America, the Middle East and Australia. Where the EU scored it, a chart of supply risk against economic importance, with import reliance, recycling input and substitutes.

Exposure by region

Region	Exposure	Share of world output	Share of world imports	Share of world exports	Net trade (US$)	On own critical list	Position
US	High	4.1%	28.1%	1.8%	−$227.5 m	Yes	Mines in Nevada but was more than 75% import reliant in 2025, buying from India (39%), China (21%), Morocco (19%) and Mexico (14%), and lists barite as critical (USGS 2026).
EU	High	1.1%	14.6%	11.9%	−$44.5 m	Yes	Imports 74% at extraction, has 0% end-of-life recycling and lists baryte as critical (EU CRM 2023).
India	Low	19.2%	0.8%	22.6%	+$144.3 m	No	Largest producer (3.0 Mt in 2025) and exporter (22.6% of 2024 export value), but Mangampet reserves fell from 49 Mt to under 23 Mt between 2015 and 2024 (USGS; Comtrade; C-DEP).
China	Low	22.4%	0.5%	21.5%	+$139.9 m	No	Produces 2.2 Mt with the largest reserves (120 Mt) and supplied 21.5% of 2024 export value despite export restrictions since 2016 (USGS; Comtrade).
Japan	High	0.0%	1.0%	0.0%	−$8.40 m	Yes	Has no barite production listed by USGS (2026) and relies on imports.
Latin America	Medium	8.3%	10.8%	4.8%	−$60.0 m	no list	Mexico mined 300 kt in 2025 (14% of 2021-24 US imports), while Argentina (5.8% of world import value) imports for oil and gas drilling (USGS; Comtrade).
Middle East	High	4.5%	22.4%	1.1%	−$183.0 m	no list	Iran mines 300 kt with 100 Mt reserves and Saudi Arabia is the second-largest importer (16.2% of 2024 value) for its drilling programme (USGS; Comtrade).
Australia	Low	0.0%	0.7%	0.0%	−$5.74 m	No	Has no barite production listed by USGS (2026) and relies on imports.

Exposure rating: High when the region is a net importer whose import share is at least three times its share of world output (or, for farm goods, it produces under 70% of what it consumes); Medium for other net importers (or 70-95% self-sufficiency), raised to High when world supply is highly concentrated in another country; Low for net exporters or self-sufficient regions. Net importer status uses tonnage where reported, otherwise value. Output: World Mining Data, 2024. Trade: UN Comtrade 2024 (EU = sum of member states, including intra-EU trade). Critical lists: US 2025, EU 2024/1252, India 2023, China 2016 strategic minerals, Japan METI, Australia 2024.

Barite is on the US 2025 and EU critical lists, but not India's 2023 list. The EU rates economic importance at 3.5 and imports 74% at extraction, with 0% end-of-life recycling. The United States has been more than 75% import reliant. The risk is dependence on a few exporters for a mineral without large-scale substitutes in drilling fluids. Calcium carbonate, hematite, ilmenite and manganese tetroxide serve only in specific cases.

EU 2023 Critical US 2025 list Yes India 2023 list No Production HHI 1,360 unconcentrated

EU 2023 assessment

Chart: EU 2023 criticality: supply risk against economic importance

Each dot is a material assessed by the EU in 2023. The shaded corner is the critical zone (supply risk ≥ 1.0, economic importance ≥ 2.8). Barite: supply risk 1.3, economic importance 3.5. EU import reliance, extraction 74% EU recycling input rate 0%

Substitutes

No large-scale alternative in drilling fluids; calcium carbonate, hematite, ilmenite and manganese tetroxide in specific cases