Tellurium: Overview
Why solar panels now swallow most of the world's tellurium
Why solar panels now swallow most of the world's tellurium What this tab covers What the commodity is used for, why, in what volumes and with what alternatives, and its chain from mine or field to end user. Also the latest price moves, top recent news, three things to know, and buttons into each tab.Key uses
| Use | Share | Annual volume | Why this commodity | Alternatives |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cadmium telluride (CdTe) thin-film solar modules | 70% | about 700 t Te a yearbasis | CdTe absorbs sunlight in a film only a few microns thick and is deposited in one fast vapour step, giving low-cost modules that perform well in heat. First Solar, the dominant maker, expected about 14 GW a year of US capacity once its fifth plant ramps up. Each gigawatt needed about 69 t of tellurium at 2011 technology (NREL 2012) and about 91 t in a 2018 industry estimate (Fortis Metals). USGS MCS 2026; NREL (Woodhouse et al. 2012); MMTA/Fortis Metals (2019) | Crystalline silicon modules (most of the market) CIGS thin film Amorphous silicon thin film |
| Bismuth telluride thermoelectric devices for solid-state cooling and power generation | 15% | about 150 t Te a yearbasis | Bismuth telluride is the best room-temperature thermoelectric material: a current through it pumps heat with no moving parts, and a temperature difference across it generates power. It is used for solid-state cooling of electronics and small appliances and for energy generation (USGS 2026). Non-solar uses, mostly thermoelectrics, were about 420 t a year in a 2018 industry estimate. USGS MCS 2026; MMTA/Fortis Metals (2019) | Bismuth selenide Organic polymer thermoelectrics Conventional vapour-compression cooling |
| Metallurgy: free-machining steel, cast iron, lead and copper alloys | 10% | about 100 t Te a yearbasis | Small tellurium additions make steel and copper chip cleanly in machining without hurting conductivity, control chill depth in cast iron, and make lead sheathing resist vibration and fatigue. Volumes are small per tonne of alloy but steady. USGS MCS 2026 | Bismuth, calcium, lead, phosphorus, selenium or sulphur in free-machining steel |
| Other: rubber vulcanising, catalysts for synthetic fibre, blasting caps, glass pigments, infrared detectors | 5% | about 50 t Te a yearbasis | Tellurium speeds rubber curing, catalyses synthetic-fibre chemistry, controls delay in blasting caps, colours glass and ceramics, and is used in photodetectors and thermal-imaging devices (USGS 2026). USGS MCS 2026 | Selenium or sulphur in rubber Non-tellurium catalysts |
From mine to user
- 1. Copper ore mining Tellurium occurs as tellurides of gold, silver, bismuth and other metals in copper ores. About 900 t of copper sulphide ore yields 1 lb of tellurium (NREL 2000, cited in USGS Circular 1365).
- 2. Concentration and smelting Copper concentrate is smelted to blister and cast as anodes; part of the tellurium is lost to slag and dust. Only about 43% of tellurium in blister was estimated recoverable (USGS Circular 1365).
- 3. Electrolytic refining In the refinery tankhouse, copper dissolves from the anode and the insoluble anode slimes collect at the bottom, carrying gold, silver, selenium and tellurium.
- 4. Slime treatment Slimes are pressure-leached or roasted; tellurium is recovered as copper telluride or crude tellurium. Rio Tinto's Kennecott circuit in Utah cost $2.9 million and can recover 20 t/yr (Argus).
- 5. Refining to high purity Specialist refiners such as 5N Plus purify to 99.99%-99.999% metal and make CdTe and other compounds.
- 6. Module and device makers CdTe powder goes to solar makers (First Solar takes most of 5N Plus's output, Argus); metal goes to thermoelectric, steel and chemical users.
- 7. Recycling CdTe modules are recycled in the US, but volumes are small because most panels are young (USGS 2026); the EU end-of-life recycling rate is about 1% (EU CRM 2023).
Price movement snapshot 2026-10-25
No public daily or monthly benchmark price for this commodity in the datasets used.
World production 958 tonnes, 2024 Largest producer China 78.29% of worldThree things to know
- Solar cells took an estimated 70% of global tellurium use in 2025 (USGS).
- More than 90% of tellurium has come from anode slimes left by electrolytic copper refining (USGS).
- European tellurium prices rose 84% in 2025, to about $150/kg, after China tightened export licensing.
Top recent news snapshot 2026-10-25, last 30 days
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