Expert explains why $540,000,000,000 'white gold' discovery could change the global economy forever

Experts have explained how the world's economy could forever transform after scientists made an 'eye popping' discovery in a US lake.

A study found some 18 million tons of lithium - worth a staggering $540 billion - could be sat at the bottom of Salton Sea in California.

Known as 'white gold' due to both its value and appearance, it's commonly used to help power our mobile phones, laptops and electric cars, as well as in pacemakers, toys and clocks.

Scientists initially thought the lake contained four million tons of lithium, and that was enough for California Governor Gavin Newson to hail Salton Sea 'the Saudi Arabia of lithium mining.'

Some 18 million tons of lithium are thought to be in Salton Sea (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

But this updated estimate could be a real win for the US economy.

For context, 18 million tons of lithium would be enough to power more than 382 million electric vehicle batteries.

Sammy Roth, climate columnist for the Los Angeles Times, said on KJZZ radio's The Show: "This new report out of the federal government [is] really a sort of eye popping number.

"They found that there's potentially enough lithium down there to supply batteries for 382 million electric vehicles, which is more, more vehicles than there are on the road in the United States today.

"So, if we could get all that lithium, that'd be huge."

While Michael McKibben, one of the Salton Lake study's authors and a geochemistry professor at the University of California, explained: "This is one of the largest lithium brine deposits in the world.

Lithium is used to create rechargeable EV batteries (Robert Alexander/Getty Images)

"This could make the United States completely self-sufficient in lithium and stop importing it through China."

This would have a major impact on the economy, as China is currently the second-biggest exporter of electric vehicles, behind Germany.

According to Tendata, China was responsible for 22.7 percent of the world's EV exports, worth a huge $34.1 billion.

The US was further down the table as the sixth-largest, exporting just 4.8 percent, worth $7.26 billion.

However, US EV imports from China increased from $7.2 million to $388.8 million between 2018 to 23, according to the US Trade Commission.

So it could be a pretty big blow to China if the US was no longer importing their EVs.

And the US would then be exporting more of its own EVs too, which would have a knock-on effect on the rest of the big exporters.

As of 2023, China has the largest market share of EVs at 37 percent of all new cars, while Europe is second with 24 percent and the US in third with 9.5 percent.

The US could increase their exports and their market share, making them more money and establishing themselves as EV leaders - something Elon Musk would certainly be celebrating.

And work has already began on Salton Sea's lithium extraction.

In January, construction of the first large-scale direct lithium extraction plant near the lake began, the first of seven planned phases for the $1.85 billion facility, as per ENR California.