Conclusion

North America currently only has the small Silver Peak Mine run by Albemarle (ALB) in Nevada, USA and no other significant lithium production; however, this looks set to change dramatically in the next 5 years as demand for lithium from U.S battery gigafactories is likely to surge.

USA has limited quality junior options, especially when considering the lower grades in the Clayton Valley and nearby projects. Canada has a few advanced lithium juniors with good spodumene resources.

My top 5 picks for North American lithium miners are all juniors with a good chance to be producers before 2025, and some in 2023/24. Two are from the USA (Lithium Americas Thacker Pass clay Project and Piedmont Lithium's Carolina Lithium spodumene Project). From Canada I chose three quality spodumene projects from three companies (Critical Elements Lithium, Frontier Lithium and Sayona Mining).

Risks in North American projects often revolve around the difficulty of getting permitted, so this needs to be considered. Hopefully the USA under Biden will accelerate and simplify the permitting process. Please read the risks section.

Overall, I think it makes good sense to own some North American lithium juniors as the region is the third highest market for EVs and has about 15+ new battery factories on the way this decade...

https://seekingalpha.com/article/4494366-top-5-north-american-lithium-miners-to-consider