Germanium (Ge): Uses, Supply Chain and Market
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Germanium occurs with zinc and lead-zinc-copper sulfide ores and lignite coal, and its main uses are fiber optics, infrared optics, solar cells and radiation detectors. US net import reliance for germanium in 2025 was more than 50%. Germanium is on all four official critical minerals lists: the US, EU, Australian and Canadian.
$4,100/kg
germanium metal, annual average in 2025 (+106% on 2024)
4 of 4
official critical minerals lists (US, EU, Australia, Canada) that include germanium
Which countries produce germanium?
USGS publishes no germanium production table because most producers do not report it. It says germanium was known to have been processed or recycled commercially in the United States, Belgium, Canada, China, Germany and Russia, and that China continued to be the leading global producer and exporter of germanium metal in 2025. Germanium-rich deposits, including tailings sites, in operation or in development are in China, Congo (Kinshasa), Russia and the United States, but reserve data are generally not available.
What is germanium used for?
USGS lists the US end uses in descending order. The value of germanium metal and dioxide imported into the United States in 2025 was an estimated $66 million.
- Fiber optics: germanium dioxide and tetrachloride are consumed making fiber-optic glass for data networking and telecommunication; the largest US end use
- Infrared optics: germanium metal processed into lenses for infrared optical systems for commercial and government markets
- Semiconductors and solar cells: wafers used as substrates for multijunction solar cells in space, and germane gas for semiconductor and solar cell manufacturing
- Radiation detectors: high-purity germanium detectors
How much does germanium cost?
USGS reports the average 2025 price of germanium at $4,100/kg (germanium metal, annual average; +106% on 2024). EarthRarest, our sister business, lists Ge min. 99.999% metal bar at $11,463.85/kg. Full germanium price page.
Is germanium a critical mineral?
Germanium is on all four official critical minerals lists: the US, EU, Australian and Canadian. Each government builds its list with its own method, so a mineral can be critical in one place and not in another.
| Jurisdiction | Status |
|---|---|
| United States | Critical mineral (final 2025 list) |
| European Union | Critical and strategic |
| Australia | Critical minerals list |
| Canada | Critical |
Lists last checked against the primary publications on October 12, 2026. See the comparison of all four lists.
Export controls and trade measures
- China has required export licenses for germanium since 2023 (USGS Table 4).
See the export controls tracker for dates and current status.
What are the substitutes for germanium?
USGS names substitutes for 4 applications of germanium, for example certain electronic applications: silicon or gallium arsenide. Full germanium substitutes page.
Can germanium be recycled?
Much of the germanium machined away when making infrared optics is routinely recycled as new scrap, and lenses and windows in decommissioned military equipment, wastes from optical-fiber manufacture and solar-cell wafers are also recycled. USGS says the information was inadequate to estimate how much secondary germanium is produced.
What are the supply risks and recent events for germanium?
- August 2023. China implemented an export licensing program for germanium.
- December 2024. China banned all germanium exports to the United States.
- 2025. US imports of germanium metal fell an estimated 67% to 7,000 kilograms because of the ban, while germanium dioxide imports rose 55% to 17,000 kilograms. China's reported exports of germanium metal in the first nine months of 2025 were 7,520 kilograms, against 18,787 kilograms in 2024 and 36,656 kilograms in 2023, mostly to Russia (28%), Belgium (26%), Germany (26%) and Japan (18%).
- August 2025. The US Department of Energy announced investment initiatives totaling $1 billion for critical minerals, including funding to refine and alloy germanium for semiconductors and to produce byproducts such as germanium from existing industrial processes.
US import sources, 2021 to 2024. Combined total: Belgium, 41%; China, 23%; Canada, 17%; Germany, 14%; and other, 5%. (USGS)
Resources. Germanium reserve data are not widely reported. The available resources are associated with certain zinc and lead-zinc-copper sulfide ores and lignite coal deposits.
Which germanium projects are on official lists?
| Project | Country | Promoter | Stage | List |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GePETO | Belgium | Umicore | Processing | EU, March 2025 |
| ReGAIN | Belgium | Umicore | Substitution | EU, March 2025 |
| Urban mining (TDM Electronics) | Poland | TDM Electronics Inc. | Recycling | EU, October 2026 |
Source: annexes to Commission Decisions C(2025) 1904, C(2025) 3491 and C(2026) 8051. The Commission calls every listed project ongoing; that is not the same as operating. A project is listed here for each material the annex names for it.
| Project | State | Expected products | List |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue Copper | Montana | Copper, tungsten, gold, zinc, gallium and germanium | Transparency |
| Red Dog Mine Life Extension Project | Alaska | Zinc, lead, silver and germanium | Covered |
Source: Permitting Council, current covered projects and current transparency projects, last updated 2 April 2026.
Which companies produce or process germanium?
| Company | Country | Role | What the source says |
|---|---|---|---|
| Teck Resources | Canada (Trail refinery; Red Dog mine in Alaska) | Germanium refiner at Trail (TSX: TECK.A, TECK.B; NYSE: TECK) | Its website says germanium-bearing concentrates are processed at its integrated lead-zinc refinery in Trail, British Columbia, and lists germanium dioxide, fibre-optic grade germanium tetrachloride and a PET catalyst solution. It calls Teck one of the world's largest integrated germanium producers, which is its own claim. USGS says Teck did not disclose germanium production at Trail. Teck: other metals (indium and germanium) USGS Minerals Yearbook 2023: Germanium (advance release, January 2026) |
| Umicore | Belgium (Olen) and United States (Quapaw, Oklahoma) | Germanium refiner and recycler | USGS says Umicore Optical Materials USA in Quapaw produced mainly germanium tetrachloride for fiber optics, and that Umicore also made germanium compounds, metal, single-crystal germanium and substrates at Olen, most of it from recycled feed. The Department of War announced $11.8 million of Defense Production Act funding to the Quapaw unit on 30 January 2026 for new capability to process materials for critical optical applications, without naming germanium. USGS Minerals Yearbook 2023: Germanium (advance release, January 2026) US Department of War: $11.8 million for domestic processing of critical materials, as posted on manufacturing.gov (20 February 2026) |
| 5N Plus | Canada (germanium wafers in St. George, Utah) | Maker of germanium crystals and substrates for space solar cells (TSX: VNP) | USGS says its facility in St. George, Utah produced single-crystal germanium metal and substrates for multijunction solar cells used in space, from imported germanium materials and recycled scrap, and that the total amount was not available. USGS Minerals Yearbook 2023: Germanium (advance release, January 2026) |
| Korea Zinc | South Korea (Onsan smelter, Ulsan) | Zinc smelter building a germanium line (KOSPI: 010130) | A release of 26 August 2025, issued with a memorandum of understanding with Lockheed Martin, plans about KRW 140 billion for a germanium plant at Onsan making high-purity germanium dioxide equal to about 10 tonnes of germanium metal a year from raw materials sourced outside China, with trial operation in 2027 and production targeted for the first half of 2028. Korea Zinc and Lockheed Martin germanium memorandum (PR Newswire release of 26 August 2025, as syndicated by Technode) |
| Yunnan Chihong Zinc & Germanium | China | Lead, zinc and germanium producer (SSE: 600497) | Its 2025 annual report, in Chinese, gives 54.69 tonnes of germanium contained in germanium products for January to October 2025 (65.12 tonnes in 2024), because its germanium subsidiary stopped being consolidated from November 2025, and germanium resources held of 621 tonnes. It put that subsidiary and cash into a newly formed company to build a rare metals chain. Yunnan Chihong Zinc & Germanium: 2025 annual report, in Chinese (27 March 2026) |
Each row links to the document that supports it. The list is not exhaustive and is not a ranking.
Frequently asked questions
What is germanium used for?
Germanium is used in fiber optics, infrared optics and semiconductors and solar cells. Fiber optics: germanium dioxide and tetrachloride are consumed making fiber-optic glass for data networking and telecommunication; the largest US end use.
Where is germanium produced?
USGS publishes no germanium production table because most producers do not report it. It says germanium was known to have been processed or recycled commercially in the United States, Belgium, Canada, China, Germany and Russia, and that China continued to be the leading global producer and exporter of germanium metal in 2025.
Is germanium a critical mineral?
Yes. Germanium is on all four official critical minerals lists: the US, EU, Australian and Canadian. Germanium was already on the 2022 US list and stays on the final 2025 list of 60 minerals. US net import reliance for germanium in 2025 was more than 50%.
How much does germanium cost?
USGS reports the average 2025 price of germanium at $4,100/kg (germanium metal, annual average; +106% on 2024). EarthRarest, our sister business, lists Ge min. 99.999% metal bar at $11,463.85/kg (2 kg metal bar), read on October 14, 2026; a dealer list price covers one grade and pack size and is not a market benchmark.
Sources
Read on October 14, 2026. Figures on this page come from these documents; where a number is an estimate, the source says so.
- USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Germanium. Production, reserves, uses, substitutes, recycling and events
- USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: introduction (Table 7 and Figures 10A and 10B). Net import reliance, leading producer and price changes for critical minerals
- USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: introduction (Table 4, export controls by country)
- Federal Register: Final 2025 List of Critical Minerals
- EUR-Lex: Regulation (EU) 2024/1252
- Department of Industry, Science and Resources: Australia’s Critical Minerals List and Strategic Materials List
- Government of Canada: Canada’s critical minerals
- EarthRarest price list. Dealer list price, read October 14, 2026; our sister business
- Permitting Council: current FAST-41 projects
- Teck: other metals (indium and germanium)
- USGS Minerals Yearbook 2023: Germanium (advance release, January 2026)
- US Department of War: $11.8 million for domestic processing of critical materials, as posted on manufacturing.gov (20 February 2026)
- Korea Zinc and Lockheed Martin germanium memorandum (PR Newswire release of 26 August 2025, as syndicated by Technode)
- Yunnan Chihong Zinc & Germanium: 2025 annual report, in Chinese (27 March 2026)
Related topics
Germanium price
The price page for germanium.
Germanium substitutes
The substitutes page for germanium.
Critical Minerals Lists Compared
The US, EU, Australian and Canadian lists side by side.
Export Controls and Restrictions
China, Indonesia, DR Congo and other measures with dates.
Gallium
Profile of gallium.
Indium
Profile of indium.
