Molybdenum Market Size and Share
Market Overview
| Study Period | 2019 - 2030 |
|---|---|
| Market Volume (2025) | 317 Million tons |
| Market Volume (2030) | 389.22 Million tons |
| Growth Rate (2025 - 2030) | 4.19% CAGR |
| Fastest Growing Market | Asia Pacific |
| Largest Market | Asia Pacific |
| Market Concentration | Medium |
Major Players
*Disclaimer: Major Players sorted in no particular order Image © Mordor Intelligence. Reuse requires attribution under CC BY 4.0. |
|
Molybdenum Market Analysis by Mordor Intelligence
The Molybdenum Market size is estimated at 317 million tons in 2025, and is expected to reach 389.22 million tons by 2030, at a CAGR of 4.19% during the forecast period (2025-2030). Steelmaking remained the primary outlet, as high-strength, low-alloy (HSLA) grades spread through construction, automotive, and energy infrastructure. Chemical uses advanced on the back of rising catalyst demand for clean fuels, emissions control, and CO₂ conversion. Geopolitical exposure intensified after China’s February 2025 export-control notice on critical minerals, including molybdenum, a policy shift that threatens to alter trade routes and price formation worldwide. Tight supply risk is prompting steelmakers, oil-and-gas operators, renewable-energy OEMs, and EV power-electronics suppliers to re-evaluate sourcing strategies, expand recycling, and invest in substitute-proof alloy designs.
Key Report Takeaways
- By end product, steel applications captured 71.02% of the molybdenum market share in 2024; chemicals are set to post the highest 4.69% CAGR through 2030.
- By product form, ferromolybdenum led with 39.19% of the molybdenum market size in 2024, while metal powder is projected to grow fastest at 4.76% CAGR to 2030.
- By end-user industry, “other industries” (energy, electronics, medical) held 33.19% revenue of molybdenum market in 2024; aerospace and defense are poised for a 4.72% CAGR through 2030.
- By geography, molybdenum market of Asia-Pacific controlled 54.02% of global volume in 2024 and is expected to remain the quickest-expanding region at 4.81% CAGR to 2030.
Global Molybdenum Market Trends and Insights
Driver Impact Analysis
| Drivers | (~) % Impact on CAGR Forecast | Geographic Relevance | Impact Timeline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rising HSLA-steel use | +1.2% | Asia-Pacific, North America | Medium term (2-4 years) |
| Renewable-energy alloy demand | +0.8% | Europe, North America, China | Long term (≥ 4 years) |
| Deep-water oil and gas exploration | +0.7% | Gulf of Mexico, North Sea, Brazil, West Africa | Medium term (2-4 years) |
| High-temperature EV power electronics | +1.0% | China, Europe, North America | Long term (≥ 4 years) |
| Usage of Molybdenum Powders for Metal 3-D Printing | +0.3% | North America, Europe, Japan | Long term (≥5 yrs) |
| Source: Mordor Intelligence | |||
Surge in High-Strength Low-Alloy Steel Demand
Rapid infrastructure rollouts and the push for lighter yet stronger vehicles have made HSLA steel a central growth lever for the molybdenum market. Adding 0.5–1% Mo boosts yield strength by up to 20%, enhances low-temperature toughness, and reduces susceptibility to sulfide stress corrosion. These mechanical gains allow thinner gauges and longer service life in bridges, tunnels, and high-rise superstructures. Automakers, meanwhile, use HSLA body-in-white parts to shave vehicle mass and raise fuel economy or EV range. New research on (Ti, Mo)C precipitation confirms improved resistance to cracking in sour environments, a property valued by pipeline operators. As governments channel stimulus into transport and renewable grids, HSLA grades are capturing a growing slice of steel output, magnifying baseline demand for molybdenum.
Increasing Renewable-Energy Installations Requiring Mo-Based Alloys
Utility-scale wind and hydropower assets use Mo-containing martensitic steels and superalloys to survive salt spray, cyclic loading, and cavitation. Offshore turbine towers and nacelle internals must tolerate humidity and chloride attack over 25-year lifecycles, a job handled by Mo-alloyed plate and castings. Mohrbacher’s 2024 study showed that thermomechanically processed Mo-bearing steels sustain high strength and fracture toughness even after prolonged exposure to seawater. In power converters, molybdenum heatspreaders match silicon’s thermal expansion, serving as reliable bases for insulated-gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) modules used in wind farm inverters. Government clean-energy targets and record auction volumes for offshore wind impose a structural uplift on this driver.
Intensifying Deep-Water Oil and Gas Drilling Boosting Corrosion-Resistant Mo Alloys
Exploration is shifting toward ultra-deep reservoirs where equipment must function at more than 3,000 m water depth and 200 °C bottom-hole temperature. Nickel superalloys containing 6–10% Mo, such as Alloy 625 and 6Mo stainless, resist pitting and stress corrosion in these sour conditions. Complex concentrated alloys show even higher tolerance to hydrogen embrittlement, extending maintenance intervals and lowering downtime. The molybdenum market benefits directly as operators retrofit subsea trees, umbilicals, and flowlines with Mo-enhanced materials to safeguard output and meet tighter environmental standards.
Adoption of High-Temperature Mo Components for Electric-Vehicle Power Electronics
EV inverters, DC-DC converters, and on-board chargers produce significant heat at ever-higher switching frequencies. Molybdenum’s thermal conductivity of 138 W/m·K and matched coefficient of thermal expansion with semiconductors make it ideal for heat-spreaders and baseplates. As automakers push from 400 V to 800 V architectures, power-module operating temperatures rise, increasing reliance on Mo carriers that maintain flatness and mechanical integrity. This non-ferrous outlet diversifies the molybdenum market beyond alloy steels and aligns it with secular electrification growth.
Restraint Impact Analysis
| Restraints | (~) % Impact on CAGR Forecast | Geographic Relevance | Impact Timeline |
|---|---|---|---|
| High cost and price volatility | −0.9% | Global | Short term (≤ 2 years) |
| Stringent mining regulations | −0.6% | North America, Europe, Chile | Medium term (2-4 years) |
| Substitution by Tungsten and Niobium | -0.3% | Global | Medium term (≈3-4 yrs) |
| Under-developed Recycling Infrastructure | -0.5% | Global, with greater impact in developing regions | Long term (≥5 yrs) |
| Source: Mordor Intelligence | |||
High Cost of Molybdenum
Price volatility disturbs budget cycles, prompts substitution with tungsten or niobium where feasible, and forces smaller buyers to pay risk premiums. Supply tightness linked to Chinese controls compounds the effect, keeping feedstock invoices unpredictable for steel minimills, foundries, and catalyst producers, influencing in the molybdenum market.
Government Regulations Concerning Mining
Enhanced scrutiny of tailings dams, water rights, and CO₂ emissions is expanding permitting timelines. A 2024 study warned that the United States may fall short of the minerals required for an energy-transition build-out unless bureaucracy is streamlined[1]Debra Struhsacker & Sarah Montalbano, “Mission Impossible,” americanexperiment.org . Miners with grandfathered licenses or brownfield expansions gain a cost advantage, while greenfield developers face higher capital hurdles, tempering molybdenum market and its supply growth.
Segment Analysis
By End Product: Steel Dominates While Chemicals Accelerate
Steel retained the lion’s share of the molybdenum market, accounting for 71.02% of global offtake in 2024. High-temperature petroleum, LNG, and chemical plants demand ferritic and austenitic stainless varieties enriched with 2–4% Mo to resist chloride cracking. Linepipe specifications for sour gas routinely call for up to 1% Mo, allowing thinner walls and lower welding costs.
Chemicals, although smaller at present, represent the fastest-growing outlet at a 4.69% CAGR through 2030. Hydrodesulfurization (HDS) catalysts based on Co-Mo/Al₂O₃ remove sulfur from diesel and jet fuel to meet ultra-low sulfur directives, while MoO₃ screws into catalysts that convert CO₂ and renewable feedstock into synthetic fuels. This momentum positions chemicals to chip away share from steel in the latter half of the forecast window, lending depth to the molybdenum market.
Note: Segment shares of all individual segments available upon report purchase
By Product Form: Ferromolybdenum Leads While Metal Powder Innovates
Ferromolybdenum supplied 39.19% of 2024 shipments, cementing its role as the preferred charge in electric-arc and basic-oxygen furnaces. Chinese smelters trimmed December 2024 output when state tenders failed to offset cost spikes, yet imports from South America cushioned the shortfall.
Metal powder, estimated at 4.76% CAGR, is the breakout form as additive manufacturing gains traction for aerospace brackets, rocket components, and heat exchangers. Molymet’s plasma atomization cell produces spherical powder with more than 15 µm deviation, a requirement for laser-powder-bed fusion and binder-jet printers. The molybdenum market is therefore pivoting from bulk tonnage to high-margin, advanced forms that anchor value in digital manufacturing chains.
By End-User Industry: Diverse Needs Drive Specialized Demand
Other end-use clusters, energy generation, electronics, semiconductors, and medical, captured 33.19% of global value in 2024, steering many high-tech applications that favor small lot sizes and tight tolerances. Power electronics for renewable inverters and EV drivetrains lean on molybdenum heat spreaders to mitigate thermal gradients.
Aerospace and defense will rise the fastest at 4.72% CAGR, propelled by fleet renewals, hypersonic-vehicle research and development, and additive-manufactured rocket nozzles. Molybdenum-rhenium alloys withstand more than 1,700 °C and remain ductile, outperforming nickel superalloys in staged-combustion engines. The molybdenum market sees an upswing as Western space launch providers localize supply to de-risk critical components.
Note: Segment shares of all individual segments available upon report purchase
Geography Analysis
Asia-Pacific held 54.02% of global throughput in 2024 as China, Japan, South Korea, and India escalated steel output, vehicle assembly, and advanced-electronics fabrication. The region’s 4.81% CAGR stems from Belt-and-Road infrastructure, energy pipelines, and shipbuilding. Beijing’s February 2025 export-license regime for molybdenum puts downstream buyers on allocation watch and accelerates inventory build-ups.
North America is leveraging resource endowment in the United States, which mined 33,000 tons in 2024[2]U.S. Geological Survey, “Molybdenum,” usgs.gov. A March 2025 executive order now seeks to fast-track mining permits, potentially lifting North American self-reliance. Europe, though supply-short, retains robust demand driven by German and Italian stainless mills and EV-component plants.
The European Commission’s recycled-steel quotas propose that 25% of steel in new cars originate from scrap by 2030, stimulating molybdenum recovery from automotive shredders. Middle-East refiners import Mo for hydro-treating catalysts, while African copper porphyry projects contribute by-product molybdenum that feeds spot cargoes into Europe and Asia.
Competitive Landscape
The molybdenum market is moderately fragmented. Strategic focus is shifting toward downstream semi-products. Molymet’s plasma atomizer gives the firm a first-mover advantage in medical and electronics powders, an area forecast to grow 6% annually. Supply-security partnerships are rising. Major miners hedge volatility via long-term mezzanine financing tied to renewable-energy OEMs aiming to lock in alloy feedstock. These tactics widen entry barriers and preserve pricing power within the molybdenum market.
Molybdenum Industry Leaders
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Antofagasta plc
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China Molybdenum Co. Ltd.
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Codelco
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Freeport-McMoRan
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GRUPO MÉXICO
- *Disclaimer: Major Players sorted in no particular order
Recent Industry Developments
- July 2025: Air Liquide enhanced its advanced materials leadership by opening a molybdenum manufacturing plant in South Korea to support next-generation semiconductors.
- September 2024: Molymet invested in plasma atomization technology aimed at enhancing the production of rhenium and molybdenum powders.
Global Molybdenum Market Report Scope
Molybdenum is a silver-gray metal typically mined as a by-product of copper and tungsten extraction. Molybdenum improves strength, hardenability, weldability, toughness, increased temperature strength, and corrosion resistance when added to steel and cast irons. The Molybdenum Market is segmented by end product, end-user industry, and geography. By end product, the market is segmented into steel, chemical, foundry, MO-metal, nickel alloy, and other end products. As per the end-user industry, the market is segmented into oil and gas, chemical and petrochemical, automotive, industrial usage, building and construction, aerospace and defense, and other end-user industries. The report also provides insight into the production analysis in various countries worldwide. The report also covers the consumption market size and forecasts for the market in 12 countries across major regions. For each segment, market sizing and forecasts have been done based on volume (kilotons).
| Steel |
| Chemical |
| Foundry |
| Molybdenum Metal |
| Nickel Alloys |
| Molybdenum Concentrates |
| Roasted Molybdenum (Technical Oxide) |
| Ferromolybdenum |
| Molybdenum Metal Powder |
| Molybdenum Chemicals |
| Oil and Gas |
| Chemical and Petrochemical |
| Automotive |
| Industrial |
| Building and Construction |
| Aerospace and Defense |
| Other Industries (Energy Generation and Storage Electronics and Semiconductors, etc.) |
| China |
| United States |
| Chile |
| Peru |
| Mexico |
| Armenia |
| Other Producer Countries |
| Asia-Pacific | China |
| India | |
| Japan | |
| South Korea | |
| Rest of Asia-Pacific | |
| North America | United States |
| Canada | |
| Mexico | |
| Europe | Germany |
| United Kingdom | |
| Italy | |
| France | |
| Russia | |
| Rest of Europe | |
| Rest of the World | South America |
| Middle-East and Africa |
| By End Product | Steel | |
| Chemical | ||
| Foundry | ||
| Molybdenum Metal | ||
| Nickel Alloys | ||
| By Product Form | Molybdenum Concentrates | |
| Roasted Molybdenum (Technical Oxide) | ||
| Ferromolybdenum | ||
| Molybdenum Metal Powder | ||
| Molybdenum Chemicals | ||
| By End-user Industry | Oil and Gas | |
| Chemical and Petrochemical | ||
| Automotive | ||
| Industrial | ||
| Building and Construction | ||
| Aerospace and Defense | ||
| Other Industries (Energy Generation and Storage Electronics and Semiconductors, etc.) | ||
| By Geography (Production Analysis) | China | |
| United States | ||
| Chile | ||
| Peru | ||
| Mexico | ||
| Armenia | ||
| Other Producer Countries | ||
| By Geography (Consumption Analysis) | Asia-Pacific | China |
| India | ||
| Japan | ||
| South Korea | ||
| Rest of Asia-Pacific | ||
| North America | United States | |
| Canada | ||
| Mexico | ||
| Europe | Germany | |
| United Kingdom | ||
| Italy | ||
| France | ||
| Russia | ||
| Rest of Europe | ||
| Rest of the World | South America | |
| Middle-East and Africa | ||
Key Questions Answered in the Report
What drives long-term growth in the molybdenum market?
Growing use in HSLA steels, renewable-energy alloys and high-temperature components for electric vehicles underpins demand.
Why is molybdenum critical in offshore wind projects?
Molybdenum improves pitting and crevice-corrosion resistance, extending the service life of towers and fasteners in harsh marine environments.
Which product form accounts for the largest molybdenum market share?
Ferromolybdenum dominates because it integrates efficiently into large-scale steelmaking processes.
How do price fluctuations affect molybdenum consumers?
Volatile prices can prompt temporary reductions in alloying levels and encourage exploration of substitutes, though performance requirements often limit switching.
What role does recycling play in the molybdenum industry?
Recycling spent catalysts and alloy scrap can supplement primary supply, lower carbon footprints and enhance supply security.
What is the current volume of the global molybdenum market and its expected growth to 2030?
The acetaldehyde market size was 317 million tons in 2025 and is forecast to reach 389.22 million tons by 2030 at a 4.19% CAGR.
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