SANTIAGO (Reuters) – Chile wants to bring three or four new lithium projects online by 2026, Finance Minister Mario Marcel said on Saturday.
The South American country – the world’s largest producer and second-largest producer of lithium – last year initiated a policy to increase government control over the strategic metal needed in electric vehicle batteries.
Marcel made the announcement after meeting with US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who was touring the country.
Yellen visited US lithium producer on Saturday Albemarle (NYSE:) in northern Chile, saying expanding U.S.-Chilean ties will benefit both countries, improve energy security and help achieve key climate goals.
Chile currently has only two lithium producers – Albemarle and SQM – and investors are still waiting for President Gabriel Boric’s left-wing government to define its national lithium strategy as it seeks public-private partnerships to develop its lithium salt deposits.
Earlier this week, Chile’s mining minister said the government hoped to finalize lithium exploration tenders for private companies in the first quarter of this year.
Chilean state-owned copper mining company Codelco has been chosen to represent the Chilean state in a new public-private model of lithium mining as Borich seeks to expand the long-stalled industry.