Chilean President Gabriel Boric announced the nationalization of the lithium industry and the creation of an independent state company to produce the metal used to make batteries for electric vehicles.
Future lithium contracts will only be done as state-controlled public-private partnerships, Boric said on the radio, adding that the government will not liquidate contracts with Chilean company SQM and US company Albemarle, but will seek state participation before its expiration.
“It is an opportunity for economic growth that will hardly be repeated in the short term,” he said. “It is the best chance we have to move towards a sustainable and developed economy. We cannot afford to waste it.”
In 2022, lithium became the product that contributed the most to Chile’s GDP after copper derivatives, of which the country has been the world’s leading producer for several decades.
Last year, exports of lithium carbonate grew more than six times, going from 1,233 million dollars in 2021 to 8,930 million dollars, according to data from the Central Bank of Chile.
Chile has the third largest lithium reserves in the world (9.6 million tons), only behind Argentina (19.3 million) and Bolivia (21 million).
Last year it was the second world producer with an estimated 39,000 metric tons, after Australia, with 61,000 tons.
