Page 150 - CW E-Magazine (18-6-2024)

News from Abroad

MINING ACCORD
SQM and Codelco ink partnership agreement

to exploit lithium until 2060 in Chile

SQM (Sociedad Química y Minera de With the Codelco-SQM partnership,
Chile SA), the world’s second-largest as of 2031 Chile will receive 85% of
lithium producer, reached a framework the operating margin through different
agreement to hand over a majority channels,” he added.
stake in its prized Chilean brine assets
to state-owned Codelco (National Cop- SQM will manage the operations
per Corp.) in exchange for extending through December 31, 2030. After that
operations for three more decades. to 2060, Codelco will oversee general
management. The partnership will be
If ratifi ed, the deal would allow tasked with designing and developing
the new public-private partnership to all of its business experience, talent and a new production project that will in-
increase output at one of the world’s mining development expertise, in addi- corporate new technologies to trend
richest sources of lithium. It’s also a tion to its valuable international pres- toward water balance while simulta-
critical fi rst step in the government’s tige, to this partnership.” neously increasing lithium recovery
model for opening up new areas for through compliance with the highest
producing the key component in elec- There are more milestones to environmental standards.
tric-vehicle batteries as demand acce- be reached before this partnership
lerates in the energy transition. The becomes operational, Mr. Pacheco The most relevant issues covered by
partnership agreement established the explained. The main objective of the the agreement’s 20 articles include the
terms and conditions of the public-pri- agreement is to achieve a total additional reorganisation of SQM Salar to become
vate partnership that will take responsi- production of 300,000 metric tons per the joint venture; the CORFO-Tarar
bility for production of refi ned lithium annum (mtpa) of lithium carbonate contracts, the indigenous consultation
in the Salar de Atacama from 2025 to equivalent (LCE) in 2025-2030, while a of said contracts, the amendment of
2060. The partnership, composed of production of 280,000-300,000 mtpa of CORFO-SQM contracts, the procedure
Codelco through its subsidiary Minera LCE has been defi ned for 2031-2060. before the Chilean Nuclear Energy
Tarar, and SQM through SQM Salar, is This increase in lithium production will Commission among other aspects.
expected to begin operations during the be achieved through improvements in SQM Salar and Minera Tarar will also
fi rst months of 2025, once preliminary process effi ciency, the adoption of new merge.
conditions are met. technologies and the optimisation of
operations and does not entail increased For production during 2031-2060,
“Just as we have contributed to brine extraction or use of continental the agreement establishes that the com-
making Chile the world leader in cop- waters. panies will submit the project for an
per production, we will now contribute Environmental Impact Assessment,
to making our country a leader in the “The projects we are going to deve- including an indigenous consultation
production of lithium, another mineral lop with Codelco will be extraordina- process regarding the environmental
critical to the energy transition, which rily positive for Chile, the Antofagas- impacts likely to directly affect indi-
will allow us to fi ght the climate emer- ta Region, communities, workers and genous peoples.
gency,” said Codelco Chairman Mr. for both companies,” said Mr. Ricardo
Máximo Pacheco. “We will do so as Ramos, CEO of SQM. “This partner- Once the indigenous consultation
partners of SQM, a Chilean company ship is proof of the confi dence we in- process is completed and a favourable
that has the scale, technical and human spire with more than 25 years of expe- Environmental Qualifi cation Resolu-
expertise, fi nancial resources and sales rience producing lithium from the Salar tion is obtained, the project should
network that we need to avoid missing de Atacama and refi ning it at the chemi- begin to be executed before the end
the opportunities that now open them- cal plant in Antofagasta, our operational of this decade, ensuring uninterrupted
selves up to us. Codelco will contribute effi ciency and the business synergies. production through 2060.

150 Chemical Weekly June 18, 2024

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