A historic announcement was made yesterday. Thanks to a public-private alliance, the Chilean State will retain a majority stake in lithium extraction.
Steps got under way on April 23, when President Gabriel Boric presented the National Lithium Strategy to the country. The Chilean Economic Development Agency (CORFO) was instructed to work with the State-Owned Copper Company (CODELCO) to find the best formula to ensure Chile’s interest in the exploration and exploitation of lithium and other mineral substances in the Salar de Atacama (Atacama Salt Flat).
CODELCO and Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile (SQM) began negotiations on May 31 to form a public-private association to jointly develop productive and commercial activities.
CODELCO and SQM finally agreed to associate in a common partnership from January 1, 2025, with a majority stake (50% plus one share) held by the State through CODELCO. It will allow operations to continue in the Salar de Atacama until 2060.
The project’s terms and conditions include the incorporation of technologies that will allow progress to be made towards guaranteeing the ecosystem’s water balance, as well as the active participation of the territory’s local communities.
“Thanks to this agreement, from 2025, the Chilean State, local communities and, in particular, the Antofagasta Region will benefit in various ways, receiving: dividends as shareholders; lease payments, royalties and general taxes; assurances of the operational continuity of the work; and increases in the production and sale quota of lithium,” Gabriel Boric, President of Chile.
The Chilean State will see the benefits it receives increase, as, in addition to the taxes and lease payments that CORFO receives, from 2025 it will also receive profits as a shareholder.
With this step, CODELCO is fulfilling the mandate of the Chilean State to seek the best ways to achieve state participation in the production of #LithiumForChile and other mineral substances in the Salar de Atacama.
The lithium industry will therefore grow, research and innovation capacities will be developed, and we will also generate new jobs for Chileans, always with respect for local communities and the environment.