China-based electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer BYD intends to construct a $290m lithium cathode factory in northern Antofagasta, Chile, reported Reuters.
According to the Chilean economic development agency CORFO, the Chilean Government has chosen BYD Chile as a qualified lithium producer, granting it access to preferential prices for lithium carbonate quotas.
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BYD delivers electric buses to the public transportation system of Chile. The company has declined to comment on this development.
The factory will manufacture 50,000 tonnes of lithium iron phosphate (LFP) for cathodes annually, with lithium carbonate as an input.
CORFO announced in a statement that the facility will begin operations in 2025 and create 500 jobs.
CORFO executive vice-president Jose Miguel Benavente said: “We hope to give a strong boost to promote the generation of products in the lithium value chain.”
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By GlobalDataChile President Gabriel Boric pledged to nationalise Chile’s lithium industry, which is said to be the second-largest producer of the metal vital in EV batteries globally, to promote the country’s economy and protect the environment, reported Reuters.
In a nationally broadcast address, Boric said: “This is the best chance we have at transitioning to a sustainable and developed economy. We can’t afford to waste it.”
He added that future lithium contracts will only be given as public-private partnerships under governmental oversight.
