Chile’s President Gabriel Boric said on Thursday he would nationalize the country’s lithium industry, the world’s second largest producer of the metal essential in electric vehicle batteries, to boost its economy and protect its environment.
“This is the best chance we have at transitioning to a sustainable and developed economy. We can’t afford to waste it,” Boric said in an address televised nationwide. Albemarle said the announcement would have “no material impact on our business” and it would continue talks on investing in further growth and using new technologies in Chile.
The most-traded lithium carbonate futures on the Wuxi Stainless Steel Exchange in China jumped 11 per cent after falling nearly 11 per cent earlier on Friday. Spot lithium prices have plunged more than 70 per cent from a November peak. Boric said state-owned Codelco, the world’s largest copper producer, will be tasked to find the best way forward for a state-owned lithium company and he would seek approval from Congress for the plan in the second half of the year.