Bolivia evaluates six firms for lithium mining contracts

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – On Tuesday, June 7, Energy Minister Franklin Molina said Bolivia reduced the list of foreign firms vying to tap its vast lithium resources to six companies from eight as part of its most ambitious effort to extract the metal.

Bolivia has the world’s largest lithium resources – the ultra-light metal key to making batteries for electric vehicles – but has struggled for decades to extract them commercially.

Under leftist President Luis Arce, Bolivia has sought to partner with foreign companies to boost its mining capacity, announcing last year a list of eight companies from the United States, China, Russia, and Argentina that will seek to extract the metal using an unproven technology known as Direct Lithium Extraction.

At a press conference, Molina did not specify which companies had been disqualified. He said the final results are expected to be announced on June 15, a delay from the initial deadline set in May.

Bolivia still faces an uphill battle to exploit its lithium, including legal obstacles and a spotty track record for multinational firms operating in the Andean nation.

Under Bolivian law, only state-owned Yacimientos de Litio Bolivianos (YLB) can extract the metal. The government has yet to announce how to accommodate that restriction by partnering with foreign companies.

Bolivia has also fallen behind its neighbors Argentina and Chile, which have built major lithium operations at a time when prices are soaring. Chile is the world’s second-largest lithium producer, and Argentina has a promising pipeline of projects.

Bolivia’s initial list of finalists includes U.S. startups Lilac Solutions, backed by German automaker BMW and Bill Gates’ Breakthrough Energy Ventures, EnergyX, and China’s giant battery maker CATL.

The other companies are Argentina’s Tecpetrol, Russia’s Uranium One, and Chinese companies Fusion Enertech, TBEA Co Ltd, and CITIC Guoan Group Co.

With information from Reuters

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