Chile’s National Lithium Strategy is essential for the country and aims to generate additional wealth, as the Chilean Mining Minister, Marcela Hernando, explained Thursday.
She met with regional leaders of the Copper Workers Federation (FTC) to discuss the strategy announced by the Chilean government last April.
The initiative is of great importance, as it intends to spread the wealth across all citizens, said the Minister.
While the main focus of the FTC is copper production, they are also highly involved with the upcoming lithium industry, remarked the FTC President, Amador Pantoja.
He added that Codelco (National Copper Corporation) has a significant role to play in future lithium production, and he expressed full confidence in the company’s ability to implement the lithium strategy.
In April, the Chilean President, Gabriel Boric, unveiled the National Lithium Strategy, featuring a public-private alliance via Codelco.
The plan also includes the establishment of a National Lithium Company, which will be sent to the country’s Congress for discussion and approval.
Currently, Chilean lithium is only extracted from the Salar de Atacama in the northern desert region, yet the local production accounts for over 30% of the global market.