LatAm’s first lithium battery plant already has a supplier and release date

By Mariano Espina

YPF-Tec began in late 2022 the start-up to manufacture lithium battery cells at its plant in La Plata, Buenos Aires province.

And this week, it announced a key agreement for developing this project: the mining company Livent, one of the two lithium carbonate producers in Argentina, will supply the mineral.

The UNILIB plant, inaugurated by YPF-Tec in 2022 following an agreement with the National University of La Plata, is the first plant dedicated to the technological development of cells and batteries in Latin America and aims to develop lithium-ion batteries for stationary batteries.

The agreement with the US mining company, which has been operating in the country since the late 1990s, seeks to “promote the change of the energy matrix towards clean energies in Argentina, through the development and local promotion of lithium-ion cells used in stationary batteries”.

“It is important for us to have lithium carbonate to make a venture that has more than 12 years of scientific research a reality,” said Roberto Salvarezza, president of YPF-Tec.

YPF BETS ON LITHIUM

This is neither the first nor the only move of YPF in lithium.

Mainly dedicated to the electric energy and hydrocarbon sectors, the company that has the State as its main shareholder is interested in becoming another player in the lithium industry in Argentina, which is expected to grow exponentially in the coming years.

One of these moves was the incorporation of YPF Lithium and the association agreement with the Catamarca state company CAMYEN “for developing a lithium exploration project in an area of 20 thousand hectares in the Fiambalá area, in the department of Tinogasta”.

According to what YPF-Tec informed Bloomberg Línea, the objective is that in the future, this project will be the one to supply lithium to the UNILIB plant.

Until that time, Livent will be in charge of the supply.

THE RELEASE DATE FOR THE FIRST PLANT IN LATAM

The start-up of the Y-Tec plant was scheduled for December. However, due to the delay in the delivery of equipment, it was postponed to April. That month, the first cell production will start.

According to the company, the start-up will be made with the imported raw material required by the equipment manufacturer and then with lithium carbonate to be supplied by Livent after the agreement is reached this week.

Regarding this commercialization, in the first stage, there will be pilot projects to test the batteries for stationary use and energy accumulation in small solar parks.

One of these pilot projects is the solar park of Isla Paulino, in the town of Berisso, where the electric energy will be generated by a solar park and lithium batteries.

Later, it will be tested in mobility applications and supplied to the army for mobile radars, thus displacing lead-acid batteries.

With information from Bloomberg