Eramine Sudamerica, a company owned by French miner Eramet and Chinese steelmaker Tsingshan, is set to inaugurate its first lithium carbonate plant in the northern Argentine province of Salta this July. This will make Eramine Sudamerica the fourth lithium producer in Argentina.
The company expects to produce around 3,000 tons of lithium this year and ramp up to 24,000 tons by 2025, according to Constanza Cintioni, the company’s sustainability director. The plant is located on the Centenario Ratones salt flat, some 1,400 kilometers northwest of Buenos Aires and 4,000 meters above sea level.
Argentina, located on the “lithium triangle” spanning Bolivia and Chile, is the world’s fourth-largest lithium producer. The country has been drawing investment from foreign firms as libertarian President Javier Milei seeks to shore up depleted foreign reserves with dollars from mining, energy and grains exports.
Unlike other lithium projects in Argentina that use brine evaporation from pools, the Eramine Sudamerica plant will use a direct extraction method, which the company says is more efficient with a 90% lithium recovery rate from the extracted brine.
The Eramine Sudamerica plant marks the first lithium carbonate plant in Salta province, joining three other lithium projects in Argentina – two in Jujuy province and one in Catamarca province. Industry sources estimate that Argentina’s lithium exports jumped 20% last year.
The company plans to invest around $800 million in the project and has an expected useful lifespan of 40 years. Eramine Sudamerica also plans to set up a similar plant in the same basin at a later date.