Eramet raises lithium goal for second phase of Argentina project
PARIS - Eramet has increased its target for lithium production for its large deposit in Argentina under a potential second phase as it responds to strong demand for electric vehicle batteries, the French group said on Wednesday.
The mining company plans to start producing lithium in early 2024 at the Centenario deposit it is developing with Chinese steel group Tsingshan, with a first-stage objective of 24 000 t of lithium carbonate equivalent annually.
After indicating in October it was considering doubling its capacity target in a second phase, Eramet said it was now looking at tripling the objective compared with the first phase.
"We have already launched a study that should allow us quickly to triple annual production capacity," Eramet's chairperson and CEO Christel Bories said during a call with reporters after the company reported annual results.
The second stage, on which Eramet expects to take an investment decision this year, would add around 50 000 t of further capacity during 2025 and 2026 to bring the project's total capacity to about 75 000 t by 2027, she said.
As part of its pivot towards battery materials, Eramet is studying with Germany's BASF scope to produce battery-grade nickel and cobalt from ore extracted at Eramet's Weda Bay mine in Indonesia.
Bories said the company would take an investment decision by the end of the year, a slightly longer timeframe than the first half of 2023 previously indicated, as the partners aimed to advance further with technical and permit work.
She declined to confirm a 2.4-billion euros ($2.55-billion) investment figure cited by the Indonesian authorities but said that number was in keeping with other comparable projects.
Eramet on Wednesday reported a sharp rise in 2022 profits but forecast lower core earnings for this year due to lower expected market prices and persistently high energy and raw material costs.
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