Brine pools from a lithium mine belonging to US-based Albermarle Corp are seen on the Atacama salt flat, in Chile’s Atacama desert. The mine is located only 5 km from a mine belonging to Chilean company SQM. Earlier this year, in celebrating contracts with Chile’s government that will allow them to vastly increase lithium production, the two companies said they were confident they would do so without drawing more than their current quota of lithium-rich brine, or saltwater. However, hitherto unreported filings with Chile’s environmental regulator have shown Albermarle is concerned about a 2016 government investigation that found SQM had exceeded its quota for years.