The plan will see the consolidation and phased development of three projects in the Pozuelos-Pastos Grandes (PPG) basins, with a total capacity of 150ktpy LCE, utilising solar evaporation and direct lithium extraction (DLE).

The announcement comes following a successful ramp-up at Lithium Argentina and Ganfeng Lithium’s Cauchari-Olaroz lithium operation, which produced 25.4kt of lithium carbonate in 2024 after starting production in 2023.

A 5ktpy DLE demonstration plant is currently being manufactured for installation at Cauchari-Olaroz, with completion expected by year end. This will support the ongoing development of the new processing technology, whilst simultaneously reducing the operation’s environmental footprint, reagent consumption and costs. The information from the demo plant will likely underpin its utilisation within the PPG development.

The announcement highlights the importance of scale at lithium operations. The consolidation should unlock significant synergies and cost reductions at standalone assets that were already expected to comfortably sit within the first quartile of the cost curve.

The announced 150ktpy of capacity is significant, being larger than the 131kt LCE that the Argentine Chamber of Mining Companies (CAEM) expects the Country’s six active lithium operations to produce in 2025. This represents a 75% increase on 2024. Argentina is set to experience considerable supply growth over the coming decade, with Project Blue forecasting the Country to overtake established neighbour Chile as the region's largest producer by 2029.