Cylindrical solar container lithium battery production in Bolivia

Will Bolivia build a lithium battery plant in China?

La Paz (AFP) – Bolivia said Tuesday it had signed a $1 billion deal with China's CBC, a subsidiary of the world's largest lithium battery producer CATL, to build two lithium carbonate production plants in the country's southwest.

Will Bolivia produce lithium batteries by 2025?

The Bolivian government has chosen a Chinese consortium led by battery giant Contemporary Amperex Technology to invest upward of $1 billion to develop untapped lithium deposits, with the ambitious goal of producing lithium batteries in the country by 2025. Bolivia has the largest lithium reserves in the world but little local means to develop them.

Where are Bolivia's lithium plants located?

Bolivia's state-owned Bolivia Lithium Deposits (YLB) said the plants -- one with an annual capacity of 10,000 tons of lithium carbonate and the other of 25,000 - would be situated in the vast Uyuni salt flats. Lithium, nicknamed "white gold," is a key component in the production of batteries for electric vehicles and mobile phones.

How much lithium will Bolivia produce in 2023?

In late 2023, Bolivia opened its first industrial-scale lithium plant. The $100 million facility is expected to produce as much as 15,000 tons of lithium carbonate a year. Initial output won’t be battery grade and the plant will reach full capacity in 2025.