French company Eramet has initiated research to support the expansion of its Centenario-Ratones lithium project in Salta Province, Argentina.
Eramet plans to increase the annual production of the Centenario project by 11,000 tons of lithium carbonate equivalent, raising the total capacity to 35,000 tons per year. The current capacity of this project is already close to 90% of the original design target of 24,000 tons per year, and it is operated by the company's subsidiary Eramine Sudamérica.
Eramet plans to invest 350 million US dollars for the expansion, which will be the first project in a series of capacity increases for Centenario. Eramet expects that after completing all the expansions in the coming years, the total annual output of the project will reach 150,000 tons.
In addition, Eramet also plans to submit an Rigi application to support the project. Rigi is a government investment incentive program that will provide several benefits to approved participants, including exemption from value-added tax and import/export taxes, as well as legal protection measures allowing enterprises to resolve disputes through courts outside Argentina. This ensures 30 years of legal stability and guarantees that no future president can revoke the relevant rights during this period.
There is currently no public timetable for the expansion or the Rigi application.
