SANTO PAULO, June 9th (Argus) - Korea's POSCO has received support from the Argentine federal government's incentive policies, which will help it expand its flagship lithium project in the country.
The Argentine government approved POSCO's participation in the Argentina Large-scale Investment Project Incentive Program (Rigi) on June 4th. This approval is expected to help the company further expand its flagship project "Sal de Oro" in Argentina.
The Rigi program provides support to approved participants, including exemption from value-added tax and import/export taxes, as well as legal protection, enabling enterprises to resolve disputes in courts outside Argentina. Additionally, the program guarantees 30 years of legal stability, ensuring that no future president can revoke these benefits during this period.
According to Argentine Economy and Finance Minister Luis Caputo, POSCO expects to add 23,000 tons of lithium carbonate capacity annually, with an annual export value of up to 300 million US dollars when operating at full capacity. Currently, the planned production capacity of Sal de Oro is 25,000 tons of lithium hydroxide per year.
The company will invest 587 million US dollars in Salta Province for expansion, Caputo said.
Salar officials said on April 20th that the expansion project is expected to be operational by the end of the year, and a source close to the matter told Argus that the project is expected to start trial operation in August.
