The opening of the process to assign Special Lithium Operation Contracts (CEOL) in six new priority areas has now been defined within the framework of the National Lithium Strategy. The process is in accordance with what has been approved by the Strategic Council of the Lithium and Salt Flats Committee for the development of new lithium exploration and extraction projects in Chile. 

This second group comprises deposits of great interest for the development of exploration and extraction projects for lithium and other minerals. Some of these projects will allow the development of polymetallic mining, extraction projects for lithium contained in clays and geothermal sources, among others. With this, the National Lithium Strategy will promote innovations in lithium exploration and extraction using methods other than traditional brine extraction. 

An analysis of environmental and social factors was carried out from the expressions of interest received in the request for information (RFI) process for other deposits. The following priority deposits were then defined: the Hilaricos and Quillagua Norte sectors in the Tarapacá Region and part of the Antofagasta Region; and the Quillagua Este, Quillagua Sur, María Elena Este and Cerro Pabellón sectors in the Antofagasta Region. Only one CEOL will be awarded for each of these priority areas. 

“With this announcement we complete a total of 12 priority areas for the awarding of CEOLs to Chilean and foreign private companies or consortia, which represents 50% of the valid expressions of interest. During these past months, we have carried out an intense analysis of the more than 80 expressions of interest that we received in order to develop a balanced strategy. In this sense, the Mining Ministry’s work in the field has been very valuable for maintaining a permanent dialogue with local communities, which we consider an enabling condition for the development of this public policy,” Mining Minister Aurora Williams stated. 

“The strategy advances by providing certainty. We are prioritizing these six deposits, which join the six saline systems announced in September, to quickly take advantage of the economic benefits and opportunities that lithium is opening up:  employment, supplier development, innovation and technology. To do this, we have developed a strategy that is flexible, and which takes into account environmental protection and private interests,” explained Economy, Development and Tourism Minister Nicolás Grau. 

Environment Minister Maisa Rojas said, “this announcement reinforces the government’s commitment to developing the lithium industry by balancing production with environmental protection. For this reason, we are working with the ministries that make up the committee to establish deposit areas that are compatible with elements of environmental value present in the territory, such as rivers and their tributaries, which are so important in the desert. Furthermore, as a ministry we are continuing to work on the creation of the Network of Protected Salt Flats, which will allow 30% of the salt flats and lakes that are in the Chilean highlands to be placed under protection.” 

Awarding mechanism

As was the case of previous priority saline systems, the respective indigenous consultation processes will begin as soon as possible in all cases where there is susceptibility to direct impact on indigenous communities, in order to move ahead with the process in these new deposits. This is in accordance with the provisions of the current regulations and the commitments established by Chile at the international level. Once the consultation process for each case has been concluded, and the supreme decree establishing the requirements and conditions of the CEOL has been issued, public tenders will be opened, the rules and conditions of which will be contained in the respective bases to be announced during 2025. 

The process includes a simplified procedure to speed up the awarding of CEOLs in these six priority sites, in order to ensure the prompt execution of the most viable projects. In the case of the first five deposits indicated in this announcement, to access this procedure companies or consortia must have experience in any stage of the lithium industry value chain and/or experience in mining, the financial capacity to develop the project and, additionally, a percentage of mining concessions equivalent to or greater than 80% of the polygon in any of the priority deposits. 

In the case of the Cerro Pabellón sector, a different procedure will be carried out, in view of an exceptional situation involving an electrical power generation project from a geothermal source that is currently in operation in the sector. 

Those interested in participating in the simplified procedure in these polygons will have until January 31, 2025 to submit a CEOL application for each saline system. They must attach documents to prove that they meet the indicated requirements.

Once compliance with the requirements has been verified, the Mining Ministry will present the applicant with a CEOL model. In the event of an agreement between the parties, the CEOL will be signed once the indigenous consultation process has been concluded and the supreme decree establishing the CEOL requirements and conditions has been issued. In cases where this agreement is reached through the simplified procedure, there will be no public tender. 

It has also been determined to extend the deadline for receiving information from those interested in accessing the simplified procedure until January 31, 2025 for the first saline system process. This includes the Coipasa Salt Flat in the Tarapacá Region, the Ollagüe and Ascotán salt flats in the Antofagasta Region, and the Piedra Parada and Agua Amarga salt flats and Laguna Verde in the Atacama Region. 

Additionally, certain background requirements will be simplified in order to prove that the requirement of holding mining concessions equivalent to or greater than 80% of the polygon in question has been met. 

The details of the new polygons and the resolution that modifies the simplified procedure are now available at www.minmineria.cl.

Indigenous consultation process 

Over the last few months, the indigenous consultation processes have made significant progress. In the Atacama Region, the consultation process for the National Mining Corporation’s (ENAMI) CEOL request for the Altoandinos Salt Flats project is close to entering its closing phase. It has made progress in reaching unanimous agreements on matters such as land use, remuneration and contractor obligations. Similarly, the dialogue stage for the consultation process to modify the State-Owned Copper Corporation’s (CODELCO) CEOL in Maricunga began this month. We hope to complete this process in January. 

With regard to the new indigenous consultation processes, the resolutions to begin the consultations in Ollagüe and Ascotán in Antofagasta and Coipasa in Tarapacá have already been published in the Official Gazette. The first planning meeting for these consultations will be held during early December in the respective territories. 

Finally, the consultations for Laguna Verde and the Piedra Parada and Agua Amarga salt flats in the Atacama Region will begin as the processes that are currently underway in the territory are completed, so as not to overburden the communities. 

R&D challenges for the lithium industry 

The National Lithium Strategy is a public policy that incorporates all stages of the value chain. Along these lines, the Chilean Economic Development Agency (CORFO) this week presented two new Research and Development (R&D) Innovation Challenges to seize upon the country’s competitive advantages in sustainable lithium production, in order to have the best technology and cutting-edge techniques to ensure a form of extraction that preserves the resource, biodiversity, community environments and growth with local added value. 

“This is the continuation of a policy that we have implemented during this administration of using the resources associated with lithium contracts to promote development and knowledge based on the problems and challenges that a particular productive sector linked to the world of mining in Chile has. These are very important amounts that, in some way, are associated with elements that are tremendously cutting-edge throughout the world, such as rare earths and cobalt, and direct extraction and reinjection in the area of salt flat mining,” stated José Miguel Benavente, executive vice president of CORFO. 

R&D Challenges are instruments financed with funds from the lease contracts that CORFO maintains on its mining properties in the Atacama Salt Flat with SQM and Albemarle. They seek to find an R&D solution for production problems arising from the industry, which can be applied by companies, technology developers, universities and research centers.