- Lithium stocks, including Albemarle Corp (NYSE:ALB), Sociedad Quimica Y Minera S.A. (NYSE:SQM), and Livent Corp (NYSE:LTHM) are trading lower Friday after Chilean President Gabriel Boric shared plans to nationalize the country’s lithium industry and create a separate state-owned company to produce the metal used to make electric vehicle batteries.
- Boric proposed to issue future lithium contracts as public-private partnerships with state control, Reuters reports.
- He added that the government would not terminate existing contracts with Sociedad Quimica Y Minera and Albemarle but seek state participation before contracts expire.
- In 2022, Chile accounted for nearly one-third of global lithium production, with its lithium mine output estimated at 39 thousand metric tons.
- Also, Warren Buffett-backed EV maker BYD Company (OTC: BYDDY) (OTC:BYDDF) proposes to build a $290 million lithium cathode factory in Chile in Chile’s northern Antofagasta region.
- The Chilean government has named BYD as a qualified lithium producer.
- The facility will use lithium carbonate to produce 50,000 tonnes of lithium iron phosphate (LFP) per year for the cathodes.
- The factory will likely begin operations in 2025 and create 500 jobs.
- Price Actions: ALB shares traded lower by 3.26% at $186.75 premarket on the last check Friday. SQM shares traded lower by 8.93% at $71.05, and LTHM shares traded lower by 2.88% at $21.22.
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