Chilean President Aims to Nationalize
In Chile, President Gabriel Boric aims to nationalize the Lithium industry. Chile is the largest supplier of lithium in the world. President Boric’s rationale behind the nationalization of the industry is to protect the ecosystem in Chile and to distribute the profits made from the industry to the Chilean people, reducing capital flight from multinational corporations.
Importance
Lithium has been and will continue to be an important resource in the battery-making process, especially with the push for electric cars around the globe. Each electric vehicle battery needs 20 pounds of Lithium. Chile is not the first country to do this. Mexico recently nationalized the deposits in the country.
The Plan
This plan will take until 2043 to take full effect. The contracts between the nation and mining companies will not be renewed once they expire. On top of that Codelco, the state-owned copper mining company, will be tasked with establishing a state-owned lithium company.
Problems
However, this move is unlikely to occur. Boric will present it to the National Congress for approval later this year. The National Congress has been in opposition to many of Boric’s reforms, including the new constitution written by Boric for Chile after the Chilean people voted for a new constitution to replace former dictator Augusto Pinochet’s constitution.
