Chile lawmakers ask courts to stop bidding on lithium mining contracts
Published on: Tuesday 04 January 2022
Chilean lawmakers went to court on Tuesday to stop the outgoing government from taking bids for lithium mining contracts, with SQM and Albemarle , the world's two largest producers of the ultra-light battery metal, in the running. Lawmakers from the center-left opposition party PPD asked the Santiago Court of Appeals to stop the surprise bidding process, which will end in mid-January. It has been criticized by people close to president-elect Gabriel Boric, who has said Chile should not repeat its "historic mistake" of privatizing resources such as lithium, a vital ingredient of electric car batteries..
