Financial Diary – Santiago
Late at night, and after reviewing a contract of more than 600 pages, the boards of directors of Codelco and SQM gave the go-ahead to the pact that creates a company with a state majority and that will operate by 2060. The pact was signed by the presidents of Codelco, Máximo Pacheco, and from SQM, Ricardo Ramos.
The approved shareholders' agreement indicates that the board of directors of the debutant company cannot have directors who have been on the boards of both firms for more than 10 years.which in practice leaves out Julio Ponce – who spent 28 years at the helm of the non-metallic mining company – and Hernán Büchi, former Minister of Finance of Augusto Pinochet, who has spent 30 non-consecutive years in the private company.
To create the new company that creates the lithium company, SQM Salar absorbs Minera Tarar from Codelco. The idea is that it will be operational in the first months of 2025.
“Codelco, its workers, its executives and its directors, receive with deep pride this new responsibility that its shareholder gives us., the State of Chile. Just as we have contributed to making Chile a world leader in copper production, we will now contribute to making our country a leader in the production of lithium, another critical mineral for the energy transition that allows us to combat the climate emergency,” said Pacheco.
The manager admitted that “there are still several milestones to meet before this alliance becomes operational, but in advance I thank and congratulate the enormous human team at Codelco, which in record time and against many pessimistic forecasts, managed to shape an association.” unprecedented for Chile, both due to its nature and the magnitude of the resources involved,” said Pacheco.
Details
The agreement indicates that it is intended to achieve a total additional production for the period 2025-2030 of 300,000 tons of Lithium Carbonate Equivalent (LCE), while for the period 2031 to 2060 a lithium production of 280,000 to 300,000 tons per year is defined. LCE. This increase will not imply greater brine extraction or an increase in the use of continental water.
