On this occasion, President Boric announced a US$233 million investment project that will be developed from 2025 in Chile’s Antofagasta Region. Additional investment may also be required to develop infrastructure.
This project will create an estimated total of 668 new jobs once it reaches its maximum production capacity (120,000 tons/year), and at least 90% of project employees will be Chilean.
The investment—proposed by Chinese company Yongqing Technology Co., Ltd., which forms part of the Tsingshan Holding Group—was selected through a call by Chilean economic development agency CORFO for specialized lithium producers to develop added-value initiatives in Chile.
In that regard, President Boric noted that as a country, «we’re not going to limit ourselves solely to extracting minerals. Rather, we’re going to create value chains and promote transfer of knowledge, because one of the commitments that the company has made is to provide exchange programs for Chilean professionals to travel to China and receive training, which will support the development of this industry.»
Yongqing Technology Co., Ltd. will join another Chinese company, BYD Chile SpA, which obtained specialized producer status in April 2023 under the same call for projects in order to develop its “BYD Chile Lithium Cathode Plant” project.
BYD’s cathode production project requires an investment of US$290 million and will create 490 direct and indirect jobs in the operation phase, 90% of which will be locally hired employees.