RIO DE JANEIRO, June 29. /TASS/. The Bolivian state-owned lithium company YLB and Uranium One, an affiliate of Russia’s Rosatom, signed an agreement on lithium carbonate production in the southwestern region of the country.
"The agreement unveils new prospects of long-term cooperation between Russia and Bolivia. This is the first large-scale overseas projects in the lithium production sphere for Rosatom," First Deputy CEO of the Russian company Kirill Komarov said.
Implementation of the joint project will make it possible to create a full cycle of lithium mining and processing in Bolivia. Russian technologies used within the project framework are highly efficient in economic terms and the most eco-friendly at the same time, the Rosatom’s press service said.
According to Kirill Komarov, the investments in building a new lithium facility of Rosatom in Bolivia will be about $600 mln.
"This is the first large-scale overseas project for Rosatom in the lithium production sphere, with investments in it to be about $600 mln," the senior executive said.
Rosatom shares the interest of Bolivian authorities to bring the first stage of the production facility on stream as soon as practicable, Komarov noted. "Rosatom will further support training of skilled personnel for development of this high-technology sector in Bolivia," he added.
Kirill Komarov added that the Rosatom’s complex in Bolivia would produce up to 25,000 metric tons of lithium annually.
"It is anticipated to build a production facility with the capacity up to 25,000 metric tons of lithium carbonate per year with an option to scale up the capacity according to exploration findings," he said.