Recently, Rio Tinto announced that it has received approval from relevant regulatory bodies to complete the acquisition of the Rincon lithium mine project in Argentina for US $825 million.
In December 2021, Rio Tinto announced a binding agreement to acquire its lithium project from Rincon Mining. Previously, Rincon Mining was owned by funds managed by private equity firm Sentient Equity Partners.
Rincon lithium mine is a large-scale undeveloped lithium brine project, located in the core area of the lithium triangle in Salta Province province, Argentina, and is a new hub of the greenfield project. Compared with the solar evaporation pool, the direct lithium extraction technology to be adopted in this project has the potential to greatly improve the recovery rate of lithium. At present, a pilot plant is operating in the field, and further work will focus on continuing to optimize the process and recovery rate.
According to information previously released by Rio Tinto, after the formal acquisition of the Rincon project, the project also needs to complete a series of studies to identify the amount of resources and to develop a statement of the amount of resources in accordance with the Australasian Exploration results, Mineral Resources and Ore reserves reporting Code version 2012 (JORC Code). Rio Tinto will work to determine the development strategy and duration of the project, update existing environmental impact assessment permits to obtain permission for project development and production, and maintain contact with the local community, the province of Salta and the Argentine government.
Jakob Stausholm, chief executive of Rio Tinto Group, said: "in the next decade, demand in the lithium market is expected to grow by double digits with limited supply. The Rincon lithium project strengthens Rio Tinto's battery raw material business and enables us to meet the needs of the market. We will work with the local community, the province of Salta and the Argentine government to develop the project with the highest environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards. "
The fundamentals of the battery and lithium carbonate market are strong. Rio Tinto expects lithium demand to grow by 25-35 per cent a year over the next decade, and a significant gap between supply and demand is expected in the second half of the next decade.
According to the latest data from the International Energy Agency, by 2030, only relying on existing and under construction lithium production projects, the world will have a lithium demand gap of about 50%.
The IEA also pointed out that lithium demand in 2040 could be 13 times higher than current levels, and the increase is expected to reach 51 times if all-solid-state batteries are commercialized quickly.
