Portugal plans to launch lithium licensing auction in May
2019-04-12 18:02:21 [Print]
"We hope to launch an international auction of lithium exploration licences next month, with bidders expected to commit to building a local lithium refinery," said the environment and energy transition minister of Portugal.
On Wednesday, Joao Matos Fernandes told parliament that eight regions had already been selected for the auction, with another one being studied.
"We really want to open this auction in May," said the minister, adding that the contracts will make it very clear that a concession contract will only be awarded to those who build a lithium refinery or associate themselves with an existing (refinery) project.
We initially planned the auction for last year, which is part of a plan to make Portugal Europe's top supplier of lithium for electric car batteries and meet an expected surge in global demand for the metal.
Officials have said that a large number of international groups have showed interest in exploring for lithium in Portugal, which is the world's sixth-largest producer and Europe's biggest.
Its miners sell almost consistently to the ceramics industry and are only now involved in producing the higher-grade lithium used in electric cars and electronics.
A government study last year showed that the potential investment in five of the most attractive lithium-bearing areas reached 3.3 billion euros.
On Wednesday, Joao Matos Fernandes told parliament that eight regions had already been selected for the auction, with another one being studied.
"We really want to open this auction in May," said the minister, adding that the contracts will make it very clear that a concession contract will only be awarded to those who build a lithium refinery or associate themselves with an existing (refinery) project.
We initially planned the auction for last year, which is part of a plan to make Portugal Europe's top supplier of lithium for electric car batteries and meet an expected surge in global demand for the metal.
Officials have said that a large number of international groups have showed interest in exploring for lithium in Portugal, which is the world's sixth-largest producer and Europe's biggest.
Its miners sell almost consistently to the ceramics industry and are only now involved in producing the higher-grade lithium used in electric cars and electronics.
A government study last year showed that the potential investment in five of the most attractive lithium-bearing areas reached 3.3 billion euros.
Lithium Carbonate 99.5%min Delivered China
Unit:RMB/mt
China lithium hydroxide monohydrate producers; output statistics by province by month
Unit: mt
