Gotion High-Tech to Build Lithium Carbonate Facility in Argentina

On June 24, Gotion High-Tech America and Argentinian state-owned mining company Jujuy Energía y Minería Sociedad del Estado (JEMSE) signed an agreement to establish a joint venture in Argentina. Under the deal, the two sides will plan the construction of a production line for battery-grade lithium carbonate, furthering Gotion’s globalization strategy.

The joint venture will establish and operate a refinery for battery-grade lithium carbonate in the Perico Free Trade Zone in Jujuy province, Argentina, for the development and production of lithium carbonate and other related products. The plant’s initial plan is to build a production line with an annual capacity of 10,000 tons of battery-grade lithium carbonate, with the second phase of 50,000 tons of battery-grade lithium carbonate to be planned in the future based on market demand.

Jujuy Province in Argentina has highly concentrated salt lake resources, as well as rich mining experience involving the extraction of lithium from brine at a low cost. JEMSE is committed to improving lithium extraction technology, mining capacity and new energy utilization projects such as photovoltaic energy storage. At present, JEMSE has established close cooperation with enterprises in France, Australia, Canada, the US, Japan and China.

According to the agreement, JEMSE will be responsible for the exploration of potential lithium resources and the provision of other mining rights, as well as the supply of industrial-grade lithium carbonate for the project. Gotion High-Tech will provide technical support. The two sides also decided to cooperate around the downstream business of the lithium industry, such as cathode materials and lithium battery manufacturing. In the future, Gotion High-Tech’s batteries produced in Jujuy province are expected to be used in Germany, India, the US, Spain and Vietnam.

Moreover, on the afternoon of June 24, Argentinian President Alberto Fernandez met with Li Zhen, Chairman of Gotion High-Tech, and his delegation at the presidential residence in Olivos. Fernandez explicitly supported Chinese investment in Argentina, and praised Gotion High-Tech’s multiple industrial investments that would promote the development of the country’s new energy industry.

The two sides also had friendly exchanges on the “Targets of Carbon Peak and Carbon Neutralization” strategy, the new energy vehicle industry, the Sustainable Transportation Act and the joint venture between Gotion High-Tech and Corven, a well-known American auto parts manufacturer, to establish electric bus batteries and other topics.

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Li Zhen made the following comments on the cooperation: “Argentina is the third-largest economy in Latin America. With a harmonious social system and orderly development of resources, it provides a good external environment for enterprises to invest. We have partnered with JEMSE and we will work with Corven in Buenos Aires to develop downstream applications. In the next 100 years, new energy vehicles will certainly be a new engine for the world economy.”