In December 2021, Rio Tinto acquired the Rincon lithium project in Argentina for US$825 million. Rincon project has 11.8 million tonnes LCE resource with average grade of 367 mg/L. This means Rincon resource is 30% smaller than Phoenix Lithium. Also the project in Salton Sea, California should enjoy 25% to 30% premium compared to a project in Argentina. [After acquiring Rincon project Rio committed to invest $190 million to build a 5,000 tonne starter using DLE technology.]
