You are absolutely right about momentum changing in Argentina. You'd have to be living in a vacuum (or your Mother's basement) not to see what is happening there!
The article linked below has some very demonstrative points made that support the positive changes that are happening. Not only has Milei already had a big positive impact fiscally, but he is also managing Argentina's affairs with a very different approach to his predecessors.....and is already seeing improvement since coming into office in December. Certainly, a long way to go yet, but they see how the Country's Lithium resources can play a significant part in maintaining that positive momentum.
I've copied a few salient points below for reference:
"The brine is manna from heaven for Argentina, in the throes of economic crisis and almost entirely cut off from external funding. The country holds a fifth of global reserves, and Tesla’s Elon Musk is determined to get his hands on it before Chinese rivals lock up the lion’s share of future supply.
“He is extremely interested in our lithium and so is the government of the United States,” said President Javier Milei after a rapturous love-in with the technology tycoon and fellow libertarian last month at the Tesla headquarters in Texas. They met again this week to talk brass tacks at the Milken forum in Los Angeles.The president’s circle has let it be known that Tesla may in return build a gigafactory and an EV manufacturing plant in Argentina’s central city of Cordoba as a base to export cars across South America’s Mercosur region. “We’ll welcome it with open arms,” said the Casa Rosada."
"Xi Jinping’s regime has been actively seeking to lock up global supplies for several years under his Made in China 2025 plan, using the long arm of the Communist Party inside every Chinese company to acquire control over 20 large projects since 2018.
Washington is belatedly fighting back, designating Argentina as the central pillar of a new ‘ally-shoring’ lithium strategy. It aims to build supply chains from trusted countries that “share the same democratic values as the US”.The bureau maps out a plan to beat China at its own game by mobilising the US Development Finance Corporation and the Export-Import Bank to fund lithium projects and processing plants in Argentina directly. This could never have worked with the last Peronist government, anti-American to its core. It signed up to everything going in the Xi agenda, from the Belt and Road and the BRICS bloc, to weapons supplied by the People’s Liberation Army.Milei’s 180 degree swing towards the US entirely changes the picture.""The mood at Hombre Muerto is that Javier Milei’s free market upheaval is about to change everything and kickstart a massive expansion..."
“Chile was always way in front but I think Argentina is going to overtake and pull far ahead over the next five years.”
"As a rule of thumb, it takes 500,000 gallons of water to produce a tonne of lithium, a bone of contention with the Cacán and Quechua peoples that legally control the land.
If DLE technology delivers on its promises – it has not done so yet – the lithium water controversy ceases to be a major issue."
I think there is enough in the points above to demonstrate that the momentum in Argentina is certainly changing - not only for the better of the Country itself, but also for the likes of Lake (particularly those Lithium Miners using DLE) within it.
Note: Keep in mind that the comments on the altitude are based on the Hombre Muerto project at 4,000m.....when Kachi is at 3,000m elevation.
Why a Cold War is breaking out over Milei's lithium 'gold rush' (telegraph.co.uk)
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