Increasing royalty for SQM, increasing annual production in a brine project is not easy, most are wishful thinking, 4-6x, you need to apply for a huge discount, their 50% JV with KDR, should happen, but for their brine deposit, 1-2 times, may happen. Another key fact, lithium is still a by-product in a brine deposit, main product is potash, potash has been oversupplied for years, if SQM were able to increase 4 - 6 times, then additional potash production accounting about 20% of world's demand, what potash price would be?
Rain and other natural challenges, along with execution hiccups, have hampered state-run operations. Foreign companies with more expertise may be spooked by the left-leaning government of President Evo Morales, whose interventionist policies in other sectors have riled some big corporations and made others hesitant to invest, analysts said.
Bolivia had hoped its project at Uyuni, the world’s largest salt flat, would produce 40 tonnes per month of lithium carbonate by 2011. Nine years and $450 million into the project, it is producing just 10 tonnes per month.
