Lithium Argentina, formerly Lithium Americas Corp, announced on Wednesday the preliminary operational results for 2023 from the lithium brine operation Caucharí-Olaroz, that recently commenced commercial production in the province of Jujuy, Argentina.

By Panorama Minero

Within the context of this announcement, the 2023 production exceeded the company's expectations, reaching approximately 6,000 tons of lithium carbonate for the year. Furthermore, the lithium carbonate plant is currently operating at around 50% of its capacity, and the potassium chloride (KCl) plant is also operational, progressing in both production volume and final product quality. Lithium Argentina is scheduled to report year-end financial results on March 21 after the market closes.

"We are very pleased with the production results from Caucharí-Olaroz to date, and we continue to make progress in increasing both production volume and product quality," stated John Kanellitsas, Chief Executive Officer. "The team in Argentina has gained valuable experience and consistently achieved significant milestones as the project transitioned from construction to operations. We look forward optimistically to 2024, focusing on reaching nominal capacity and laying the groundwork for our next phase of growth."

Since achieving the first lithium carbonate production milestone in June 2023, Caucharí-Olaroz has been consistently producing with a lithium carbonate content of 99.5% and technical quality specifications approaching battery-grade standards.

In 2023, the project yielded approximately 6,000 tons of lithium carbonate, surpassing the company's earlier guidance of 5,000 tons. The initial lithium shipment left Argentina in early October, and since then, lithium carbonate has been exported regularly and sustainably.