French, Chinese companies open new lithium plant in Argentina

On Wednesday, French mining group Eramet and China's Tsingshan inaugurated a lithium production plant in Argentina to supply the booming electric car industry. The site in the northwestern province of Salta represents an investment of $870 million dollars, Eramet said.

The plant is expected to produce up to 24,000 tons of battery-grade lithium carbonate per year at full capacity. Production is planned to start in November with 350 employees. Argentina is the fourth-biggest producer of the so-called "white gold", after Australia, Chile and China.