Peru will soon be a great economic power

The Peruvian company Macusani Yellowcake reported that it has discovered resources equivalent to 2.5 million tons of high -grade lithium and significant amounts of uranium during the exploration of the Falchani deposit in the south of the country.

The company, a subsidiary of Canada's Plateau Energy, said the deposit could become the largest lithium mine in the world . He added that up to now they have drilled 15 percent of the surface of the deposit and that they plan to explore 10,000 more meters this year.

In comparison, as explained by the company's authorities, important salt flats like those of Chile and Bolivia have an average of 500 parts per million (ppm), while the Falchani deposit has a content up to seven times higher, among the 3,500 at 4,000 ppm, showing enormous economic potential.

Therefore, the firm is looking for partners to invest around USD 800 million. Ulises Solís, general manager of Macusani Yellowcake, added that in the underground deposit they have also found 124 million pounds of uranium in resources.

Solis said that they will continue drilling this year and that by the end of 2019 they hope to have a feasibility study ready to build the mine.

This is the latest announcement of a series of plans to expand or build new lithium mines amid demand forecasts in the electric vehicle industry , which uses lithium in car batteries.

Laurence Stefan, director of operations of Plateau Energy, said that in 10 days they will report in detail the resources of the project and that in principle they would produce 5 or 6 million tons of annual lithium rocks, to obtain 50,000 or 60,000 tons of lithium carbonate equivalent by year.

Stefan said that producing lithium or uranium first will depend on the international price. "We are in the hands of the market, but we prepare for both products," he said. But according to the company's projections,Peru could start exporting lithium for USD 500 million from 202 1, as a minimum figure.

In an interview with the Andina agency, the executive highlighted that in the exploration zone there are prospects of having much more lithium, which allows calculating a useful life of the deposit of more than 100 years.

Stefan even outlined an industrial megaproject that would boost the southern zone of Peru towards a regional leap. "If Peru enters the club of lithium producers, the first step is to make a refinery, at this moment 90% of the refineries are in China, why do not we do a refinery in Puno, and the lithium of Argentina, Bolivia and Chile, we bring it here, we purify it and export it for three years, then we talk to the producers of electric cars so that they come to produce units in Peru, "he said.

The director indicated that investors seeking to manage the project have approached, although the company prefers to have control. However, he said that Plateau Energy, which is listed on the Toronto stock exchange, could be vulnerable to an acquisition of a very large company.

At the same time, Solis said they will work to obtain legal permits and that one of the challenges for the project will be for the government to approve a law on the exploitation of radioactive minerals in Peru. "There is no legislation for the management of uranium, we are going to work in that line with the government," he said .