BMW, Volkswagen and Mercedes have decided to work together to find a better system forlithium extraction. White gold is very important for the current automotive industry, due to the advent of electrified cars, and therefore the German groups are engaged at the forefront. However, having no strands running under their factories, they have to go abroad to find the material. For example, in the Chilean salt flats.
The project “Responsible Lithium Partnership“, Which supports the responsible management of natural resources in the Salar de Atacama salt flat. The aim is to reach a collective understanding on natural resource management, with local interest groups, and develop a plan for the future of the saltworks. The Responsible Lithium Partnership was launched in the spring of 2021 by BASF, Mercedes-Benz Group AG, Daimler Truck AG, Fairphone and Volkswagen Group for an expected duration of three years. BMW is the latest arrival. The project does not promote the supply of lithium or the purchase or sale of mineral raw materials.
The German agency for international cooperation (GIZ) coordinates the project, which aims to develop a joint vision for the future of the Salar de Atacama reservoirs. Representatives of lithium and copper mines, agriculture, tourism, indigenous communities and the government are invited to join a local multi-stakeholder platform where measures can be developed together. A further goal is to develop a joint action plan to improve the long-term management of natural resources and implement the first steps, reads a note published by BMW.
Together with BASF, the Bavarian group (which also includes Mini and Rolls-Royce) had already commissioned at the end of 2020 a study at the University of Alaska Anchorage and the University of Massachusetts Amherst on the effects of lithium mining on local water balances in Latin America.
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