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It is part of the Sal de Oro project of the Pohang Iron and Steel Company (POSCO) Argentina. It was inaugurated in the General Güemes Industrial Park in the city of Salta. It is estimated that it will produce 25 thousand tons of lithium hydroxide per year. With the presence of the governor of the province of Salta, Gustavo Sáenz, the lithium hydroxide production plant of the company Posco Argentina was inaugurated in the General Güemes Industrial Park of the provincial capital, presented as the first commercial plant in the country. This is an initiative that is part of the Sal de Oro project, which, according to Governor Sáenz, involves an investment that exceeds 800 million dollars in this phase. Regarding the jobs generated, the provincial leader added that it will exceed 3,800 jobs, including more than 300 direct ones. In addition, it contemplates the integration of more than 60 local suppliers, strengthening its commitment to the community and the economic development of the region, he said. The plant is expected to produce 25,000 tons of lithium hydroxide per year. The mineral will be supplied from the Salar del Hombre Muerto mines acquired by POSCO Argentina in 2018. The development schedule since then was the start of exploration activities in 2019; in 2020 the demonstration plant (DP) was built; and in 2022 the construction of the so-called Commercial Plant 1 (CP1) began, divided into two parts, the upstream plant in Puna and the downstream plant in General Güemes, the latter now inaugurated. In 2023, construction of Commercial Plant 2 (CP2) began in the Puna region . In this last region there are 13 of the 15 largest salt flats in the world (approximately 50,000 km²); three of which are located within the province of Salta: one entirely within the territory (Arizaro); a second (the aforementioned Salar del Hombre Muerto), shared with the province of Catamarca, and a third (Salinas Grandes), with the province of Jujuy. POSCO Argentina President Kwangbok Kim said that next year the company will reach a production capacity of 50 thousand tons of lithium hydroxide per year, and will evaluate the investment of a new project based on the application of the Large Investment Incentive Regime (RIGI) and the global lithium situation. |
