The Latin American country’s resource sector sparks interest among German government and industry officials at a conference in Berlin.
An Argentinian delegation led by mining secretary Flavia Royon met with German politicians and industry officials last week at a conference in Berlin to discuss partnerships on critical minerals. The central topics of the meeting “Unlocking Synergies Argentina & Germany: Conference on Resources & Critical Minerals” were the Argentinian resource sector and bilateral cooperation opportunities. In a statement, Royon highlighted the role the Latin American country could play in German and European supply chain diversification efforts. She emphasized that the copper and lithium industry, particularly, sparked keen interest among the German delegation.
As the Argentinian-German newspaper Argentinisches Tagesblatt reports, this interest resulted, among other things, in the signing of a letter of intent between the German company Eusati, specializing in energy transition projects, and the Argentinian lithium producer YPF Litio and the cooperation Y-Tec to promote joint ventures and advance the Argentinian lithium sector.
Argentina: Huge Potential – Investment Needed
According to data from the U.S. Geological Survey, Argentina is home to the fourth-largest lithium reserves in the world (PDF). Still, its mining production is dwarfed by competitors such as Australia, which had an output almost tenfold the size of Argentina’s in 2023. However, considering the reserves, investments in developing the sector could change this. Acknowledging the potential, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the President of Argentina, Alberto Ángel Fernández, last year to create sustainable raw material value chains. At the time, von der Leyen added that Argentina could become a “powerhouse” for green energy.
The countries are expected to advance the talks in March when a German delegation of the Economic Committee is scheduled to travel to Argentina and neighboring Uruguay. Lithium and hydrogen are set as central topics of discussion.
Photo: iStock/Oleksii Liskonih
