Coal India Ltd, a state-owned enterprise, is venturing into the global lithium market by exploring lithium blocks in Argentina in collaboration with an unnamed U.S. company. This information was disclosed on Tuesday by an Indian source with direct knowledge of the matter.
This initiative is part of India’s broader strategy as a member of the U.S.-led Minerals Security Partnership (MSP), which India joined in the previous year. The MSP aims to ensure adequate supplies of minerals crucial for achieving zero-carbon goals.
India has been actively seeking ways to secure lithium supplies, a critical raw material essential for electric vehicle battery production. The Indian government, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership, identified 30 minerals as critical for the adoption of clean energy technologies last year. This list includes lithium, nickel, titanium, vanadium, and tungsten.
On Monday, India and the United States announced their plans to co-invest in a lithium resource project in South America and a rare earths deposit in Africa. These investments are aimed at diversifying critical minerals supply chains.
Previous reports by Reuters indicated that India has been in discussions with several countries, including the United States, to collaborate on lithium processing. This strategy is part of India’s efforts to reduce reliance on China for these critical resources.
The source, speaking on condition of anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the discussions, revealed that Coal India has expressed interest in the Kachi block in Argentina.
This block has also attracted interest from a U.S. company and two other countries for exploration under the MSP framework. Preliminary studies for this project are currently underway.
It’s worth noting that Australian miner Lake Resources, which has a lithium project in Kachi, has set a target of producing 50 kilotonnes of annual battery-grade lithium from the project by 2030.
Following the Reuters report, Coal India’s shares saw a positive turn, rising as much as 1.2 per cent before settling at a 0.3 per cent gain. Prior to the news, the company’s shares had been down by 0.2 per cent.
This development comes in the wake of U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s visit to Argentina in February, where he expressed U.S. interest in exploring investment opportunities in critical minerals, particularly lithium.
As part of India’s participation in the minerals partnership, the country was invited to take part in 20-25 critical minerals projects. The Indian government has identified four of these projects, with two being collaborations with the United States.
The second U.S.-India collaborative project is located in the Kangankunde block in Malawi, where India’s state-owned IREL (India) Ltd is exploring for rare earths. Additionally, the Indian government has directed miners to explore critical minerals in Australia’s Dubbo region.
India had also proposed a critical minerals trade deal with the United States, which would prohibit the imposition of tariffs between the two countries. This proposed deal would be similar to the agreement the U.S. has with Japan, which provides Japanese automakers with broader access to U.S. electric vehicle tax credits.
However, as of Monday, both countries announced that they are in discussions for a bilateral Critical Minerals Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) instead.
These developments underscore India’s proactive approach to securing critical minerals supply chains and its growing collaboration with international partners in this strategic sector.