Savannah Resources / ASMAA
Barroso lithium mine
The mining company, which will explore lithium deposits in Galicia, defends the creation of a centralized refinery between Portugal and Spain to avoid conflicts between the companies responsible for each mine.
Canadian mining company IberAmerican Lithium announced the discovery of a “lithium belt” in the northern region of Portugal and Galicia, reinforcing the strategic potential of the Iberian Peninsula in the production of this resource.
According to the company’s CEO, Campbell Becher, these regions have the potential to become become the main European center of lithium extraction and processing, reducing Europe’s dependence on producers such as Chile, Australia and China.
IberAmerican Lithium, which at the end of 2022 acquired full rights to the Alberta II and Carlota deposits, in the Galician municipality of Avión, plans an exploration model that encompasses both the extraction and refinement of lithium.
In 2023, the company invested one million euros to buy the remaining 30% of Strategic Minerals and guaranteed a three-year extension to continue geological investigations into deposits that occupy an area of 3685 hectares.
Global lithium production reached 184,680 metric tons last year, with Australia, Chile and China dominating the sector, the newspaper reports. Portugal produced just 380 tons, occupying eighth place in the world ranking, but hopes to increase production with the mines in Barroso, scheduled to come into operation in 2027. These projects should produce enough material to manufacture half a million batteries of electric vehicles per year.
Becher highlighted that the European Union is “pushing Spain and Portugal to develop this lithium belt”. The CEO of the Canadian company also defends the creation of a “centralized” refinery in the Iberian Peninsulain order to avoid “collisions” between companies that develop projects in the region, such as the British Savannah Resources, responsible for the Barroso mine, in Portugal.
Currently, the company is awaiting the legal transfer of the licensing of mining rights to move forward with the project.
