SQM, the world's second largest lithium miner: lithium prices will increase by 50% in the fourth quarter

SQM, the world's second-largest lithium miner, expects the average price of lithium battery metal to rise nearly 50 percent in the final three months of the year from the previous quarter due to strong demand
for key ingredients in making electric vehicles.

Reporting third-quarter results, the miner said net profit for the period was approximately $106 million, compared to $1.
7 million in the same period last year, while total revenue was $661.
6 million, up 46%
from the third quarter of 2020.

The sharp tightening of the lithium market more than doubled the benchmark index in 2021, and prices in China hit record highs
.
With little or no inventory currently in the system, and demand set to more than triple by 2025, buyers are snapping up lithium materials
.

Its main rival, currently No.
1 lithium producer Albemarle, has accelerated its expansion plans this year and has been evaluating new opportunities
.

"Our annual production has exceeded 120,000 tonnes," SQM CEO Ricardo Ramos said
in the statement.
The company will continue to work towards its newly set production targets
of producing 180,000 tons of lithium carbonate and 30,000 tons of lithium hydroxide in Chile by the end of 2022.

The San Diego-based company said profit growth wasn't entirely driven by ultralight battery metals, as sales across its iodine, specialty plant nutrition and potassium business lines also soared
during the period.

Ramos said sales this year could be closer to 100,000 tonnes, higher than earlier expectations
.
With positive trends in each of the markets involved, and the expiration of traditional lithium contracts, it is likely to translate into record results
in the fourth quarter of this year.

Chile is already the world's largest copper producer, losing that title to Australia
in 2018.
To avoid further loss of market share, the country announced in October an upcoming tender
for exploration and production of 400,000 tonnes of lithium.

Companies granted the licence will have seven years to explore and develop the project, followed by 20 years of production, which can be extended for another two years
, the mining ministry said.

The country currently accounts for about 29% of the world's supply, but it plans to double production to about 250,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE)
by 2025.

According to Chile's forecasts, global demand for the metal will quadruple to 1.
8 million tonnes of lithium
by 2030.
The available supply is expected to be 1.
5 million tonnes
by then.
Chile's Atacama region supplies nearly a quarter of the world's lithium
.

In recent years, however, automakers, Indigenous communities and activists have become increasingly concerned about the environmental impact of lithium production in the arid region, home to some of the world's driest
deserts.