How Brazil could become a global lithium producer

More exploration could turn Brazil into a major global lithium player. 

Minas Gerais state, already a key iron ore producer, concentrates most of Brazil’s lithium reserves, but other regions also show promising indicators.

Ioná de Abreu Cunha, head of the special projects and strategic minerals at the mines and energy ministry's geological survey department (SGB), tells BNamericas about the potential and how it should be developed.

BNamericas: How does Brazilian lithium differ from that in other countries in the region?

Cunha: Our lithium deposits are in pegmatites and differ from those in Chile, Argentina and Bolivia, for example, which are brine-type lithium deposits.

In Brazil, Minas Gerais is currently the only state with actual production in the region of Vale do Jequitinhonha.

BNamericas: And what’s the difference to the deposits in Chile, Argentina and Bolivia?

Cunha: Roughly speaking, it is the type of rock in which lithium exists.

Pegmatites are harder rock, while brine is pumped to the surface and evaporated to concentrate the minerals. These are different extraction models, but I would say that lithium in pegmatites is purer.

However, given the growing demand for lithium, due to the accelerating energy transition, what really counts is the volume of deposits countries have to meet this demand. The more, the better.

BNamericas: How big is Brazil’s lithium potential?

Cunha: We have great potential in several states. I already mentioned production in Minas Gerais, but I also see potential in the northeast.

We evaluated the potential in the Jequitinhonha valley in 2016, 2017. But now we have studies that identified potential in Borborema province, part of Rio Grande do Norte state, and advanced research in Ceará state and even in other regions in Minas Gerais, closer to São João del Rei.

BNamericas: What about other areas?

Cunha: I would also mention potential in Bahia state, southwest of Tocantins state.

Since Brazil has many areas with potential, we have seen growing interest from international investors.

BNamericas: And how does developing the potential advance?

Cunha: We recently completed studies in Borborema province, where we found an area with lithium probability and identified several targets.

Production has not yet started in that region, but I really believe in its potential. Some companies are even filing exploration requests. But, of course, it will depend on the results of the exploration phase.

BNamericas: Are the potential lithium areas located in environmentally sensitive regions for which obtaining permits could prove challenging?

Cunha: So far, the regions we surveyed have not been in environmentally sensitive areas nor on indigenous land. 

BNamericas: What are the main challenges to fully developing Brazil’s lithium potential?

Cunha: This answer applies to the entire mining sector – and it's exploration. Brazil is a very large country, so to develop the potential, investments are first needed for exploration to identify the potential.

For this, we need public policy to foster exploration, but we also need private sector investment to support production chains close to projects. It is a set of actions that are necessary.

BNamericas: Why are newer and smaller, rather than big and established miners entering the lithium sector? Will that change at some point?

Cunha: My opinion is that the major mining companies have been operating for a long time and are very well-established in their sectors. Changing segments and exploring new minerals requires a lot of effort, a lot of time to make projects viable.

I believe that the growth in the appeal of new minerals, such as lithium, given the energy transition, will also start to attract the interest of large mining companies.

BNamericas: What other minerals have potential in Brazil?

Cunha: We have a lot of potential in graphite, rare earth elements, copper, uranium, nickel and cobalt. But again, we need to invest a lot more in the exploration phase.

It would also help if states had mineral exploration departments like many did in the past. Currently, only Bahia has this kind of department in the CBPM. It would be good if other states also invested in this matter.