Informist, Tuesday, Mar. 25, 2025

--Sources: KABIL to finalise plan for lithium mining in Argentina by mid-2027

--Sources: KABIL to appoint consultant to pick Argentina exploration partner

--Sources: KABIL to complete Argentina lithium mines exploration by mid-2026

--Sources: Pilot plant study for KABIL's Argentina lithium mining in 2026-27

By Avishek Rakshit

KOLKATA - Khanij Bidesh India Ltd., the state-owned company exploring lithium mining operations in Argentina to secure sourcing of the critical mineral for India, is expected to finalise its plan by mid-2027, sources in the know told Informist. A decision on the plan will be based on findings during the exploration stages.

Sources said that Khanij Bidesh India, or KABIL as is commonly referred to, has started non-invasive exploration of three mines in Argentina and its findings are expected by March-end or early April, which could indicate how much lithium reserves the three blocks hold. Once the findings are in, a project management consultant will be appointed which will select an invasive exploration partner for KABIL - a joint venture between three government enterprises - National Aluminium Co. Ltd., Hindustan Copper Ltd., and Mineral Exploration & Consultancy Ltd.

"By May-June 2026 the invasive exploration is expected to be over and then, the plan is to set up a pilot plant study," one of the sources said. "Somewhere in mid-2027, based on the findings of the exploration and the pilot plant, the decision will be made on going ahead with mining lithium from the allotted mines."

The non-invasive phase of exploration is expected to be over by April, after which invasive exploration, or the final phase of exploration, will commence. This phase is estimated to be completed by March 2026.

In the mining industry, non-invasive exploration refers to the techniques companies deploy to first gather information about the mine without causing environmental harm or altering the mine surface. Invasive mining, on the other hand, deploys technologies such as drilling, trenching, or blasting the surface of the mine to determine the actual content of the mine, and usually leads to environmental damage.

"After the final phase, the pilot plant will be built and a study will be conducted which will take another year to complete. So, it is estimated that the mining operations cannot commence before mid-2027," said one of the sources aware of the company's plans.

KABIL has been awarded a total of five lithium blocks in Catamarca by the Argentine government-owned Catamarca Minera Y Energetica Sociedad Del Estado. Of these, exploration permissions are in place for three blocks. The blocks are spread across an area covering 15,703 hectares.

"It is too early to state what kind of investments will the plant and mining entail as it is still in early exploratory stage," one of the sources said. KABIL has approved an initial budget of INR 2 billion for exploration and initial operations.

According to industry officials, Argentina is estimated to hold around 19 million tonnes of lithium reserves, around 20% of the world's total lithium reserves of 98 million tonnes. Bolivia holds the largest reserves at 23 million tonnes, and Chile holds the third-largest at 9.3 million tonnes. Usually, Argentina exports lithium to China, which accounts for 41.5% of its total lithium exports. Around 31% of the exports are shipped to Japan, 12.8% to South Korea, and 9% to the US.

India imported 117.4 million tonnes of lithium in 2023-24 (Apr-Mar), up 13.8% year-on-year. The country's import bill for the metal stood at $33.4 mln, up only 1% year-on-year. The largest consignments came in from Hong Kong, China, Indonesia, and Singapore. Lithium is primarily used to make batteries for electric vehicles and cellphones.

Sources said the ore to metal ratio for lithium is 48:1, which essentially means that for every 48 tonnes of ore mined, only 1 tonne of lithium can be extracted.

At 1203 IST, shares of National Aluminium Co were down 3.2% at INR 181.1, and the Hindustan Copper stock was 3.6% lower at nearly INR 223.0 on the National Stock Exchange. End

IST, or Indian Standard Time, is five-and-a-half hours ahead of GMT

Edited by Avishek Dutta

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