Albemarle touts new project to boost its Chilean lithium output by 30%

Albemarle said on Thursday it is moving forward on a project it claims will boost its Chilean lithium production by 30% without extracting more brine from the environmentally sensitive Salar de Atacama, the world’s driest desert.

The company, the world’s largest producer of the white metal used to make electric vehicle batteries, has teased the industry for more than a year that it has production-enhancing technology. The lack of details, though, has irked some investors and Chilean authorities.