Over the coming years, new extraction technologies, changes in demand and environmental concerns will impact the competitiveness of extraction activities in the lithium triangle. The likely shift to Direct Lithium Extraction (DLE) -- a mechanical brine-extraction process that filters lithium in a matter of days, rather than the months required by current brine extraction -- is set to have a major impact on the industry. The method is currently in testing, but as it is scaled up for industrial use in the coming years, it could significantly accelerate lithium mining from brine. Though DLE is more expensive than brine extraction, it is less expensive than spodumene extraction, meaning that it could provide Bolivia, Chile and Argentina with the tools needed to increase investment attractiveness, while potentially enabling the region to notably increase annual production. However, the outlook for global lithium demand is less certain, even as the push for the...
