Rebirth of England.

Chapter 767 SQM Company
"We have donated $100 million to the rescue operation at the San Jose copper mine in Chile and have sent a team to assist in the rescue efforts..."

The person who said this to Barron was Williams Bullard, executive vice president of West African Mining Group. As for Andrew Cole, CEO of West African Mining Group, he led the team directly to Chile.

As for the San Jose copper mine accident mentioned by Williams, it refers to the landslide accident that occurred on August 8 at a copper and gold mine called San Jose in the Atacama Desert in northern Chile.

This accident trapped 32 Chilean miners and 1 Bolivian miner who were working underground 700 meters underground. Rescue work was immediately launched. Chile attached great importance to this accident. The Chilean President and the Minister of Health both went to the scene of the accident to organize rescue.

By August 8, rescue workers had finally dug a narrow passage with a diameter of 22 inches (about 6 cm) from the ground to the miners' shelter.

Then they used this passage to receive a small note from a surviving miner in the shelter: "All 33 of us are in the shelter and are safe."

At this time, the miners survived for 17 days on the small amount of emergency food stored underground, which was a miracle.

Then using this passage, rescuers began to deliver supplies to the trapped miners, including food, water and air...

They were even able to talk to their families and watch ball games—after the tunnel was expanded, they sent down a television and signal line.

According to the rescuers' plan, they will use a special drill to penetrate the hard rock and dig a rescue tunnel with a wellhead diameter of about 66 cm (circumference of about 207 cm, equivalent to the size of a bicycle tire) leading directly to the space where the miners are trapped.

This requires all trapped miners to keep their waist circumference below 90 cm, because the rescue tools will also take up space in the rescue tunnel.

According to the plan, it will take 120 days to build this rescue tunnel.

The West African Mining Group also provided assistance for this rescue, including donating funds and sending an experienced team...

The reason why they are so active this time is that the West African Mining Group is seeking to acquire shares of the Chilean Chemical and Mining Company (SQM) and even further control the company.

Therefore, they hope to take advantage of the current opportunity to gain the favor of the Chilean side.

Andrew Cole, CEO of West African Mining Group, led his team directly to Chile for this purpose.

The reason why the West African Mining Group took a fancy to this company is that it hopes to obtain the lithium mining rights owned by the Chilean Chemical and Mining Company (SQM), especially their lithium mining rights in Chile.

As we all know, Chile is very rich in lithium resources and is the world's largest lithium reserve country. Its proven reserves currently account for more than 36% of the world's proven reserves!

Chile's lithium resources are mainly distributed in the salt lake area in the north, located in the so-called "lithium triangle" region of South America. The lithium resources in the "lithium triangle" region include the Atacama Salt Lake, the Umbletores Salt Lake and the Parapolca Salt Lake.

Among them, the Atacama Salt Lake is located in Chile and is one of the world's most famous lithium producing areas.

The mining rights of the salt lake are mainly in the hands of Chilean Chemical and Mining Company (SQM), which produces lithium carbonate known for its high quality. In addition, Chilean Chemical and Mining Company has also acquired some lithium mining rights in Bolivia, Argentina and Australia through acquisitions, and can be said to be the company with the highest lithium reserves.

Chile's Chemical and Mining Company has mature technology and optimized lithium production processes, which can effectively control costs, and has stable production capacity and high product quality.

This is why it was spotted by the West African Mining Group, which hopes to acquire its shares and even complete its controlling stake in the company.

After all, Barron knows that lithium mines are very important for the battery industry in the future new energy industry.

Currently, the price of lithium carbonate ore, the main source of lithium, is less than $1 per ton, but in ten years, its price will soar to more than $5.

By then, Chile's chemical and mining companies will also double their wealth because of the rich lithium mines they own.

Chilean Chemicals and Mining Company (SQM) was founded in 1968 and is headquartered in Santiago, the capital of Chile.

They were listed on NASDAQ in 1993, and relying on their geographical resource advantages, they have developed into a global professional manufacturer of potassium nitrate, iodine, and lithium, accounting for approximately 50%, 40%, and 35% of the global market share respectively.

In Barron's previous life, China's Tianqi Lithium acquired 2018% of SQM's shares for $40.66 billion in 23.77. However, this acquisition caused disputes after Chile announced that it would nationalize domestic lithium mines. Tianqi Lithium's interests in SQM were infringed, so it had no choice but to resort to litigation...

However, SQM's current market value is less than US$45 billion. For Barron, who hopes to get involved in the lithium mining and processing industry, which will have a huge impact on the battery industry in the future, it is naturally a very suitable acquisition opportunity.

"We have reached an agreement with PotashCorp and are ready to acquire their 12% stake in Chilean Chemical Mining Company for US$25 billion. This acquisition can be completed after SQM confirms it. However, if we want to continue to acquire more shares of SQM, we need to do more work..."

Before going to Santiago, the CEO of West African Mining Group first arrived in Canada and reached an agreement with PotashCorp, the world's largest potash fertilizer manufacturer, on the acquisition of SQM's shares.

It is worth mentioning that in Barron’s previous life, the 23.77% of SQM shares purchased by China Tianqi Lithium were acquired from Canadian Potash Corporation.

To purchase the 25% stake in SQM held by PotashCorp, West African Mining Group offered US$12 billion. The corresponding Chilean chemical mining company is valued at more than US$50 billion, which gives PotashCorp a considerable premium, which is why they are willing to sell these shares.

"Lithium ore is very important for battery production. With the improvement of lithium battery technology, its application scenarios will become more and more abundant, so its price will definitely usher in a wave of strong increases..."

For the West African mining group, Barron's is citing the future rise in the value of lithium mines as the reason for acquiring the Chilean chemical mining company.

What he values ​​more is the demand for lithium batteries from industries including electronic consumer products such as mobile phones and electric vehicles. It can be said that the amount of lithium mines controlled directly determines the voice in the new energy industry.

(End of this chapter)