The Mexican government reaffirmed that lithium is a strategic resource whose exploitation is the exclusive responsibility of the State, and confirmed that the legal process continues in Sonora against the Chinese company Bacanora Lithium, which maintains that its concession predates the constitutional reform that reserved this mineral for the nation.
The legal defense is based on the current constitutional mandate, which establishes that lithium cannot be granted to private entities and that its exploration and exploitation are the responsibility of the Mexican State.
Currently, the federal government is in the evidence-gathering phase of the legal proceedings, where the scope of the concession granted before the legal amendment is being analyzed.
The company argues that its mining title was issued prior to the reform that declared lithium a strategic resource. However, the federal administration maintains that the new regulations are a matter of public order and respond to a higher national interest linked to the energy transition and sovereignty over critical resources.
The case could set an important precedent regarding legal certainty, foreign investment, and state control of strategic minerals.
Alongside the legal controversy, the government is promoting the strengthening of Litio para México (LitioMX), the state-owned company responsible for coordinating public policy in this area.
One of the biggest technical challenges lies in the fact that the Sonora deposits contain lithium in clay, the extraction of which is more complex and expensive than that obtained from brines, as is the case in other Latin American countries.
To address this challenge, the Mexican Petroleum Institute (IMP) is working on developing national technology that will allow for the design of economically viable and environmentally sustainable extraction processes.
Lithium is a key component in the manufacture of batteries for electric vehicles, renewable energy storage, and electronic devices, making it a critical input in the context of the global energy transition.
The budget allocated to LitioMX and the collaboration with scientific institutions are part of a long-term strategy to position the country in the clean energy supply chain.
Source: debate
