#China to exploit world’s largest #lithium reserve - in #Bolivia

BOLIVIA PARTNERS UP WITH CHINA TO DEVELOP THE SALT FLATS’ LITHIUM RESERVES. - Pulsamerica Comments by Peter Joseph Moons. Bolivia's Uyuni Salt Flat, the "world’s largest lithium reserve" (per Pulsamerica) will soon see Chinese investors.  Both nations signed a deal to exploit the slat flat's lithium content.  Bolivia benefits as the nation receives external technology, extraction assistance, market distribution, an a revenue stream.  China, of course, makes another in-road into the developing world to exploit another limited natural resource.  Lithium, of course, is used in batteries of all types: from cellular phones to hybrid automobiles -- a market with no end in sight. Interestingly, the Uyuni Salt Flat is an 'other worldly' place: one where the sky and the salt flat seamlessly merge: The challenge for Bolivia is two-fold: Receiving benefits from this agreement with China in terms of technology transfer, return on investment, and infrastructure development, with, secondly, not destroying the pristine environment.  Of course, China and its companies can by their access to a highly prized commodity, likely to the exclusion of other investors encroaching on the lucrative Uyuni area. More photos of this amazing corner of Bolivia are here.