Bolivia Battles To Exploit Its Lithium Reserves

UYUNI, BOLIVIA - AUGUST 14: Lithium carbonate passes through the band filter machine, where it is ready for bagging, at the Llipi pilot Plant in the Uyuni Salt Flats on August 14, 2022 in Uyuni, Bolivia. The Uyuni Salt Flats, in the Potosi province, have the largest lithium reserves in the world. In 2008, former president Evo Morales nationalized the industry of lithium and then created the state-run company Yacimientos de Litio Bolivianos (YLB). Despite announcements and promises, extraction and export volumes never reached significant levels due to lack of investments and technology. Now the Bolivian government is working on strategic partnerships with foreign firms to boost the extraction of the so-called "white gold" or "petroleum of the 21st century", key to produce batteries and electric vehicles. (Footage by Gaston Brito Miserocchi/Getty Images)