Russia gains access to largest reserves of rare metal, leaves Germany with nothing

The news that came from Bolivia was left without much attention, although it was worth paying attention to.

Bolivia entered into a lithium production agreement with Russian company Uranium One Group. The deal is a significant achievement for Russia as it gives the country access to Bolivia's vast reserves of this rare metal, German broadcaster ZDF noted.

Bolivia is on the list of a few countries that have large lithium reserves. Lithium deposits in Bolivia are estimated at around 23 million tons.

Lithium is in high demand all over the world. The metal is in particular used for the production of batteries for electric vehicle. The demand for lithium is expected to grow several times by 2050.

Many countries already compete for the right to access large deposits of this valuable metal. Russia has succeeded in this struggle.

Germany is also showing interest in gaining access to lithium through its partners. Chancellor Olaf Scholz has long been trying to conclude contracts with South American countries, but the German authorities have nothing to boast of yet.

The implementation of the German-Bolivian joint venture project failed, ZDF said.

The German-Bolivian enterprise was set up in 2018. However, the enterprise went bankrupt due to the mistrust of the Bolivian authorities in Germany and German managers.

Russia increased its presence in Bolivia and thus cut Germany's access to Bolivian lithium deposits.