Eramet – The Lithium project is entering a new stage; Hervé Montégu appointed as Senior Vice President of Lithium Activities
Metals for tomorrow’s energy transition and mobility are central to Eramet’s strategy. Key metals include nickel and lithium. Lithium has a variety of applications, including energy storage (rechargeable li-ion batteries), and demand is expected to triple in the coming decade.
As of 1 January, 2019, Hervé Montégu is appointed Senior Vice President of Lithium Activities within the Eramet group.
Since November 2015, Hervé Montégu has been CEO of Comilog, the Group’s Gabonese subsidiary.
The new mission entrusted to Hervé Montégu is to develop this new activity. In particular, Eramet owns a lithium deposit of exceptional size in north-western Argentina, located at an altitude of 3,800 m in the province of Salta.
Eramet discovered the Centenario-Ratones deposit in 2012 and has held the mining rights since April 2014. It contains resources estimated at 9 million tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) and should enable increased industrial production of 24,000 tonnes of LCE a year, approximately 10% of the current market, for several decades.
The lithium project is now entering its final preparation phase. The completion of the technical and economic feasibility study is underway to specify the required investment, currently estimated at approximately €500 million for 24,000 tonnes. An investment decision is scheduled for the first half of 2019 for production to start at end-2021.
In addition to this project, Eramet is studying other development areas in lithium in Chile and Europe.
Commenting on this, Christel Bories, Eramet Chairman and CEO said: “The lithium project in Argentina is central to our strategy and I wish to give it every chance of success. Hervé Montégu has done a remarkable job at the helm of our Gabonese subsidiary. The Group’s Executive Committee therefore has every confidence in entrusting him with this new role. We are counting on Hervé to complete this mission with the highest level of operational excellence as well as the highest social and environmental standards.”
