Rio Tinto fires up two Argentina lithium projects in $1.4B push

Rio Tinto just flipped the switch on two lithium operations in Argentina's Catamarca province. The Fénix 1B expansion and the brand-new Sal de Vida plant are already ramping up, and the mining giant says both came online ahead of schedule in the second quarter of 2026. Combined, they're built to churn out 25,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent a year at full tilt.

The price tag: roughly $1.4 billion, or about €1.25 billion. Fénix 1B added 10,000 tonnes of annual capacity to Argentina's oldest commercial lithium operation, which has been producing since 1997, with total on-site capacity now sitting at around 40,000 tonnes. Sal de Vida is a fresh lithium carbonate site about 20 kilometres northeast of Fénix, targeting 15,000 tonnes a year.

CEO Simon Trott called it a proud moment for the company and a milestone for Argentina's lithium industry, pointing to nearly three decades of production in Catamarca and the local workforce behind it. He framed the launches as proof of Rio Tinto's project delivery muscle as it chases a global target of 200,000 tonnes of LCE annual capacity by 2028.

Catamarca is only part of the map. Rio Tinto also runs or plans lithium work in Jujuy and Salta, including the flagship Rincón project, which is eyed for a long-term capacity of 60,000 tonnes per year with commercial operations pencilled in for 2028.

The Argentina push comes as Rio Tinto tightens its belt elsewhere. The company walked away from Serbia's Jadar project late last year while it was still in permitting, saying it would prioritise shorter-term opportunities. Trott, who took the top job in August 2025, has reorganised the group into three units — iron ore, aluminium combined with lithium, and copper.

Rio Tinto hasn't been shy about spending on battery materials. It put $6.7 billion into acquiring lithium producer Arcadium in 2024 and invested in Canada's Nemaska Lithium earlier this year, with lithium positioned as a fourth pillar alongside iron ore, aluminium and copper. Whether that pace holds during a stretch of cost-cutting remains an open question.