The United States signed a memorandum of understanding with Peru on Thursday to secure supplies of minerals crucial to the energy transition and green energy technology, including copper and lithium from the Andes, officials said.
“Peru, with its vast reserves of copper, zinc, lithium and other important minerals, is an invaluable partner in meeting this immense growth in demand,” José W. Fernández, Under Secretary for Economic Growth, Energy and Environment at the U.S. State Department, told local media after signing the memorandum with Peruvian Foreign Minister Javier González-Olaechea.
The US official recalled that there are “models that indicate that demand for the most important strategic minerals could increase 100-fold by 2050 if we intend to meet our climate goals.” Last week, Fernandez began a tour of South America that began in Argentina — the world’s fourth largest producer of lithium — where he signed a similar memorandum on crucial minerals. He then traveled to Ecuador, and from there continued on to Peru.
Fernández clarified that the memorandum seeks to “exchange information” on mining projects focused on critical minerals and to learn about those mining plans in which Peru wishes to receive “investment or financing” from members of the Minerals Security Partnership (MSP), a multinational collaboration of more than 14 countries and the European Union.
Fernández recalled that there are many mining projects on the continent that are “highly feasible but have not been able to go ahead due to opposition from communities that do not see the benefits.” For this reason, he indicated that they will seek to work with the regions and mining towns where the projects are located “to ensure that the benefits of these minerals also reach the mining towns.”
The U.S. official said that in September —taking advantage of the United Nations General Assembly in New York— the first meeting will be held in a forum of mineral-producing countries, including Argentina, Ecuador and Peru, together with member nations of the Association for Mineral Security.
According to official data, Peru produces eight crucial minerals useful for the global energy transition, including copper, iron, lead, molybdenum, silver, zinc, indium and graphite. The South American country is one of the world’s leading producers of copper, 77% of which goes to China. In July, Energy and Mines Minister Rómulo Mucho indicated that Peru also has at least 6 tons of lithium reserves.
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