Albemarle says Chile lithium plant operating normally after incident last week
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FILE PHOTO: A drone view of the Lithium Conversion plant of U.S. lithium producer Albemarle, in La Negra, Antofagasta, Chile, March 2, 2024. REUTERS/Cristian Rudolffi/File Photo
SANTIAGO (Reuters) -Albemarle's La Negra lithium processing plant in Chile is operating normally after an "incident" last week, the company told Reuters on Tuesday, after a local lawmaker said authorities had opened an investigation.
There were no injuries and sales of the metal used to make lithium-ion batteries are not expected to be affected, Albemarle said, without providing additional details.
It was not immediately clear if operations had temporarily shut down last week. Albemarle gave no more details of the incident.
Jaime Araya, who represents the Antofagasta region where the plant is located in the Chilean Congress' lower house, the Chamber of Deputies, last week sent a letter to Chile's mining regulator and labor office requesting an inspection of the site after receiving a complaint that a pipe containing acid had burst.
Araya on Tuesday told Reuters he was informed that the labor inspector’s office had opened an investigation.
A source familiar with Albemarle's operations said such probes are standard procedure and that the plant is operating normally. A second source added that the problem affected only one tank.
A union leader for plant workers, Elias Torres, said he could not comment because an investigation was underway.
The labor inspector's office said it could not provide information because the matter was under review.
Albemarle's shares were down slightly in Tuesday midday trading to $80.14.
Charlotte, North Carolina-based Albemarle on Monday said its Chief Operating Officer Netha Johnson will leave the company as part of a management reorganization. Johnson's exit is not connected to the Chilean incident, a source told Reuters.
(Reporting by Daina Beth Solomon, Fabian Cambero and Ernest Scheyder; Editing by Alexander Villegas, Jan Harvey and Alistair Bell)
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