Diversified miner Rio Tinto is betting on the Lithium Triangle of South America to play a central role in meeting the world’s rising lithium demand, with CEO Jakob Stausholm describing the region as the “right place” for lithium mining.

In a recent discussion at the Bank of America conference, Stausholm said the company’s lithium strategy, which is anchored by its Rincon project in Argentina and bolstered by the acquisition of Arcadium Lithium, positions Rio Tinto as one of the largest holders of lithium globally.

The Rincon project is producing at pilot scale, with a full-scale development under way. Stausholm highlighted the integration of Rincon and Arcadium under the leadership of Paul Graves as key to Rio’s ambitions in lithium.

“We are the leader of DLE [direct lithium extraction] technology and . . . we can bring in production at the lowest cost point, so we’re very excited about that,” said Stausholm.

He acknowledged that lithium was historically seen as too small a market for a major mining company but said that had changed with the accelerating adoption of electric vehicles and the growth in stationary battery storage.

“If you think yesterday, you're right. If you think tomorrow, you're wrong,” Stausholm said. “The brines in the Lithium Triangle in Latin America – are, in my view, the right place for the world to find its lithium and for the miners the right place to get to the bottom of the cost curve.”

He said doubts around DLE were understandable but pointed to Arcadium’s 28-year operating history with the technology as validation.

“This is not that we have run something for three months — we are the world leader in the DLE technologies,” Stausholm said. “There’s no doubt DLE [is the] solution of the future.”

On its lithium supply mix, Stausholm said Rio sees brine resources as the more cost-effective route compared with hard rock. While Rio does hold high-quality hard-rock prospects in Canada, he noted that hard-rock processing remained challenged by China’s dominance in conversion capacity.

“We have concluded that we can get cheaper to better grades by going the brine route rather than the hard rock route,” he said. “With the DLE solution on site, you go straight to battery-grade lithium and we feel we can compete with everyone, including the best operators from China.”

The Rio Tinto CEO also expressed confidence in Argentina as an investment destination, citing recent legislative reforms designed to provide legal and fiscal stability. The Promotional Regime for Large Investment, or RIGI for its Spanish acronym, is said to be a “game-changer”.

“There is no country that has gone bankrupt more times than Argentina, so it is quite important,” he said. “I feel very comfortable about investing in Argentina.”

Rio Tinto is not actively pursuing more mergers and acquisitions in lithium following its Arcadium deal. Stausholm described the acquisition as both organic and inorganic in nature, providing a pipeline of growth options.

“We absolutely don’t need to do more M&A . . . it’s really up to us to deliver to our shareholders.”