Wedonay.com Report on Mar 19th, Fernanda Ávila, a national deputy from Catamarca province, former provincial mining minister, and former mining secretary, recently stated that developing qualified suppliers and coordinating infrastructure between producing provinces and industry companies are her key priorities as the Executive Secretary of the Lithium Committee. She also participated in the PDAC conference in Toronto, highlighting renewed international investor interest in Argentina following the implementation of the RIGI framework.
The Lithium Committee, composed of the provinces of Catamarca, Jujuy, and Salta, aims to coordinate policies and strategies for the sector. The presidency rotates annually among the provinces, currently held by Jujuy, with Ávila responsible for executive coordination. National stakeholders including the Ministry of Productive Development, the Mining Secretariat, the Ministry of the Interior, CONICET, as well as industry companies and suppliers are also involved.
Discussing management priorities, Ávila noted: "Suppliers are a major challenge because we need to prepare for the future, not only in lithium but also in copper." She confirmed the Lithium Committee will collaborate with the Copper Committee, emphasizing "there are many shared interests, and supplier development is a cross-cutting issue."
Regarding strategies for developing local suppliers and labor, Ávila stressed the need to start with "a solid assessment of current capacities, future needs, and gaps." She said: "The first step is to understand where we are and in what direction we should move." She also mentioned that coordination is crucial to avoid wasting resources and requires working with national and provincial governments to develop a clear policy roadmap.
Infrastructure is another key area. Ávila pointed out: "Many companies operate in neighboring areas, so coordinating efforts to identify joint solutions is essential." She added that, given infrastructure limitations at the national level, "it is necessary to create dialogue platforms where the national government acts as a coordinator." The Federal Investment Council has already begun mapping infrastructure needs and emphasizes identifying synergies so that infrastructure can serve mining, hydrocarbons, tourism, or agriculture.
Other committee work includes harmonizing tax standards and coordinating with multilateral organizations like the Inter-American Development Bank, the World Bank, etc., to secure support. At the PDAC conference, Ávila noted strong interest from foreign investors in Argentina and Catamarca province. She attributed this interest to the implementation of RIGI: "This initiative restored a level of certainty, helping sustain investment despite lithium price volatility." She stated that interest levels have changed noticeably since RIGI's implementation, and the outlook is positive, especially in Catamarca, where copper, lithium, and gold projects are expected to advance.
