Warren Buffett-Backed BYD Plans To Build $290M Lithium Facility In Chile: Report

Warren Buffett-backed EV maker BYD Company (OTC:BYDDY) plans to build a $290 million lithium cathode factory in Chile, as per the Chilean economic development agency CORFO.
The proposed facility will be located in Chile's northern Antofagasta region, reported Reuters.
The Chilean government has named BYD as a qualified lithium producer. The government qualification enables BYD to have access to lithium carbonate quotas at preferential prices.
The facility will use lithium carbonate as the input to produce 50,000 tonnes per year of lithium iron phosphate (LFP) for the cathodes.
"We hope to give a strong boost to promote the generation of products in the lithium value chain," the report quoted CORFO Executive Vice President Jose Miguel Benavente.
The factory is expected to begin operations in 2025 and create 500 jobs.