AMG Critical Materials is exploring investment opportunities for lithium processing facilities in Brazil and Portugal as it seeks to establish what it describes as a “fully Western” supply chain and reduce its reliance on China, a company executive said.
AMG is among the few companies in the Western hemisphere with lithium refining capacity, operating a lithium hydroxide refinery in Germany supplied with spodumene from its Brazilian mine. However, the concentrate currently must be shipped to China for intermediate processing before being sent back to Europe for refining. “Still, the concentrate must be sent to China for processing, where its purity is enhanced to around 100% from 6% — then back to Germany for refining,” board member Michael Connor told Argus.
China dominates the global spodumene midstream, and AMG said it aims to lessen that dependence by building lithium processing capacity closer to its extraction sites. The company is the second-largest spodumene producer in Brazil and the largest shareholder in Savannah Resources, which is developing the Barroso lithium project in northern Portugal. The project is expected to become Europe’s largest lithium mine, with more than 39 million metric tonnes of reserves, and is scheduled to come on line in 2028.
Connor said AMG’s strategy is to develop its supply chain in stages, particularly in Brazil, to support refining activities in Europe. Brazilian authorities, including President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, have encouraged companies to invest in midstream processing capacity to add value locally. “The strength of the resource base, existing industrial capabilities, and an increasing policy focus on value-added processing all support the case for longer-term investment,” Connor said.
Portugal, meanwhile, offers logistical advantages due to its proximity to AMG’s German refinery, helping reduce transportation costs and complexity. AMG said it is still assessing project timelines, plant configurations and sequencing, and it remains unclear whether a midstream facility would be developed first in Europe or Brazil, or what its initial capacity would be.
AMG’s German refinery is expected to complete its ramp-up and reach its nameplate capacity of 20,000 tonnes per year of lithium hydroxide by the end of this year, the company said.