At the same time, Codelco wants to boost its output of copper which has slumped to its lowest in a quarter-century.
Some analysts have questioned whether the copper company with no experience as a lithium miner can tackle both challenges at once.
But industry insiders told Reuters Codelco will probably focus its own resources on copper while negotiating contracts for lithium operations and letting other miners do the work.
The sources said the lithium strategy was being led by executives including Jaime San Martin, manager of new business development, known by some within Codelco as "lithium man".
"But I think lithium is an excellent opportunity for Codelco to help them navigate their very difficult copper situation."
Persons:
Ivan Alvarado, SANTIAGO, Gabriel Boric, Codelco, Reuters Codelco, Albemarle, Jaime San Martin, Alejandro Rivera, Maximo Pacheco, Minera, SQM, Pacheco, Juan Carlos Guajardo, Plusmining, Guajardo, Andre Sougarret, Fabian Andrés Cambero, Alexander Villegas, Adam Jourdan, David Gregorio Our
Organizations:
REUTERS, Reuters, Tesla, BMW, Finance, Salares, Thomson
Locations:
Chile, Australia, Albemarle, Indonesia, Freeport, McMoRan, Chile's, Berlin, Beijing, Codelco, Santiago