BBC NEWS | Programmes | From Our Own Correspondent | Prosperity promise of Bolivia's salt flats

Below is the link to one of many news articles in the last several months about the lithium deposits in Bolivia. No one knows for sure how much lithium is really here. What is without any question is the size of the salt flats known as the Salar de Uyuni: the biggest on the earth.
The bigger question to many is how Bolivia can avoid having the lithium taken out at low value. Bolivia of course is the home of what was the largest single silver deposit on earth: the Cero Rico of Potosí. The Spaniards exploited the Cero Rico over a period of hundreds of years. For many years the city of Potosí was the largest city in the Americas. NONE of that wealth stayed here. In fact, the Spaniards used forced labor of the indigenous people to extract the ore. Many died. Hundreds of years later the great tin wealth of Bolivia was once again exploited and only a few experienced the financial benefits. So when the largest natural gas reserves outside of Venezuela were uncovered in the late 20th century, can you guess where the money went? Supposedly the extraction contracts were heavily tilted towards the concession holders. The new president of Bolivia, Evo Morales, nationalized the petroleum operations in Bolivia starting in 2006 to keep more of the financial benefit here. Thus it is that many in Bolivia feel that they have to be especially watchful that the lithium extraction / mining concessions don't do the same. Obviously if Bolivia can force the battery makers to build their plants here, then even more of the wealth will remain here.
Keep checking back. This will be a hot political topic in Bolivia as we get closer to the national elections in December 2009.

Prosperity promise of Bolivia's salt flats