High in the Andes,
lies the world's largest reserves of the mineral
lithium which is likely to help power the electric
and hybrid vehicles of the future. The lithium is
locked in the brine of Salar de Uyuni, the largest
salt flats in the world. If oil transformed the
wealth and economic clout of the Middle East during
the last century is lithium about to do the same for
South America's poorest country, Bolivia? With
demand predicted to massively outstrip supply
companies from across the world are now queuing up
to register their interest with a government that is
determined to keep its resources under state
control.
