Bolivia’s right-wing presidential candidate Jorge Quiroga has vowed to cancel multi-billion-dollar lithium extraction agreements signed by the outgoing government with Russia and China if elected president in October. The deals, worth a combined $2 billion, were intended to help Bolivia catch up in the race to mine the mineral.
Quiroga claims the deals were selected “behind the back” of local authorities and said he would propose a new law on mineral deposits that precludes “favoritism”. He has also pledged a radical overhaul of Bolivia’s big-state economic model if elected, including steep spending cuts.
The lithium extraction industry is a key issue in the campaign, with Bolivia possessing some of the world’s largest reserves of the metal used in smartphone and electric vehicle batteries. The country’s indigenous groups had previously taken the government to court over environmental concerns related to the deals.
Quiroga’s challenger, Rodrigo Paz, has campaigned on a more moderate platform, ruling out strict austerity measures but promising to cut $1.2 billion in annual fuel subsidies and save another $1.3 billion in unspecified “superfluous spending”.
Source: https://www.france24.com/en/americas/20250826-bolivia-china-russia-lithium