"Private financing for Argentina’s lithium is anything but green, critics say", 01 July 2025

...Last year, the World Bank launched a program aimed at formalizing land tenure across the globe, arguing that climate action requires “direct access” to titled property for the private sector...

In 2022, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector branch of the World Bank, granted a $180 million loan to Australian mining company Allkem for a lithium mine in the Salar del Hombre Muerto salt pan in Argentina’s Catamarca province. IFC leadership said the project would help set high sustainability standards for the lithium mining industry. It also partnered with a private electricity company in Argentina to provide renewable energy to mining companies in the province — a project costing around $600 million...

Salar del Hombre Muerto faces water shortages exacerbated by lithium mining, and the project failed to adequately consult with local communities, critics say — a violation of international law. Some lithium mines also compromise the ancestral territory of Indigenous communities...

In a statement, World Bank Group said it carried out more than 185 community consultations between 2020 and 2021, and required clients to adhere to environmental and social performance standards. It also said only brackish groundwater unsuitable for human consumption was extracted, and that the process was subject to monitoring and adaptive management practices.

Arcadium Lithium, the company formed by a 2024 merger with Allkem and US company Livent, didn’t respond to a request for comment for this story.

In March 2024, a court in Argentina froze the adoption of new mining permits in the area where the Arcadium Lithium mine is located, citing environmental risks. However, Arcadium Lithium’s mine was allowed to continue operating...