In 2017 Morales started talking about lithium mining. The country holds vast amounts of the mineral used in mobile phones, power tools and electric cars, but has so far done virtually nothing with it. The more than doubling of the lithium carbonate price between 2010 and 2017 no doubt had the President visualizing dollar signs. “We will develop a huge lithium industry, over $800 million have already been made available,” Morales told the German DPA news agency.

Issue had been that government made state owned company that was not controlled by biggest companies who are lithium call producers as most other such companies. And who did not sell product using special agreement and ultra low prices, not good.