Market reports indicate that Chile’s state‑owned copper giant Codelco is in advanced talks to finalize a key lithium deal with SQM by Q3. This agreement is part of Codelco’s broader strategy to expand into the lithium market amid ongoing commodity market volatility.

Talks between four major indigenous communities and SQM, in partnership with Codelco, broke down following a statement dated April 14, 2024. The communities criticized the companies for lacking a genuine willingness to engage in dialogue and for failing to address environmental and social concerns linked to expanding lithium mining in the Atacama salt flat.

Atacameña communities have denounced a memorandum of understanding between SQM and Codelco for a lithium exploitation project until 2060, asserting that the agreement was made without proper consultation with local indigenous groups.

Indigenous groups in Chile protested an agreement signed last month between SQM and state-run Codelco, alleging that the deal sidelined local communities from discussions concerning lithium mining in the Atacama, despite government promises of a dialogue table.

On December 27, 2019, a Chilean environmental court upheld a complaint brought by indigenous communities regarding SQM's water usage practices linked to its lithium mining operations. The ruling declared that SQM’s compliance plan was insufficient to mitigate the negative environmental impacts in the fragile Atacama region, especially concerning the water needs of indigenous communities and other local stakeholders.

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile (SQM) admitted to engaging in corrupt practices by making illicit payments to politically-connected individuals between 2008 and 2015. The company falsified its books to disguise bribery, recorded false consulting fees, and ultimately agreed to pay a criminal penalty of over $15 million as part of a deferred prosecution agreement, along with a separate $15 million SEC settlement.