Company Insight · Chile · Novandino Litio · Codelco · SQM · Salar de Atacama · Updated September 2026
Novandino Litio: Ownership, Production and Salar Futuro
Novandino Litio is already an operating lithium business in the Salar de Atacama. The current company combines Codelco majority ownership, SQM-led management through 2030, large-scale lithium sales and the proposed Salar Futuro investment programme for the 2031–2060 operating phase.
Novandino Litio is now both an operating lithium company and the platform for the next large investment cycle in the Salar de Atacama.
Nova Andino Litio SpA is the legal company created through the December 2025 merger of Minera Tarar SpA and SQM Salar SpA. The business is branded Novandino Litio. Codelco holds one share more than 50% of the company, while SQM holds one share less than 50%.
Ownership and operational control are different during the first phase. SQM manages the business through 2030 and holds the majority of votes required for operational decisions, subject to reserved matters and Codelco veto rights. From 2031, Codelco is scheduled to control management and nominate the board majority.
Novandino is already producing and selling at scale. SQM reported 75.8 thousand tonnes of LCE sales from Novandino in Q2 2026 and 138.2 thousand tonnes in the first half of the year. It expects 2026 production of 280–290 thousand tonnes of LCE and more than 300 thousand tonnes of production capacity by the end of 2027.
The next structural step is Salar Futuro, an approximately US$3 billion project now in environmental assessment. Its filed scope includes direct lithium extraction, brine reinjection, new process plants, pipelines, camps, substations and 220 kV transmission infrastructure.
For wider context, see Econosur’s Lithium Mining in South America, Codelco company insight, Chile lithium analysis, Energy & Infrastructure and Chile–China analysis.
Core market reading:
Novandino should now be read as an operating company and a project-execution platform. Current sales show commercial scale, while Salar Futuro adds a multi-year investment programme in processing, extraction technology, water and brine systems, power infrastructure and supplier qualification.
Current Status in September 2026
Nova Andino Litio SpA is legally formed, commercially active and operating under the first phase of the Codelco-SQM partnership. The company was created through the merger completed on 27 December 2025, while its legal continuity comes from the surviving SQM Salar entity. The current corporate brand is Novandino Litio.
The latest public operating data come from SQM’s Q2 2026 results. Novandino sold 75.8 thousand tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent in the second quarter and 138.2 thousand tonnes in the first six months of 2026. SQM reported Q2 Novandino lithium revenue of approximately US$1.654 billion and an average realized lithium price of about US$21.8 per kilogram.
The operating phase remains SQM-led through 2030. SQM’s 2025 Form 20-F states that SQM controls management of the business during the first term and holds the majority of votes required for operational decisions, subject to reserved matters and Codelco veto rights. From 2031, Codelco is scheduled to control management and nominate the board majority.
The governance picture is also clearer than in the earlier version of this profile. Novandino’s published July 2026 board list identifies Bernardo Fontaine Talavera as president. The other listed directors are Alfredo Moreno Charme, Ricardo Ramos Rodríguez, Hernan Uribe Gabler, Manuel Ovalle Edwards and Luz Granier Bulnes. The company’s management list identifies Carlos Díaz Ortiz as general manager and Germán Pérez as supply chain manager.
The largest current project-development milestone is Salar Futuro. Novandino submitted environmental and technical documentation for the project in 2026. The Chilean Environmental Assessment Service describes a 30-year continuation project that includes direct lithium extraction, conditioned-brine reinjection, new processing infrastructure and two 220 kV transmission lines with substations.
Operating company: yes. Novandino is already producing and selling lithium.
Salar Futuro environmentally approved: no. The project remains in environmental assessment.
Salar Futuro construction started: not established by the reviewed public sources.
Codelco already controls daily operations: no. SQM manages the business through 2030.
Supplier access route publicly visible: yes. Novandino operates a supplier portal with registration, accreditation, purchases and tenders, invoicing and sustainability requirements.
What Is Novandino Litio?
Nova Andino Litio SpA resulted from the merger of Codelco subsidiary Minera Tarar SpA into SQM Salar SpA, the surviving legal entity. The business now operates under the Novandino Litio brand and holds the Corfo agreements for the Salar de Atacama through 2060.
The company concentrates the assets, subsidiaries, international offices, permits, technical knowledge and human resources needed for the lithium business following SQM’s internal reorganisation during 2024 and 2025. It also preserves continuity under the existing Corfo contracts and the contracts designed for the period beginning in 2031.
This makes Novandino a new ownership and governance structure around an established production system. The distinction matters because the December 2025 joint-venture completion was not a new mine start: production, processing, personnel, commercial systems and much of the supplier base already existed.
Ownership, Board Structure and Control
Following the merger, Codelco holds one share more than 50% of Nova Andino Litio SpA and SQM holds one share less than 50%. The first-term board has equal nomination rights between the partners, while operational management remains with SQM through 2030.
Majority ownership, equal board representation and operating management therefore have to be separated:
| Control layer | Current structure | Practical meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Equity control | Codelco holds one share more than 50%; SQM holds one share less. | Codelco has the formal majority shareholding, but first-term operational control remains with SQM. |
| Board representation | Equal director nomination between Codelco and SQM during the first term. | Formal board parity requires governance rules beyond a simple seat count. |
| General management to 2030 | SQM controls management and most operational votes, subject to reserved matters and Codelco veto rights. | Operational continuity remains with the experienced Salar de Atacama operator. |
| General management from 2031 | Codelco controls management and nominates the board majority from 2031. | The partnership becomes a long-term transfer of operating leadership to the state company. |
The structure is therefore neither a conventional nationalisation nor a normal equal joint venture. It combines majority state ownership with an initial private-management phase and a scheduled transfer of operating leadership.
Public value capture is larger than the ownership headline
The commercial meaning of state participation is not limited to Codelco’s majority stake. When the agreement was finalised in May 2024, SQM chief executive Ricardo Ramos said that 85% of the operating margin would flow to public coffers from 2031.
This percentage should not be confused with Novandino’s equity split. It describes expected public value capture through the wider fiscal, contractual and ownership structure.
Why Operating Continuity Matters
The most immediate commercial strength of Novandino is continuity. SQM contributes the operating system already present in the Salar de Atacama: personnel, processes, permits, logistics, technical knowledge, customer relationships and international commercial infrastructure.
Codelco contributes the state mandate, majority control and the long-term management role. The partnership avoids forcing Codelco to assume a complex lithium operation immediately while giving the company a transition period through 2030.
The main institutional test is whether operating knowledge can be transferred without weakening performance. The 2031 change is not just a boardroom event. It requires management systems, technical teams, supplier relationships, data, operating procedures and commercial capabilities to move into a Codelco-led structure.
Novandino is not a mine opening. It is a controlled transfer of ownership, operating knowledge and future management over an existing strategic production system.
Current Production, Sales and Capacity
Novandino is already a large operating lithium business. SQM reported 75.8 thousand tonnes of LCE sales from Novandino in Q2 2026, up from 51.7 thousand tonnes in Q2 2025. First-half 2026 Novandino sales reached 138.2 thousand tonnes of LCE.
SQM reported approximately US$1.654 billion of Novandino lithium revenue in Q2 2026 and US$2.765 billion for the first half of the year. The Q2 average realized lithium price was approximately US$21.8 per kilogram.
For 2026, SQM said it expected Novandino to produce between 280,000 and 290,000 tonnes of LCE through a combination of lithium-chloride processing in Chile and lithium-sulfate refining in China. It also projected more than 300,000 tonnes of production capacity by the end of 2027.
The company is converting its lithium-hydroxide plant into a dual-purpose facility capable of producing either lithium carbonate or lithium hydroxide depending on market conditions, with completion expected around mid-2027. This is a company timetable and remains subject to execution.
| Current operating indicator | Reported figure | Evidence boundary |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 Novandino sales | 75.8 kt LCE | Reported sales volume, not production capacity. |
| H1 2026 Novandino sales | 138.2 kt LCE | Reported first-half sales volume. |
| Q2 average realized price | US$21.8/kg | Average realized Novandino lithium price reported by SQM. |
| 2026 production expectation | 280–290 kt LCE | Company expectation, not guaranteed output. |
| End-2027 capacity expectation | >300 kt LCE/year | Forward-looking capacity target. |
Novandino is no longer mainly a governance story. It is an operating producer entering a second layer of large-scale process and infrastructure investment.
Salar Futuro: The Next Investment and Procurement Cycle
Salar Futuro is the most important new element since this company profile was first published. Novandino submitted the project’s environmental and technical documentation in 2026 after several years of preparation. SQM describes the project as an approximately US$3 billion investment to be executed over roughly seven years after the required approvals.
The official Chilean environmental file describes a 30-year continuation and future-development project covering approximately 51,925 hectares in the Antofagasta Region. Its scope is much broader than a single direct-lithium-extraction unit.
The EIA also includes laboratories, maintenance workshops, warehouses, hazardous-substance storage, cooling systems, fire protection, product dispatch and multiple temporary construction facilities. For suppliers, this creates a much wider industrial map than the lithium-extraction technology alone.
The project remains in environmental assessment. Submission of an EIA does not mean environmental approval, financing completion, construction start or an open tender for every package. Those stages have to be verified separately.
SQM expects approximately US$3 billion of group capex during 2026–2028 and said roughly 60% of that amount is expected to go to Novandino. Separately, Salar Futuro itself is described as an approximately US$3 billion project over around seven years after approvals. These are different time horizons and should not be added together as if they were separate projects.
Environmental Framework: Commitments and Assessment
Novandino’s long-term programme links higher recovery and production with lower extraction pressure, new processing technologies and greater use of renewable energy. The Salar Futuro EIA adds a concrete regulatory test to those commitments.
The SEA identifies a significant impact related to the ancestral-use territory of the Toconao, Talabre, Camar, Socaire and Peine Indigenous communities and lists mitigation and compensation measures. This means the environmental case cannot be reduced to a technology-efficiency claim; territorial impacts and compliance remain part of project execution.
This creates long-term demand for measurement, water and brine monitoring, process control, automation, environmental data systems and transparent reporting. The commercial relevance is strongest where a supplier can connect plant performance with measurable environmental and compliance requirements.
China’s Approval Conditions
China’s State Administration for Market Regulation gave conditional approval in November 2025. The approval was the last major international antitrust hurdle before completion of the partnership.
The conditions went beyond a simple merger clearance. Codelco and SQM were required to maintain minimum supply to Chinese customers on fair terms, apply confidential pricing conditions linked to market benchmarks, avoid unjustified refusal or delay of supply and follow restrictions on information sharing and corporate governance. The remedies are subject to approximately ten years of regulatory supervision.
Novandino is therefore embedded in Chinese battery-supply security from the start. China is not only a destination market. Its regulator imposed commercial conditions affecting supply continuity and customer treatment.
Novandino is a Chilean state-control project operating inside a lithium market where China can attach supply conditions to corporate approval.
Governance Update: Board and Management in 2026
The governance picture has changed since the first version of this profile. Novandino’s published July 2026 board list names Bernardo Fontaine Talavera as president. Alfredo Moreno Charme, Ricardo Ramos Rodríguez, Hernan Uribe Gabler, Manuel Ovalle Edwards and Luz Granier Bulnes are listed as directors.
The company’s published principal-management list identifies Carlos Díaz Ortiz as general manager, Eduardo Foix Iñiguez as VP Finance, Pablo Hernández as business development manager, José Miguel Berguño as VP Corporate Services, Humberto Carvajal as operations manager, Felipe Smith as VP Commercial and Germán Pérez as supply chain manager, among other executives.
This is commercially important because it makes the operating organization more visible. It does not mean every purchasing decision sits with the named supply-chain function. Technical ownership can remain with operations, maintenance, automation, hydrogeology, engineering or project teams depending on the package.
Novandino publishes current board and principal-management lists and operates its own corporate and supplier portals.
Codelco has the formal majority shareholding, while SQM controls business management and most operational votes through 2030 under the partnership structure.
Codelco is scheduled to take control of management from 2031, creating a future transition in governance, operating systems and decision routes.
What Novandino Means for Suppliers
Supplier access is more transparent than the earlier version of this profile suggested. Novandino now operates a public supplier portal covering supplier registration, site accreditation, purchases and tenders, invoicing, payments and sustainability requirements.
The portal identifies practical systems used in supplier management, including accreditation tools and procurement/tender functionality. This provides a real entry route. It does not show the complete commercial picture for a specific product: which project package is funded, who owns the specification, which suppliers are already incumbent, when a tender will open or whether local service capacity is mandatory.
Salar Futuro materially broadens the addressable technical landscape. The filed project scope includes:
- direct lithium extraction and brine-conditioning systems
- nanofiltration, evaporation, crystallization and reverse osmosis
- brine reinjection, pumping, piping and distribution systems
- monitoring wells, hydrogeology and environmental data systems
- process control, automation, instrumentation and laboratories
- cooling, boilers, water systems and fire protection
- maintenance workshops, warehouses, spares and hazardous-material handling
- 220 kV transmission, substations and electrical infrastructure
- roads, camps, temporary works and construction support
Novandino now has two procurement layers: the existing operating business and the future Salar Futuro project cycle.
The operating layer can generate recurring maintenance, consumables, process, automation and service demand. Salar Futuro can create project packages tied to new processing, electrical, piping, water, brine, construction and monitoring systems.
Public project scope is not an open-tender list. The commercial task is to identify when a technical scope becomes a funded package, which team owns it, which procurement channel applies and which suppliers are already positioned.
Marcus A. Volz Perspective
The key change is that Novandino can no longer be analysed mainly as a Codelco-SQM governance structure.
By September 2026, the company has its own brand, board, management structure, supplier portal and large reported sales volumes. Salar Futuro adds the next layer: an approximately US$3 billion programme whose environmental filing already exposes the physical systems that will determine future procurement.
That changes the commercial question. A supplier does not need another general explanation that Chile is expanding lithium. The useful questions are narrower: which Salar Futuro work packages are moving first, who owns the technical specification, which decisions sit inside the current SQM-led operating system, where Novandino’s own supply-chain organization takes over, and what local service or qualification conditions apply.
The public supplier portal reduces the uncertainty around basic market access. It does not remove the need for buyer and package mapping. Registration is only the entry layer; commercial relevance still depends on timing, technical fit, incumbent positions and the actual procurement route.
For Econosur, Novandino is therefore a strong example of the difference between a public project announcement and a usable B2B market map.
Three Business Questions for Suppliers
Which Salar Futuro packages are likely to move first from environmental design into executable procurement?
The EIA makes the technical architecture unusually visible: DLE, nanofiltration, evaporation and crystallization, reverse osmosis, conditioned-brine reinjection, new process facilities, pipelines, substations and 220 kV transmission. What it does not establish is the package sequence, contracting model, tender calendar or current vendor shortlist.
Where does decision authority sit for a specific product or service?
Novandino publishes a supply chain manager and a public tender route, while SQM retains management control of the business through 2030. Technical ownership can still sit with operations, maintenance and automation, hydrogeology, project development, engineering or an external contractor. The relevant decision route therefore has to be mapped package by package.
What does a new international supplier need beyond registration?
The public portal provides supplier registration, accreditation and tender access. It does not answer whether a specific foreign supplier needs local field support, which documentation and sustainability requirements apply to its category, how incumbents are positioned, or whether a planned investment has already become a funded procurement package.
Public sources now reveal much more than ownership and governance: current operating volumes, management names, supplier-registration routes, the Salar Futuro EIA and broad investment scale are all visible.
They still do not provide a complete buyer map, package-level procurement timetable, incumbent-supplier list, technical evaluation criteria, commercial terms or confirmation that every project component is currently tendering.
Novandino Company, Project and Supplier Research
Econosur can extend the public company profile into targeted research around a defined product, buyer, project package or commercial question.
For broader context, see Econosur Company Reports, Custom Market Analysis and B2B Connections in South America.
- Novandino Litio official site: current corporate brand and operating-company presentation.
- Novandino supplier portal: supplier registration, accreditation, purchases and tenders, invoicing, payments and sustainability tools.
- Novandino — Board list, July 2026: Bernardo Fontaine as president and the current published six-member board.
- Novandino — Principal management list, July 2026: Carlos Díaz as general manager, Germán Pérez as supply chain manager and other named operating executives.
- SQM Q2 2026 results: Novandino sales volumes, revenues, realized lithium price, 2026 production expectation, 2027 capacity target, Salar Futuro investment and 2026–2028 capex allocation.
- SQM 2025 Form 20-F / SEC: legal structure, Corfo agreements, Codelco one-share majority, SQM management control through 2030 and Codelco control from 2031.
- Codelco — formation of Nova Andino Litio SpA: December 2025 joint-venture completion and initial governance.
- Evidence boundary: company and shareholder sources establish reported operating results, governance terms and stated investment plans. Forward-looking production, capacity, investment timing and project delivery remain company expectations rather than completed outcomes.
- Servicio de Evaluación Ambiental — Continuidad Operacional y Desarrollo Minero Futuro en el Salar de Atacama: project scope, 30-year life, DLE, reinjection, process facilities, 220 kV lines, territorial impacts and mitigation framework.
- SEA — electrical-support infrastructure filing: separate environmental file for high-voltage supply infrastructure supporting the Salar de Atacama operation.
- Codelco-SQM partnership Q&A: first and second operating periods, Corfo framework and the requirement for Salar Futuro to pass environmental assessment.
- Evidence boundary: an EIA filing establishes proposed technical scope and the start of environmental review. It is not equivalent to a favorable RCA, final investment execution, construction start or an open procurement package.
Need to understand where Novandino and Salar Futuro decisions are actually made?
Novandino combines an existing operating system, Codelco majority ownership, SQM-led management through 2030, a visible supplier platform and the emerging Salar Futuro project cycle.
Econosur can research buyer responsibility, supplier positioning, qualification routes, package timing, incumbent relationships and local execution requirements that public project information does not resolve.
Explore Company ReportsFAQ
What is Novandino Litio?
Novandino Litio is the brand used by Nova Andino Litio SpA, the Codelco-SQM joint venture holding the Salar de Atacama operating and lease structure through 2060.
Who controls Novandino Litio?
Codelco holds one share more than 50% of Nova Andino Litio SpA and SQM one share less. During the first term through 2030, SQM controls management and most operational votes subject to reserved matters and Codelco veto rights. From 2031, Codelco controls management and nominates the board majority.
Who currently chairs Novandino Litio?
Novandino’s published July 2026 board list identifies Bernardo Fontaine Talavera as president. The other listed directors are Alfredo Moreno Charme, Ricardo Ramos Rodríguez, Hernan Uribe Gabler, Manuel Ovalle Edwards and Luz Granier Bulnes.
Who is the general manager of Novandino Litio?
The company’s published management list identifies Carlos Díaz Ortiz as general manager and Germán Pérez as supply chain manager.
How much lithium did Novandino sell in Q2 2026?
SQM reported 75.8 thousand tonnes of LCE sales from Novandino in Q2 2026 and 138.2 thousand tonnes in the first half of 2026.
What is Novandino’s 2026 production outlook?
SQM said it expected Novandino to produce between 280,000 and 290,000 tonnes of LCE in 2026 and to exceed 300,000 tonnes of production capacity by the end of 2027. These are company expectations rather than guaranteed output.
What is Salar Futuro?
Salar Futuro is Novandino’s proposed long-term continuation and transformation project for the Salar de Atacama. Its filed scope includes direct lithium extraction, conditioned-brine reinjection, new process plants, pipelines, camps, substations and two 220 kV transmission lines.
How much investment is planned for Salar Futuro?
SQM’s Q2 2026 results describe approximately US$3 billion of investment for Salar Futuro over roughly seven years after the necessary approvals.
Is Salar Futuro already environmentally approved?
No. As of 29 September 2026, Salar Futuro remains in Chile’s environmental assessment process. Filing an EIA is not the same as receiving a favorable environmental approval or beginning construction.
How can suppliers enter Novandino’s procurement system?
Novandino operates a public supplier portal with supplier registration, accreditation, purchases and tenders, invoicing and sustainability requirements. This gives suppliers a formal access route but does not reveal the complete buyer and tender map for a specific package.
Which supplier areas could be relevant around Salar Futuro?
The filed project scope points to potential demand around DLE, nanofiltration, evaporation and crystallization, reverse osmosis, brine reinjection, piping, monitoring, laboratories, maintenance, automation, cooling, substations and high-voltage transmission. Public project scope does not mean every category currently has an open tender.
