Minister Saito Holds Meeting with H.E. Ms. Aurora Elvira Williams Baussa, Minister of Mining, the Republic of Chile, and Signs Revised Memorandum of Cooperation in the Fields of Mining and Mineral Resources

At the meeting, the ministers held discussions on future ideal approaches to bilateral cooperation in the field of mining. During the discussions, Japan confirmed to Chile, a country aiming at the sustainable development of lithium resources, the advancement of cooperation through the Japan Organization for Metals and Energy Security (JOGMEC) and Japanese companies. Following this, they signed a revised memorandum of cooperation in the fields of mining and mineral resources, which was originally concluded in 2014 and updated in 2019, to newly add cooperation for the sustainable development of lithium resources and the start of regular Japan-Chile public-private joint meetings in the field of mining.

Following the meeting with Minister Saito, Minister Williams participated in the Seminar on Strategy for Sustainable Development of Critical Minerals and Lithium in Chile, an event jointly hosted by JOGMEC and the Embassy of Chile in Japan. In the seminar, Minister Williams directly explained Chile’s policies for mining and the investment environment, and she exchanged views with representatives of Japanese companies attending the seminar. In addition, as a representative of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), Mr. Ishii Taku, Parliamentary Vice-Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, delivered remarks as a guest of honor and showed his expectations for further development of bilateral efforts in the field of mining.

Division in Charge

Mineral and Natural Resources Division, Natural Resources and Fuel Department, Agency for Natural Resources and Energy