The Latin American Observatory of Environmental Conflicts (OLCA), in collaboration with the digital media outlet Resumen.cl and with the support of the Global Greengrants Fund (GGF), presents the powerful audiovisual report ‘The Lithium Fever: Shadows of the Energy Transition.’ This documentary research project, filmed in December 2024 and with extensive post-production completed in April 2025, delves into the complex dynamics surrounding the extraction of lithium, a mineral crucial to the promise of a renewable energy future.
The documentary, which will be released next July and features representatives of indigenous Colla communities directly affected by lithium mining, seeks to generate a profound reflection on whether the energy transition represents a real solution to the climate crisis or a new form of exploitation of nature. Through a visual journey through the imposing beauty of the Chilean desert, its oases, high Andean wetlands and the delicate ecosystems of the salt flats, the report contrasts the natural and cultural wealth with the growing expansion of mining activity.
Using revealing satellite images, the documentary exposes how global demand for lithium, known as the ‘white gold’ of the new era, has triggered an intense ‘extractive fever’ in the so-called Lithium Triangle, an area comprising Chile, Argentina and Bolivia that is home to nearly 60% of the world’s reserves of this mineral. The report explores the environmental and social costs of this race, examining the case of Chile, the world’s leading producer of copper and second largest producer of lithium, as an example of the impacts of extractive mining.
‘The extraction of lithium through the exploitation of salt flats, fragile aquatic ecosystems and home to unique biodiversity in northern Chile, is generating intense ‘water mining’, explains the film crew. The documentary reveals how approximately 2 million litres of water evaporate to produce a single tonne of lithium, a process that is leading to the sinking of the Salar de Atacama and the decline of water and vegetation in the most arid area on the planet.
The documentary devotes significant time to the Maricunga Salt Flat, located in the Nevado Tres Cruces National Park, ancestral territory of the Colla indigenous people, which is emerging as the next ecosystem threatened by the expansion of lithium mining in Chile. Through testimonies from local communities and analysis by experts such as Eduardo Gudynas, the film shows how land loss, environmental degradation and water pollution are some of the serious consequences facing these populations.
‘The Lithium Fever: Shadows of the Energy Transition’ also addresses the Chilean legal framework, governed by regulations enacted during the Pinochet dictatorship, and how companies such as SQM, whose owner has family ties to the military regime, have benefited from the exploitation of these resources. Furthermore, it analyses the role of international companies and the growing geopolitical importance of controlling raw materials for technology and the military industry.
The documentary concludes with a critical reflection on the role of big capital in the energy transition, pointing out how, in many cases, an unsustainable model of exploitation is perpetuated under the guise of sustainability. It raises the need for a radical transformation of the economic and productive model, prioritising social and environmental justice.
The production team is currently in the process of distributing the trailer and poster for the documentary, ahead of its release in July 2025. It is hoped that ‘Lithium Fever: Shadows of the Energy Transition’ will spark a crucial debate about the future of energy and the real cost of the much-desired green transition.
