The Salt of the Green Transition : Implications of the CRMA Architecture for the Lithium Governance in Chile

Sammanfattning

As global demand for lithium increases in the context of the green transition, the European Union (EU) positions itself as a strategic partner with third countries through the Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA) in order to secure its supply. The aim of this research is to critically examine how the Critical Raw Materials Act of the EU and the related governance construct potentially influences Chiles lithium sector and what implications this holds for Environmental Justice in the Salar de Atacama. Drawing on Political Ecology, Extractivism and Governance frameworks, the thesis combines qualitative framing analysis with exploratory scenario development. The findings reveal that none of the documents identify extraction itself as a problem, showing how the ecological fragility of the SdA and local communities remain absent from the current governance architecture. The partnership is currently framed by a shared normative language based on mutual benefit and sustainability without resolving underlying tensions. Four plausible future scenarios are drawn from the framings, structured around the axes of sustainability commitment and governance inclusion. They reveal how the SdA serves as a sacrifice zone for national and supranational interests and a new form of Green Extractivism shapes the governance architecture.