Peru is positioning the Macusani plateau in the Puno region as a cornerstone of its emerging critical minerals strategy, highlighting deposits that include a major lithium find and Latin America’s largest undeveloped uranium project.
The government’s focus on these resources marks a strategic pivot toward battery metals and nuclear fuel components, sectors gaining traction as global supply chains diversify away from traditional energy sources.
The push comes as Peru’s conventional oil and gas sector faces a severe contraction in both production and investment during the first half of 2026.
Industry associations have warned that weakening output is intensifying pressure on the new administration to intervene, creating a backdrop where critical minerals offer a potential alternative growth vector for the country’s resource economy.
This development aligns with broader regional trends in Latin America, where state-backed entities are increasingly targeting strategic minerals.
Brazil’s state-controlled oil major Petrobras recently partnered with the state development bank BNDES to research and develop projects in the critical minerals sector, signaling a continent-wide shift in how national champions are diversifying their portfolios.