Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile S.A. (SQM) is a leading global producer of specialty chemicals and plant nutrients, headquartered in Santiago, Chile. The company's business model is centered on the extraction and processing of minerals from the Salar de Atacama and caliche ore deposits in northern Chile, alongside expanding hard-rock lithium operations in Australia. SQM operates through several key segments: Lithium and Derivatives, which accounts for exactly 50.0% of total revenue (as of 2025) and supplies lithium carbonate and hydroxide for the electric vehicle (EV) battery market; Iodine and Derivatives (22.8% of revenue), used in X-ray contrast media, pharmaceuticals, and LCD screens; Specialty Plant Nutrition (21.5% of revenue), providing high-value fertilizers like potassium nitrate; and Potassium and Industrial Chemicals. SQM's competitive advantage lies in its low-cost, brine-based lithium production and its dominant market share in the global iodine market. The company has a vast geographic footprint, exporting its products to over 110 countries, and is strategically positioned to benefit from the long-term secular growth in EV adoption and energy storage systems.
