This Extractivism Policy Brief 08/2026 shows:
- This Policy Brief examines how Canada’s tighter foreign investment rules (Investment Canada Act reforms) are reshaping the lithium value chain spanning Canada, China, and Argentina.
- It shows a shift from a liberal mining regime to a security-driven approach influenced by geopolitics.
- There are unintended effects in this process: reduced access to capital for Canadian juniors, corporate relocations, and adaptive strategies by Chinese investors (for example, using intermediaries, shifting to Africa).
- Securitization redistributes rather than reduces risk, with added uncertainty from potential Chinese lithium export controls and broader global competition
The Author: Siran Huang is a Ph.D. researcher in China Studies at Leiden University, specializing in Chinese overseas investments and extractive industries in Latin America. She holds a Master’s in Latin American Studies from Simon Fraser University and has worked as a consultant for environmental NGOs, sustainability consulting firms, and research centres. Her current research analyses state-private dynamics in Canadian and Chinese mining in Latin America. Her work includes conducting business and human rights due diligence reports for organizations such as the Norwegian Pension Fund and collaborating with Latin American grassroots NGOs to assess the real-world consequences of resource extraction.
Link to PDF: Download Extractivism Policy Brief 08/2026 (ENGLISH)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.17170/kobra-2026061012222
Recommended citation: Huang, Siran. (2026). “Securitizing Investment, Destabilizing Supply: Lessons from Canada’s Scrutiny of Chinese Capital
in Argentina’s Lithium Sector”, Leiden University, Extractivism Policy Briefs, N. 8. DOI: 10.17170/kobra-2026061012222
