SANTIAGO, May 23 (Reuters) - Chile's state-run mining

firm ENAMI aims for its new Rio Tinto lithium partnership at

Altoandinos to begin production in 2032 with 35,000 metric tons

of the battery metal per year, and ramp up over three years to

75,000 tons, ENAMI company chief Ivan Mlynarz said on Friday.

Speaking in an interview in Santiago, he added that tests of

Rio Tinto's direct lithium extraction technology in Chile have

yielded encouraging results.