SERBIA SETS STAGE FOR MASSIVE LITHIUM PRODUCTION

BELGRADE, July 17 (Bernama-dpa) -- Despite years of protests by environmentalists, Serbia's government is moving forward with plans for lithium mining in the Jadar region, reported German news agency dpa, quoting the Serbian news agency Tanjug.

This area, near the town of Loznica, is believed to hold one of Europe's largest reserves of lithium, a critical raw material for the electric car industry.

With a new decree, Belgrade bowed to a judgement handed down by the Serbian Constitutional Court a few days earlier. 

According to the court ruling, the cancellation of the regional planning procedure for a lithium mining project by the British-Australian company Rio Tinto was unlawful.

The British-Australian company plans to mine around 2.3 million tons of lithium carbonate in the western Serbian Jadar Valley from 2027.

Serbian media reported that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz plans to travel to Serbia on Friday to discuss lithium mining. The German government did not initially respond to a press inquiry.

Lithium is an important component of batteries such as those installed in electric cars. Rio Tinto has been pushing for the project in Serbia for years.

Environmentalists who see the natural landscapes of the Jadar Valley endangered by mining have vehemently opposed the extraction of lithium.

Serbian Mining and Energy Minister Dubravka Đedović Handanović said that the project represents the future of Serbia's economic integration in Europe.

According to estimates by Rio Tinto, this mine could produce 58,000 tons of lithium annually, Serbian media reported. This would cover the needs of 1.1 million electric vehicles, which corresponds to around 17 per cent of European production.

Environmentalists point out that lithium mining contaminates the groundwater with heavy metals and therefore poses a risk to the drinking water supply for residents.

--BERNAMA-dpa