Jadar

Protesters block the E-75 highway in Belgrade, Serbia, 27 November 2021. Anti-government demonstrators blocked roads and bridges in Serbia to protest against new laws they say favor interests of foreign investors devastating the environment. EPA-EFE/ANDREJ CUKIC

First time lucky

After Serbia's government on Wednesday revoked a key decree greenlighting Rio Tinto's controversial lithium mining project, activists said they did not trust government promises that the mining project is over for good, fearing what might happen after elections in April.

From 3 p.m., President Aleksandar Vucic talked to all interested citizens from the area of 12 villages in the Jadar region. There is the highest level of concern in this area due to research conducted by Rio Tinto.

However, the Uprising's main weakness comes from a struggle within over who gets to lead the emerging ecological front, but also which political faction would collect the 'green' votes.

Hundreds of locals from western Serbia, but also activists and opposition politicians from other parts of the country, gathered on Thursday in Loznica, western Serbia, to protest against amendments to the local urban plan to meet the needs of a lithium mining investment by the Anglo-Australian multinational corporation Rio Tinto.

Two Serbian NGOs, the Coalition against Environmental Corruption and the Podrinje Anti-Corruption Team, PAKT, on Tuesday said they had filed charges against Rio Sava Exploration and China Communications and Construction, CCCC, and their subcontractors, for environmental pollution.

Serbia's estimated deposits are the largest in Europe and the insatiable appetite for batteries that power everything from iPhones to Tesla cars is prompting the likes of Rio Tinto Group to study the viability of mining it.
News portal Deutsche Wirtschaftsnachrichten writes about the lithium wealth in Serbia, carried by portal serbia-energy.eu.

They spoke on Wednesday in Belgrade, discussing implementation of the Jadar Project near Loznica, western Serbia, Tanjug said.

The plant will be manufacturing aluminum car parts.

Lithium

Aleksandar Vucic said on Thursday Rio Tinto's Jadar Project would be a major development boom for Serbia and its Podrinje region, which has 10 percent of the world's lithium deposits.