BERLIN: The EU and Serbia are set to sign a deal over the supply of battery materials, the German government said on Wednesday, a day after Belgrade allowed work to resume at a disputed lithium mining project.
Lithium is a strategically valuable metal crucial for making electric vehicle batteries and is key to helping Germany's flagship automotive sector transition to greener production.
On Friday, Serbia and the EU will sign a memorandum of understanding on "a strategic partnership on sustainable raw materials, battery supply chains and electric cars", German government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit told reporters in Berlin.
The agreement is planned at a "critical raw materials summit" in Serbia which will be attended by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and European Commission Vice-President Maros Sefcovic, Hebestreit said.
He added that the deal came against the "backdrop of a sustainable lithium extraction project" in Serbia, which has been a political fault line in the Balkan country in recent years.
On Tuesday the government in Belgrade said operations could restart at a site near the western Serbian city of Loznica where vast mineral deposits discovered in 2004 are to be mined by Rio Tinto. The deposits were discovered in 2004, but the Serbian government moved against the mining project in 2022 after weeks of protests sparked by fears over the environment and public health.
President Aleksandar Vucic has hinted that Serbia could begin mining lithium as early as 2028, following new guarantees from Rio Tinto.
The project triggered mass protests and a long legal battle but last week Serbia's constitutional court issued a ruling paving the way for work to resume.
Rio Tinto says the area holds one of Europe's largest reserves of lithium and could produce 58,000 tonnes annually, enough for 1.1 million electric vehicles.
However, opponents have expressed worries over the mine's impact on the environment and public health.
Rio Tinto has insisted that the project "will be subject to stringent environmental requirements in compliance with Serbia and EU regulations" and Hebestreit said the planned deal with Serbia would also include an "obligation to meet high environmental and sustainability standards". Vucic has hinted that Serbia could begin mining lithium as early as 2028. — AFP
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