Rio Tinto to invest $2.4bn in Serbian lithium mine

The metals and mining giant Rio Tinto pledges to fund $2.4 billion for the construction of a lithium mine in Serbia.

The lithium from the mine will allow Europe to access a strategic resource that propels the electric vehicle revolution, the Financial Times reported.

However, confrontation against the mine was raised due to fear of damage it would create to villages in the surrounding region.

“There is no chance that this mine can extract lithium in an ecologically sustainable way. This is not like the West’s green passion. For us it’s a matter of survival,” the report stated, citing one of the group activists against the planned mine.

Serbia’s president – Aleksander Vunic – declared that the mine plan will not advance unless strict environmental standards are applied along with the country’s support.

To push the development of the mine and guarantee safety, Rio claimed that:  “The mine will be one of the most modern mines in the world built to the highest environmental standards,” the Financial Times reported, citing Rio’s geologist.