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The Serbian government has decided to abandon its plans to build a massive lithium mine and will withdraw the license granted to the Rio Tinto company.
“The permit is revoked, Rio Tinto no longer has a job in Serbia“, Declared the Prime Minister Ana Bernabic.
The executive in Belgrade faced a lot of pressure from citizens who took to the streets for weeks protesting against the $ 2 billion project. Their main concern was the environmental impact of the lithium mine. The Anglo-Australian giant was developing the mine in western Serbia in a bid to attract foreign investment and boost economic growth.
The lithium mine, which was predicted to be one of the largest in the world, was seen as a way to capitalize on growing global demand for the element widely used in batteries used for electronics and electric vehicles. But environmental groups argued that the mine would be destructive to agricultural land and water supplies. The decision to cancel the project comes ahead of elections to be held in Serbia on April 3rd, while President Aleksandar Vucic was criticized for putting the development of the project ahead of environmental concerns in a country suffering from high air pollution, poor management and waste and other environmental problems that have accumulated after decades of neglect.
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