| Location | |
|---|---|
| Location | Loznica |
| Mačva District | |
| Country | Serbia |
| Production | |
| Products | Lithium,boron |
| History | |
| Discovered | 2004 |
TheJadar mining project is a proposed mining site. The deposit is one of the largestlithium deposits in the world and also containsboron. It is planned that both lithium and boron will be recovered from the ore.[1] The deposit contains the mineraljadarite, the only occurrence of this mineral in the world. The mine is located in westernSerbia inMačva District.[2] The Jadar mine has reserves amounting to 118 million tonnes of ore grading 1.8%lithium oxide[2] The deposit was discovered in 2004.[3] The mine is set to open no sooner than 2028.[4]
The Serbian government revoked licences for the Jadar project in January 2022 afterlarge environmental protests.
In January 2024,President of SerbiaAleksandar Vučić stated that the government wants to hold further talks with Rio Tinto and that there should be more public discussion over whether the project should go ahead. If completed, the project could supply 90% of Europe's current lithium needs and help to make Rio Tinto a leading lithium producer.[5]
The project resulted inrenewed environmental protests, starting in July 2024 when theSupreme Court of Serbia ruled that Belgrade's decision to revoke Rio Tinto's license for the project in 2022 wasunconstitutional.[6] One week later, SerbianMinister of Mining and EnergyDubravka Đedović signed a memorandum withMaroš Šefčovič, Vice-President and "overseer" of theEuropean Green Deal, agreeing on the basis of critical raw materials, battery value chains, and electric vehicles related to the mining project. The project has strong backing from the EU especially, withGerman ChancellorOlaf Scholz calling it a "good project for Serbia" and "an important European project."[7][6] Proponents also claim that the mining project would 'push Serbia closer to the EU and help reduce the EUs dependency on China for lithium.'[4]
The mine is set to open no sooner than 2028.[4]
| Boron | .svg) | |
|---|---|---|
| Coal | ||
| Cobalt | ||
| Copper | ||
| Gold | ||
| Graphite | ||
| Lithium | ||
| Magnesium | ||
| Molybdenum | ||
| Nickel | ||
| Unspecified |
| |
