On July 16, the Serbian government restored Rio Tinto’s license for lithium mining in the Jadar Valley region, triggering mass protests across multiple cities in the country, fueled by concerns over severe environmental damage and contamination of the region’s water sources.

Rio Tinto is an Anglo-Australian mining company, whose license for mining activities was revoked in 2022, as a response to widespread protests. The decision was announced weeks ahead of the general elections that took place in April 2022.

The company has a globally controversial history, including accusations of labor rights abuses in California, Michigan, and Wisconsin, a lawsuit claiming crimes against humanity, war crimes, and racial discrimination in Papua New Guinea, massive environmental destruction in West Papua, human rights violations in Indonesia, displacement of the local population in Madagascar, labor rights abuse in Namibia, and ecological crimes in Cameroon.

Their active pursuit of a mining license in Serbia is part of a multibillion-dollar plan to create Europe’s largest lithium mine in the Jadar Valley. Serbian President, Aleksandar Vučić, has stated that the project would create well-paid job opportunities and significantly contribute to the local economy, reassuring the Serbian population that strict environmental protocols would be followed.

Protesters, on the other hand, responded with banners such as “We do not give Serbia away” and “Rio Tinto get out of Serbia”. While in 2022 protests were mostly concentrated in Belgrade, the capital city, and Novi Sad, the 2024 protests have spread to more than ten other cities.

On Sept. 15, the CEO of Rio Tinto, Jakob Sausholm stated that their lithium mine plans are a target of a “carefully designed and well-organized” disinformation campaign. He assured the Serbian public that the company has answers to all questions regarding the project. He expressed concerns over alleged threats and intimidation used against the company’s employees.

On Sept. 26, the European Green Party expressed solidarity with protesters ahead of the National Assembly Debate that is scheduled to take place next week in Serbia. European Green Party co-chair commented on the situation:

“Let’s not repeat the errors of the past, when the rush for critical materials for energy led to pollution and disruption of societies. Genuine consultations must be held, and processes put in place to ensure accountability before any operations are even considered. The current Memorandum of Understanding between EU and Serbia does not legally ensure any of these standards”, co-chair Thomas Waitz stated.

The EU-Serbia Memorandum of Understanding on sustainable raw materials was signed on July 19 at the Critical Raw Material Summit in Belgrade, which was attended by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Vice President of the European Commission Maroš Šefčovič and President Aleksandar Vučić.

The EU itself would largely benefit from the pursuit of the Rio Tinto project in the Jadar Valley, consolidated by the signing of the aforementioned memorandum. Strategic investments in Serbia, an EU candidate state, would create a stable supply of raw materials for the EU and decrease dependence on China for its raw material needs.

The Serbian National Assembly Debate will likely point towards the future direction of the project. With parliament members across the political spectrum expressing support for the anti-lithium protests, we have yet to see what the future holds for the picturesque Jadar Valley.