Serbia withdraws Rio Tinto lithium mine development license Australia table "regret"

Source: CCTV news client

After the Serbian government revoked Rio Tinto Mining Group's license to mine lithium mines over concerns about environmental pollution, the Australian energy giant's stock price closed down 4.1% on january 21, the day's largest single-day decline since August last year.

Serbian Prime Minister Anna Borna Bić said at a press conference in the capital Belgrade on the 20th that the government made a decision to withdraw Rio Tinto's mining rights in consideration of the requirements of many environmental protection groups in the country that the Adar lithium mine should not start production.

The Adar lithium project is contracted for $2.4 billion and was scheduled to begin production in 2026. Rio Tinto announced this week that production start-up was postponed to 2027, citing delays in the approval process. According to the plan, at full production, the mine can produce 58,000 tons of "battery-grade" refined lithium carbonate per year, making it the largest lithium mine in Europe.

Reuters reported that industry experts predict that the world's lithium energy shortage phenomenon will continue for 3 years, if the Adal project is eventually cancelled, the shortage time may be extended, which will be related to the development of the electric vehicle industry.

The Australian government said in a statement that the Australian side "regrets" the Decision of the Cypriot side, reminding the Cypriot side that "Rio Tinto investment can bring huge economic benefits".

Adare was supposed to be the only lithium mining project rio Tinto has won so far, and Rio Tinto just announced its decision to spend $825 million on another lithium mine asset in Argentina. Rio Tinto said in a project report released last July that it had spent $450 million on upfront studies such as the feasibility of the Adar lithium project.

Regarding the latest decision of the Serbian side, Rio Tinto said it was "extremely worried" and was evaluating whether to take legal action.

Some netizens linked the news to serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic being repatriated to his country after Australia's visa was revoked twice earlier this month and missed this year's Australian Open. Some social media users joked that "Rio Tinto was repatriated by Serbia". The reason for the Australian side's revocation of Djokovic's visa was that he had not been vaccinated against COVID-19 as required before entering the country and was not qualified for a "medical exemption". The incident sparked a diplomatic dispute between the two countries.