Even in the conditions of the pandemic, the production and salaries in “Srbija Zidjin Bakar”, the former RTB, are stable. The Chinese owner says that they are taking measures for the smooth realization of the planned investments. About 600 million dollars have been invested so far, which is half of the agreed funds. What has been done and what are the further tasks?
Compared to the construction of the new mine “Cukaru Peki”, the mining pits and plants within the Bor giant are being expanded and modernized. After the renovation, the “Novo Cerovo” mine started working again in May.
Since the beginning of the year, copper production has increased by 48% compared to the same period last year, and the goal is to reach 180,000 tons per year.
Simon Ling, Deputy General Manager of “Srbija Zidjin Bakar”, points out that the plan is to invest 1.26 billion dollars in RTB in technical renovation, expansion of the plant and improvement of safety, health at work and the environment.
“In the year and a half since we took over ‘RTB Bor’, we have invested around 600 million dollars. We believe in the future of the company in Serbia and we have no intention of reducing the investment,” says Simon Ling.
The Chinese owner has pledged not to lay off workers and has hired 800 new ones. The average salary is 35 percent higher. Experts point out that the most important investments are the fact that Covid-19 did not stop them.
Professor of the Faculty of Economics in Belgrade, Ljubodrag Savic, believes that the most important thing is to show that they came with serious intentions that they came to stay for a long time and that Serbia will benefit greatly from that.
“I looked at the data for 2019, I must say that I am pleasantly surprised, ‘Zidjin’ is practically in second place, right after the clothes, with 645 million dollars in exports,” Savic said.
The Bor region has been fighting pollution for decades, so the protection of the environment is not only a priority but also an obligation of investors. In “Zidjin”, they assure that they will copy the picture of their “green mines” in China to Serbia.
53,000 seedlings have been planted on more than 20,000 hectares in the vicinity of the Bor mines.
“The mines already have some dust reduction equipment, the rest we will install this year, a new wastewater treatment plant in the smelter and one for the mines have been built. Flue gas leakage prevention systems are being installed, and a plant will be built for long-term safety desulfurization,” states Simon Ling.
The business of “Srbija Zidjin bakar” affects the growth of GDP, so it is good that its price is recovering on the world market. In the last month, it has grown by 12 percent, a ton costs about 6,000 dollars, RTS reports.
