China’s Reliance Batteries is expected to sign initial agreements on Monday for a planned €100.5 million ($118 million) battery factory in Serbia, adding another advanced-manufacturing project to a growing Chinese-backed technology cluster around Inđija.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić said on Saturday that contracts related to the investment would be signed on Aug. 31, moving the project a step closer to construction after it was first announced earlier this month.
The planned factory would employ around 250 workers and manufacture batteries intended for drones, unmanned vehicles, robots and other applications, according to Serbian officials.
Construction has been targeted to begin around late October 2026.
The project is emerging alongside Serbia’s push to attract investment in robotics, batteries and artificial-intelligence-enabled hardware as it seeks to shift part of its foreign direct investment base away from labour-intensive manufacturing.
China’s Minth Group on Saturday opened an initial €20 million humanoid-robot manufacturing facility in Šabac, while Serbian authorities have also outlined plans for a larger robotics industrial park around Inđija.
The projects could give Serbia the beginnings of a supply chain connecting batteries, robotics, drones, automotive manufacturing and software, although the extent of local production remains unclear.
For Reliance, one of the main questions will be how much of the battery value chain is eventually located in Serbia.
Battery production can range from relatively simple assembly of imported cells into modules and packs to considerably higher-value activities including cell manufacturing, battery-management systems, electronics, testing and engineering.
Serbian officials have not yet disclosed enough technical detail to establish where the Inđija plant will sit within that chain.
That distinction will be central to the project’s economic impact.
If the factory mainly assembles imported Chinese cells, it would still create exports and employment but generate more limited domestic value added.
Local production of cells, electronics or control systems would represent a more significant technological step and could create opportunities for Serbian engineering companies and suppliers.
Inđija emerges as technology location
Inđija, between Belgrade and Novi Sad, has become one of Serbia’s most important industrial locations because of its proximity to the A1 motorway, Belgrade airport and the country’s two largest cities.
The municipality already hosts a range of manufacturing and logistics investments.
The addition of battery and robotics projects would push its investment profile toward more technology-intensive industries.
That fits Serbia’s broader economic challenge.
The country has attracted billions of euros of foreign investment over the past decade, particularly in automotive components, metals, machinery, tyres, electronics and other manufacturing sectors.
But labour availability is tightening and wages are rising.
Serbia’s unemployment rate fell to 7.2% in the second quarter of 2026, while employment also declined from a year earlier, pointing to a shrinking available workforce rather than purely stronger job creation.
Manufacturers are therefore under increasing pressure to raise output through machinery, automation and higher productivity.
Battery and robotics projects fit that shift because they typically require more capital and technical expertise per employee than traditional assembly operations.
Battery demand expands beyond electric cars
The Reliance investment also reflects a widening battery market.
Electric vehicles remain the largest driver of global battery investment, but demand is increasing rapidly from stationary storage, industrial equipment, drones, robotics and autonomous systems.
Robots and drones require batteries with different characteristics from passenger cars.
Weight, power density, fast charging, thermal management and cycle life can be especially important.
This creates opportunities for specialised battery manufacturers rather than only large-scale electric-vehicle cell producers.
Serbia could benefit if the Inđija facility serves that more specialised market.
The country is already developing several industrial segments that could eventually generate domestic demand, including robotics, unmanned systems and battery energy storage.
Minth’s new Šabac facility, for example, is expected to manufacture humanoid and quadruped robots primarily for export.
A domestic battery supplier could eventually reduce dependence on imported packs if the technologies and commercial arrangements are compatible.
For now, however, there is no confirmed indication that Reliance will supply Minth or other Serbian robotics manufacturers.
Local content will be key
Serbia has repeatedly sought to increase the domestic economic impact of foreign-owned factories by encouraging local sourcing.
Results have been mixed.
Major foreign manufacturers have helped create substantial employment and exports, but many higher-value components and technologies are still imported.
Advanced battery production offers another test.
Potential Serbian participation could include metal structures, wiring, cooling components, electronic systems, software, testing services and battery-management technology.
More sophisticated cell chemistry and production equipment would likely remain dependent on foreign technology at least initially.
The degree of localisation will also determine how much the investment contributes to Serbia’s export sophistication rather than simply raising gross manufacturing exports.
That issue is becoming increasingly important as Serbia moves closer to the European Union and faces tighter requirements on product origin, industrial subsidies, environmental standards and supply-chain traceability.
EU market access could be important
Serbia is not an EU member but is deeply integrated into European manufacturing supply chains.
That has made it attractive to Chinese companies seeking production locations close to EU customers while retaining lower operating costs than many Western European markets.
Batteries, however, are increasingly regulated products.
EU requirements cover carbon footprints, recycling, supply-chain due diligence and other areas under the bloc’s battery regulatory framework.
Any Serbian factory targeting European customers will therefore need to meet increasingly demanding technical and environmental standards.
That could favour projects with stronger local engineering and traceability systems.
It could also increase the importance of renewable electricity procurement because the carbon intensity of battery manufacturing is becoming a commercial consideration for European buyers.
Serbia’s electricity mix remains relatively carbon intensive because of its dependence on lignite-fired generation, creating another issue manufacturers may eventually need to address through renewable supply contracts or on-site generation.
Chinese investment moves into new sectors
The Reliance project is part of a broader evolution in Chinese investment in Serbia.
Earlier investments were concentrated heavily in infrastructure and heavy industry.
China’s HBIS acquired the Smederevo steel mill, while Zijin Mining became the dominant investor in Serbia’s copper and gold industry.
Chinese companies have also built major motorway and railway projects and established an increasingly large automotive supplier base.
The newer investment pipeline is more diverse.
It includes batteries, renewable energy, robotics and other advanced manufacturing.
For Belgrade, that offers the prospect of increasing the technological content of foreign investment.
It also creates greater dependence on Chinese capital and technology at a time when the EU, Serbia’s largest trading partner, is tightening scrutiny of Chinese industrial investment.
Serbia will need to manage both relationships if it wants to remain an effective manufacturing bridge between China and Europe.
Contract signing is the next test
The Aug. 31 agreements will be the next concrete milestone for the Reliance project.
Attention will then shift to land, permits, financing, construction and production equipment.
The projected late-October construction start would represent a rapid timetable if maintained.
More technical information will also be needed to assess the project properly, including planned annual capacity, battery chemistry, cell sourcing, export markets and the level of Serbian content.
Those details will determine whether the investment becomes primarily another export-oriented assembly plant or a deeper addition to Serbia’s emerging technology sector.
The distinction is important as Serbia tries to change the composition of incoming FDI.
The country already knows how to attract factories.
Its next challenge is attracting investment that combines manufacturing with engineering, technology and domestic suppliers.
At €100.5 million, Reliance’s planned Inđija factory is large enough to matter.
Whether it helps build a broader Serbian battery and robotics ecosystem will depend less on the headline investment figure than on what is eventually produced inside the plant.
