Today, the Prime Minister Ana Brnabic talked with the representatives of the company “Rio Tinto” about the continuation of the realization of the project “Jadar” and the progress of the feasibility study, for which the company approved an additional 200 million dollars in 2020.
Thus, the total investment of “Rio Tinto” in the research and development of the “Jadar” project exceeds 450 million dollars, it was said at the meeting Brnabic with the general director of the company “Rio Tinto” for borates and lithium Marni Finlayson and the director of the company “Rio Sava exploration” Vesna Prodanović.
Prime Minister Brnabic emphasized that the development of the “Jadar” project is of exceptional importance for Serbia and Loznica, and that more than 2,100 workers will be hired in the construction phase of mines and processing plants alone, the government’s Office for Cooperation with the Media announced.
When completed, the Prime Minister said, the Jadar project will be a modern underground mine with an efficient Jadarite processing plant, as well as all the necessary facilities for sustainable waste management.
By applying the most modern technologies that “Rio Tinto” developed for the processing of jadarite, special attention will be paid to the protection of the environment, Brnabic pointed out.
She said that she was satisfied with the progress of the feasibility study, within which, in cooperation with the locals in Loznica, the process of buying the land on which the future mine and factory for processing jadarite will be built began.
The “Jadar” project, which is being developed in Serbia by the international mining and metal group “Rio Tinto”, is of strategic importance for Serbia both because of the exploitation of lithium and borate from jadarite, and because of the overall impact of this project on the development of green economy in Serbia.
The project implies the development of a modern, technologically advanced and sustainable mine and Jadarite processing plant for a period of at least 50 years, with a direct impact on GDP and the development of a sustainable economy in Serbia, it was stated at the meeting.
The interlocutors agreed that the cooperation and partnership of the company “Rio Tinto”, the Government of Serbia and local communities are of key importance for the success of the “Jadar” project.
The general manager of the company “Rio Tinto” for borates and lithium, Marnie Finlayson, pointed out that that company produces metals and minerals that are essential for the economy.
All our products have a significant role in the process of transition to a green economy, and when developed, the “Jadar” project will produce lithium, the material of the future and will significantly contribute to strengthening Serbia’s profile as a destination that attracts investors and creates opportunities for green economy.
At the meeting in the Government of Serbia, which was also attended by representatives of the Ministry of Mining and Energy, it was said that the “Jadar” project is of strategic importance for Serbia and the development of sustainable mining, and that the recently formed Working Group for the implementation of the “Jadar” project consists of Rio Tinto and all line ministries, because it is a project of the whole of Serbia.
It was especially emphasized that special attention and importance will be paid to environmental protection, because a modern mine and a jadarite processing plant include plants for sustainable waste management and a state-of-the-art wastewater treatment plant, so untreated water will not be discharged into rivers statement, Politika reports.
