LOPARE: In the rolling hills of northeastern Bosnia, the local community is torn between fears of environmental destruction and hopes of riches from vast deposits of critical minerals that Europe needs for its green transition.
The area around Lopare is home to an estimated 1.5 million tons of lithium carbonate, 94 million tons of magnesium sulfate, and 17 million tons of boron — substances used to make everything from electric cars to wind turbines and electronics.
The potentially game-changing deposits could be a rare boon to this poverty-stricken corner of southeastern Europe, where Bosnia’s economy has largely stagnated after a devastating war in the 1990s.
Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik called the project – which would be located in the Serbian state – “an opportunity for development that we should not miss”.
But simmering local opposition to what would be a sprawling open-pit mine has threatened to halt the project, with some worried about the potential impact on the environment.
The Lopar City Council voted against the project in December. “More than 90 percent of residents are against it,” Lopare Mayor Rado Savic said. “People are afraid of the release of toxic materials,” he said.
“We are clear, we do not want such a mine here.” Environmental groups have launched a petition against the project.
“Everywhere in the world where there are these kinds of mines, sooner or later there is also groundwater and air pollution,” said Snezana Jagodic Vujic, head of the local environmental association.
In neighboring Serbia, mass protests over Rio Tinto’s lithium mine near the Bosnian border prompted the government to revoke permits for the multibillion-dollar project in 2022.
Vladimir Rudic, director of the Bosnian branch of Swiss mining company Arcore AG, accused opponents of the Lopar project of “sowing panic”. “Operating conditions will be absolutely controlled,” he told AFP.
Arcore hopes to break ground in this area by 2027. “This is an extremely interesting amount of raw materials for the European Union supply chain,” Rudic said.
The company said the mine would have annual sales of one billion euros ($1.1 billion) and create 1,000 direct jobs and more than 3,000 indirect jobs.
The project aims to export around 10,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate annually by 2032 – which experts say is enough to produce 150,000 to 200,000 rechargeable batteries.
The EU is currently dependent on China for 97 percent of its magnesium needs.
With the EU phasing out new fossil fuel cars by 2035, Europe hopes to be able to extract 10 percent of critical raw materials from its soil by the end of the decade.
Bosnia is a candidate for joining the EU.
Lopare is a “low grade” lithium deposit, but remains “interesting”, Rudic said, adding that the greater presence of magnesium and boron guaranteed the future “stability of the mine”.
Arcore hopes to secure the rights to operate the concession for 50 years, but has yet to obtain the necessary permits from Bosnian authorities.
An environmental impact study must be prepared before any operation begins, along with a period of consultation with the local population.
But for resident Jovan Jovic – an unemployed pharmacist from Lopare – his opinion is likely to change little. “The city will be covered in a huge layer of dust, not to mention the impact on groundwater,” he told AFP.
Milivoje Tesic, a 63-year-old Bosnian Serb war veteran, went further, pledging to “physically defend” his country against landmines. “If we become Kuwait, then fine,” Tesic said. “But show me an example of a foreign investor coming into a country and making progress.
Tags: Arcore AGBOSNIABosnian Serb leader Milorad DodikCHINAdirector of the Bosnian branch of Swiss mining company Arcore AGElection 2024EUROPEGazaHead of the local environmental associationIMRAN KHANISLAMABADIsraelLOPAREN