On Friday 19 July, the European Union and Serbia signed a memorandum of understanding on sustainable raw materials, battery value chains and electric vehicles (see EUROPE 13888/40). Over the next six months, the two partners will develop a roadmap containing concrete actions to be implemented. The aim of the partnership is to secure and diversify the value chains of critical raw materials needed for the green and digital transitions.
Serbia has significant lithium reserves and has just authorised the revival of a lithium mine in the town of Loznica. According to the Anglo-Australian group Rio Tinto, which will operate the site, it could produce some 58,000 tonnes of lithium a year, enough to power one and a half million electric vehicles.
The memorandum of understanding allows the EU to secure part of its supply of lithium and other raw materials, in particular by facilitating cooperation between European and Serbian industrial players and, consequently, joint projects.
The EU also intends to encourage the sharing of knowledge related to the sustainable extraction, processing and recycling of raw materials.
See the text of the memorandum of understanding: https://aeur.eu/f/d2z (Original version in French by Léa Marchal)