- 'A casino in every kitchen': Brazil's online gambling craze
- Nobel chemistry winner sees engineered proteins solving tough problems
- Lindor powers Mets past Phillies into NL Championship Series
- Wildlife populations plunge 73% since 1970: WWF
- 'Sleeper agent' bots on X fuel US election misinformation, study says
- Death toll rises to 109 after Haiti gang attack, official says
- Tigers beat Guardians and on brink of advancing in MLB playoffs
- Argentina MPs back Milei's veto of university funding
- Man City sink Barca in Women's Champions League as Bayern outgun Arsenal
- Greek international Baldock, 31, found dead in pool: state agency
- Florida seaside haven a ghost town as hurricane nears
- Pharrell Williams to co-chair Met Gala exploring Black dandyism
- Wall Street indices hit fresh records as Chinese shares tumble
- Taiwan's president to deliver key speech for National Day
- Sea row on the menu as ASEAN leaders meet China's Li
- Injured Kane won't start England's Nations League clash with Greece
- Discord seen as online home for renegades
- US forecasts severe solar storm starting Thursday
- Mozambique starts tallying votes in tense election
- Zelensky moves to court European leaders in drive for military aid
- Ratan Tata: Indian mogul who built a global powerhouse
- Rodgers rejects 'false' suggestions of role in Saleh dismissal
- One dead as storm Kirk tears through Spain, Portugal, France
- Indian business titan Ratan Tata dead at 86
- Lebanon facing 'catastrophic' situation as 600,000 displaced: UN
- US warns Israel not to repeat Gaza destruction in Lebanon
- Musk's X returns in Brazil after 40-day showdown with judge
- Call her savvy? Harris unleashes unconventional media blitz
- Lucian Freud 'masterpiece' fetches £13.9 million at London sale
- SoFi Stadium to hold next two CONCACAF Nations League finals
- McIlroy and DeChambeau set for PGA-LIV 'Showdown' in Vegas
- Fed minutes highlight divisions over rate cut decision
- Steve McQueen debuts new WWII film at London festival
- Run blitz edges India and South Africa closer to World Cup semi-finals
- Zelensky to court European leaders in drive for military aid
- Israel captain says 'difficult' to focus on football in time of war
- Macron to host Ukraine's Zelensky after meeting Ukrainian troops
- Root says 'many more to get' after England Test runs landmark
- India pile up World Cup high to rout Sri Lanka
- One year later, Israeli hostage family learns of loss
- Texans receiver Collins, Pats' safety Peppers out for NFL clash
- Biden-Netanyahu talk as Hezbollah, Israeli forces clash
- Musk's X available again in Brazil after 40-day ban
- Reddy stars as India crush Bangladesh to clinch T20 series
- Nobel winners hope protein work will spur 'incredible' breakthroughs
- What are proteins again? Nobel-winning chemistry explained
- Arch rivals Ghana, Nigeria drawn together in CHAN qualifying
- AI steps into science limelight with Nobel wins
- Trump lauds India's Modi as 'total killer'
- Wall Street, Europe rise as Chinese shares tumble
EU, Serbia sign deal to kickstart lithium battery development
The European Union and Serbia signed a deal Friday for the supply of lithium batteries that are seen as a crucial building block needed to power Europe's transition to a green economy.
The memorandum of understanding agreed during a "critical raw materials summit" is seen as the first step in develop Serbia's mineral resources and potentially building supply chains, including manufacturing lithium batteries and component parts.
The deal comes just days after a court decision saw the Serbian government approve a lithium mining project that had been shuttered for two years following mass protests.
Lithium is a strategically valuable metal crucial needed for assembling electric vehicle batteries, making it key for helping Germany's flagship automotive sector shift to greener production.
Serbia has vast lithium deposits near the western city of Loznica, where a disputed mining project run by the Anglo-Australian mining giant Rio Tinto has been a perennial political fault line in the Balkan country in recent years.
"There will be no project without full protection, and we know it will happen because we are bringing the best experts from Europe to Serbia," Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic during the summit, which was attended by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and European Commission Vice-President Maros Sefcovic.
"Chancellor Scholz has offered Germany's support for Serbia to develop a more extensive lithium production value chain, which will bring us billions in investments and an incredible advancement for the entire country, especially for western Serbia," Vucic said.
The government reinstated the licenses for the mining project earlier this week, after revoking in 2022 the permits granted to Rio Tinto following mass protests over environmental concerns.
The announcement came after Serbia's constitutional court ruled last week that the permit cancellations were "not in line with the constitution and the law", paving the way for the government to resume the project.
Vucic, whose party won parliamentary elections in December, has said environmental protection would be a priority after extracting new assurances from the company.
Rio Tinto has said Serbia's lithium reserves in Loznica could produce an estimated 58,000 tonnes annually, enough for 1.1 million electric vehicles.
During an interview with Germany's Handelsblatt ahead of the Belgrade summit, Vucic said conversations were ongoing with a range of European automakers including Mercedes, Volkswagen and Stellantis.
Vucic also said the country's lithium exports would be sold only to European partners for the time being, despite interest from Chinese manufacturers.
- Membership in mind -
Opponents remain worried however over the mine's impact on the environment and public health.
Critics of the mine have long accused Vucic's government of having a poor track record with regulating its industrial sector.
Outside of the summit, a small group of protestors surrounded by police slammed the deal.
"Leave lithium and democracy to the Serbian people," said Savo Manojlovic, a leading organiser of the protests against the mine.
Protestors also say the country is taking the biggest environmental risks with the mine for the sake of the EU's transition to a green economy.
The lithium deposits near Loznica were discovered in 2004, but weeks of protests sparked by fears for the environment and public health forced the government to halt the project in 2022.
Vucic has hinted that Serbia could begin mining lithium as early as 2028.
Vucic has also said the deal would involve guarantees that limited the sale of raw materials from the country and ensure that most of the lithium exports would be through Serbian-produced batteries or component parts.
"This means battery production and potentially cars (would be manufactured in Serbia), indicating a significant technological undertaking that involves domestic science, expertise, and industry," said Aleksandar Jovovic at the mechanical engineering department of Belgrade University.
Serbia has been a candidate to join the European Union since 2012, but its prospects are seen as bleak without a normalisation of relations with Kosovo.
"The partnership will further strengthen political relations and promote long-term economic growth in Serbia and the EU, contributing to Serbia's efforts to join the EU," the Serbian government said in a statement on Thursday.
F.Dubois--AMWN