German leader to visit Serbia seeking lithium for his country's car industry
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is to visit Serbia later this week to discuss a tentative deal with the Balkan country for the controversial excavation of lithium, a critical substance in making batteries for electric vehicles
BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — German Chancellor Olaf Scholz will visit Serbia later this week to discuss a tentative deal with the Balkan country for the controversial excavation of lithium, a critical substance in making batteries for electric vehicles, officials from both states confirmed Wednesday.
Germany, the largest carmaker in Europe, is seeking to secure lithium for its electric vehicle makers as the European Union struggles to reduce its dependence on imports from China.
China currently dominates the supply chain for lithium-ion batteries.
Serbia’s constitutional court earlier this month overturned a previous ruling to cancel a $2.4 billion excavation project launched by British-Australian mining giant Rio Tinto in western Serbia, which is believed to be the the largest lithium discovery in Europe.
