- Savannah has said its mine could be central to Europe’s lithium value chain.
- They are only now preparing to produce the higher-grade lithium used in electric cars and power electronic appliances. Savannah has said its mine could be central to Europe’s lithium value chain.
According to Mining company Savannah Resources, on Wednesday, Portuguese authorities approved its environmental impact assessment (EIA) for what could become Western Europe’s largest lithium mine, calling the step a “major milestone” for the project. London-based Savannah received preliminary approval for the EIA for its Barroso open-pit mine from Portugal’s APA environment regulator in 2021.
In a statement, APA said it had given the company a “favourable” DIA. Still, there was a wide range of measures Savannah had to comply with, such as limiting the removal of vegetation from the project area, not taking water from a nearby river and carrying out landscaping once extraction had ended. APA said the project must also include a “socio-economic compensation package”, such as royalties to the municipality where the mine is set to be located.
Portugal is Europe’s biggest lithium producer, but its miners sell almost exclusively to the ceramics industry. They are only now preparing to produce the higher-grade lithium used in electric cars and power electronic appliances. Savannah has said its mine could be central to Europe’s lithium value chain.
Barroso, a world heritage site for agriculture, is one of many lithium-rich areas in northern Portugal and Savannah already mines feldspar, quartz and pegmatites in the mountainous region. Savannah said that a positive DIA allows the company to progress to the following stages: publication of a new scoping study and a social impact assessment. The company expects the remaining steps of the environmental licensing process to take nine-12 months to complete. It hopes to receive its final ecological licence in 2024.