Prague, Oct 8 (CTK) – The memorandum on possible lithium mining in north Bohemia that Industry and Trade Minister Jiri Havlicek (Social Democrats, CSSD) recently signed with an Australian company does not bring any obligations on the Czech Republic, he said in a Prima TV online discussion on Sunday.
Havlicek signed the memorandum of understanding with the European Metals Holdings (EMH) firm last Monday.
His step has been challenged by ANO leader Andrej Babis and some Communists (KSCM) politicians who want to call a special session of the lower house of parliament on lithium mining. The issue has become part of the campaign before the general election that will be held in two weeks.
Babis said lithium, which is used in the production of batteries, should be mined by the Czech state-controlled company Diamo, not by a private firm. He said the country has promised to protect the firm’s investments, due to which it might face arbitration proceedings and pay huge compensation to the firm.
KSCM deputy chairman Josef Skala said on Sunday the country may suffer a big financial loss due to the threatening arbitration.
In reaction, Havlicek dismissed the view that the memorandum posed a threat of an international arbitration over the protection of investments. He said the memorandum was not binding and no duties or obligations for the state follow from it.
Havlicek pointed to the fact that the permit for prospecting was issued by the Environment Ministry in 2010 and that Environment Minister Richard Brabec (ANO) prolonged it until 2017.
Brabec said on Friday his ministry extened the mining licence for European Metals Holdings because the Industry and Trade Ministry agreed with it.
Havlicek said yesterday the memorandum protected the interests of the state. “Without a memorandum, the firm with a priority right to mine could be doing with the lithium whatever it wanted.
The CSSD said earlier this week that the memorandum declared that the lithium, if mined in the Czech Republic, would be also processed in the country and that the Czech state may take part in it.
Civic Democrat (ODS) leader Petr Fiala told Prima TV on Sunday that ODS senators would like to open the issue at the Senate session on Wednesday.
CSSD election leader Lubomir Zaoralek said it is good if there is an opportunity to explain this point of controversy.
The Australian investor could start mining of lithium, which is used for production of batteries, in 2022. It plans to mine 37 million tonnes of lithium ore in 21 years.
According to estimates, the Czech Republic has around 3 percent of all global lithium reserves, most of them in Cinovec, north Bohemia, and a small deposit is in the Slavkovsky les protected landscape area, west Bohemia.
