The years-long saga regarding the lead and zinc mine in Mojkovac could see a resolution in the coming days. Unofficially, the Ministry of Energy and Mining, headed by Saša Mujović, will inform Prime Minister Milojko Spajić that the concession agreement for detailed geological exploration and ore exploitation in the former Brskovo mine area expired in July, and the deadline for the last signed annex has been exceeded.
Mujović expects official confirmation of this information from the Protector of Property and Legal Interests of Montenegro in the coming days. This could be a prelude to terminating the contract with the company Tara Resources.
Namely, Article 35 of the Agreement states that the contracting parties may terminate the contract prematurely if the concessionaire fails to conduct exploration or commence exploitation within the specified deadlines.
Recall that Minister Mujović previously stated that he is against opening the Brskovo mine if the cost is the degradation of the health of citizens and the environment.
At a session of the Municipal Assembly of Mojkovac last month, where councilors discussed whether they wanted a mine in their city or not, 14 councilors voted in favor of the initiative to declare the termination of the contract with Tara Resources and ban all mining activities in the municipality.
During the debate at the Municipal Assembly session, it was argued that the mine should be categorically rejected due to mercury and other harmful substances, and that the lives and safety of Mojkovac citizens were jeopardized.
The entire story about the potential negative impact of opening the mine began with ecologists and citizens, due to the investor’s intention to deposit mine waste materials in a new tailings dam.
The agreement with the Australian company for the geological exploration of the Brskovo site was signed in 2010, and in 2018, the Australian company transferred its ownership stake to the Swiss company Fusion Fund I AG, which continued the research and now aims to open the Brskovo mine.
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