Deal #9451

Thousands of protesters gathered on April 2021 in Belgrade demanded suspension of operation due to non-compliance to environmental standards and non-transparency.

(1) "China’s Zijin Mining is polluting a village without permits, local consent or transparency, an environmental activist group claims." The activists demand to stop unauthorised construction (of the new processings) because the authorities have not developed a master plan that takes into account environmental impact. The company also has been reportedly asked by Serbia to stop work at the RTB Bor copper mine due to non-compliance with environmental standards. (2) water waste - see comment in water section (3) Zijin mineworkers protested against working conditions. Specifically, they complained about work without breaks, non-heating dormitories, bad quality of food, and insufficient amount of drinking water. (4) "Yet, Serbia is only getting 5 percent royalties from Zijin´s revenues which is one of the lowest royalties for mining operations in Europe."

In 2020, the company donated $ 571,000 to build a COVID 19 virus laboratory. Overall, the Chinese company invested $1.26 bln in Serbia's Bor mining complex, including also environmental improvement and social responsibility program. "Serbia Zijin Copper has implemented more than 80 projects in the field of social responsibility that “cover” the infrastructure, sports, culture, education, health, environment, poverty reduction and more"