The European Commission has hinted today that it may reassess the ‘strategic project’ status given, at the 11th hour, on the Covas do Barroso lithium mine, which locals have been fighting tooth and nail for the best part of seven years.
The wording coming from Brussels was that ‘the proposed lithium mine in Covas do Barroso, in northern Portugal, was assessed by independent experts* – but strategic projects must meet criteria for public acceptance’, and thus, in this case, approval “may be reassessed”.
This response from the European Commission was sent to Lusa news agency after Catarina Martins, an MEP for the Left Bloc met last week in Brussels with the Director-General of the European Commission responsible for strategic projects to discuss the situation.
On leaving the meeting, the MEP told Lusa that the European Commission was unaware of the local community’s opposition to the mine (which actually seems strange, considering NGOs have already filed a lawsuit against the commission for awarding ‘strategic project status’). She accused the government of withholding information to ensure the project was granted strategic status.
When asked by Lusa whether it was aware of the opposition to the mine, a spokesperson for the European Commission did not answer the question directly, but emphasised that “all applications for strategic projects, including that for the mine in Covas do Barroso (Boticas municipality), were assessed by independent experts*”.
The EU executive also noted that the selected projects received a “favourable opinion from the Critical Raw Materials Board, which is composed of the member states, with the European Parliament participating as an observer”.
The Commission adds that, while it “supports strategic projects by facilitating faster licensing procedures and access to funding”, their implementation depends on the “rules of the member state in which they are located, including requirements regarding environmental assessment and public consultation”.
The Commission pointed out, however, that “strategic projects must also meet public acceptance requirements and demonstrate the involvement of the local community” (which this one patently does not).
“Under the Critical Raw Materials Regulation, the Commission has the right to assess, at any stage, whether a strategic project continues to meet the various criteria set out in the regulation,” it adds.
Catarina Martins met with the European Commission after opponents of the mine in Covas do Barroso blocked work by the company, Savannah Resources, on land subject to the second administrative easement granted by the government (against local opinion). The protest sought to highlight how much is being pushed ahead, irrespective of local concerns.
The protest led Savannah to suspend work that day, “as a precaution, and in coordination with the authorities”, with the authorities identifying 27 people who were involved.
The mining project in Boticas was approved by the Portuguese Environment Agency which issued a conditional favourable Environmental Impact Statement in 2023.
Savannah Resources intends to begin construction in 2027 and commence production in 2028, while locals, banded together under the banner of ‘United in Defence of Covas do Barroso’ continue to vow that they will fight until the project is cancelled.
A recent post on the UDCB social media page says simply: “We do not condone the destruction of our mountain range and that is why we will fight until this project is cancelled. Don’t f*** with us! NO TO THE MINE!”
*The repeated phrase that this project was “assessed by independent experts” has raised a number of queries. As Nik Volker, of Mining Watch Portugal, has said: ” Even now, the public does not know who the allegedly independent experts were, what affiliations they may have had, or whether possible conflicts of interest were properly examined.”
Source: LUSA/ UDCB