Q:
A:
Necessary to establish market guidelines for mining sector
Belgrade,
6 February 2008
Serbian Minister of Energy and Mining Aleksandar Popovic said today that the goal of the Serbian mining sector is for this sector’s contribution to GDP to be 10% by 2018.
Author:
Fonet
Speaking at the opening of the final seminar which is being held as part of the project “Master Plan for Advancement and Promotion of the Serbian Mining Industry”, Popovic said that the project was drafted in order to promote the mining sector, boost employment and initiate economic growth.
He said that the project identified key problems in the mining sector, such as the privatisation of mining companies in Serbia, which is still incomplete.
According to Popovic, negotiations with the Austrian company A-Tec concerning the privatisation of the mining and metallurgical complex RTB Bor are underway, and privatisation of the public company for underground coal exploitation Podzemna Eksploatacija Uglja is expected to begin soon.
The Minister said that production in mines and smelters in Serbia is inefficient, new technologies and management methods are needed and equipment should be upgraded.
Popovic said that according to the final results of the Master Plan, which was carried out by experts from the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and representatives from the domestic mining sector, the majority of Serbian mines do not have enough ore reserves due to inadequate investment in geological research during the previous period.
He said that not enough was done to explore the potential for mining zinc and copper in areas around existing mines and in areas bordering with Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro, and ecological problems have still not been resolved in a systematic manner.
Popovic explained that according to recommendations made by this plan, Serbia must establish market guidelines for the mining sector, improve competition in the mining industry by merging companies, reduce business expenditure and introduce information technology.
According to Popovic, Serbia will have to provide tax relief as well, along with improved environmental protection and amend the Law on mining, since the existing law is not in harmony with global business standards in the mining industry.
The Master Plan recommends that Serbia should examine the possibility of recycling various kinds of waste material to get copper, zinc, iridium and other metals, he said.
The project, which cost €1 million, was begun by the Ministry of Energy and Mining in January 2007 to revive the mining sector and promote private investments. This one-year project was financed by the JICA.
The final seminar was attended by Japanese Ambassador to Serbia Tadashi Nagai, representatives of the JICA, the Serbian Ministry of Environmental Protection and the Serbian Investment and Export Promotion Agency.
He said that the project identified key problems in the mining sector, such as the privatisation of mining companies in Serbia, which is still incomplete.
According to Popovic, negotiations with the Austrian company A-Tec concerning the privatisation of the mining and metallurgical complex RTB Bor are underway, and privatisation of the public company for underground coal exploitation Podzemna Eksploatacija Uglja is expected to begin soon.
The Minister said that production in mines and smelters in Serbia is inefficient, new technologies and management methods are needed and equipment should be upgraded.
Popovic said that according to the final results of the Master Plan, which was carried out by experts from the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and representatives from the domestic mining sector, the majority of Serbian mines do not have enough ore reserves due to inadequate investment in geological research during the previous period.
He said that not enough was done to explore the potential for mining zinc and copper in areas around existing mines and in areas bordering with Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro, and ecological problems have still not been resolved in a systematic manner.
Popovic explained that according to recommendations made by this plan, Serbia must establish market guidelines for the mining sector, improve competition in the mining industry by merging companies, reduce business expenditure and introduce information technology.
According to Popovic, Serbia will have to provide tax relief as well, along with improved environmental protection and amend the Law on mining, since the existing law is not in harmony with global business standards in the mining industry.
The Master Plan recommends that Serbia should examine the possibility of recycling various kinds of waste material to get copper, zinc, iridium and other metals, he said.
The project, which cost €1 million, was begun by the Ministry of Energy and Mining in January 2007 to revive the mining sector and promote private investments. This one-year project was financed by the JICA.
The final seminar was attended by Japanese Ambassador to Serbia Tadashi Nagai, representatives of the JICA, the Serbian Ministry of Environmental Protection and the Serbian Investment and Export Promotion Agency.
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