Serbia
Legislation
- Law on Mining and Geological Explorations 2015 (consolidated 2021)
- Law on Environmental Impact Assessment 2004
Regulatory Risk Rating
Regulatory Risk
Regulatory Corruption Risk
Regulatory Corruption Risk
Corruption Exposure Risk
Corruption Exposure Risk
| Regulatory Risk Rating Factors | Risk Level |
|---|---|
| First Come / First Serve | Subscribe |
| Application Criteria | Subscribe |
| Duration | Subscribe |
| Right to Renew | Subscribe |
| Competing Licences | Subscribe |
| Mineral Coverage | Subscribe |
| Right to Mine | Subscribe |
| Criteria for Mining Rights | Subscribe |
| Tenure | Subscribe |
| Surface Rights | Subscribe |
| Government Take | Subscribe |
| Transfer Rights | Subscribe |
| Change of Control | Subscribe |
| EIA Process | Subscribe |
| Power to Revoke | Subscribe |
| Age of Legislation | Subscribe |
| Other Factors | Subscribe |
The 2021 amendments to the Law on Mining and Geological Exploration marked a step in the right direction for Serbia’s regulation of the industry - offering clear guarantees designed to attract foreign investment. However, these changes are not found to be significant enough to have triggered a complete turnaround in terms of the country’s legal risk profile. Though we find no instances of fatal flaws in the legal framework, the licensing process remains convoluted, inefficient and burdensome. The law focuses on ensuring Serbian employment by mandating the qualifications of persons conducting mining activities, whilst ignoring more fundamental issues, such as surface access and decision-making criteria. One can see a route from exploration to development in the legislation - but it is a long, winding and unnecessarily complicated one; only those with considerable determination will make it to their destination.
Contents
Legislation
- Law on Mining and Geological Explorations 2015 (consolidated 2021)
- Law on Environmental Impact Assessment 2004
Regulatory Risk Rating
Regulatory Risk
Regulatory Corruption Risk
Regulatory Corruption Risk
Corruption Exposure Risk
Corruption Exposure Risk
Overview
Serbia was formally a part of Yugoslavia and only officially became the Republic of Serbia in 2006 when Montenegro seceded from the union. The country applied to join the EU in 2009, though negotiations to do so are on-going some 12 years later, with little meaningful and active progress being made in recent years. From the EU perspective, this is often attributed to a lack of improvement in democratic processes and disagreements over Kosovo. On the Serbian side, the desire to join the EU appears to have waned, with political shifts moving the country away from the principles and values the EU encourages it to pursue. A trade agreement between the country and the EU does allow for exports without fees and custom duties, though quotas apply to a handful of products. Serbia has an upper-middle income economy. The economy is largely built on various service industries, as well as agriculture, energy and mining. Machinery, motor vehicles and plastics are amongst Serbia’s main exports.
Serbia has a long history of mining, with mining activities known to date back to Roman times. Whilst the Yugoslav wars and the subsequent political upheaval ensured that very little mining was carried out in Serbia for many years, the mining industry has developed considerably in recent times. The country is recognised as having vast mineral wealth, with known deposits of minerals such as copper, gold, lead, silver and zinc and large quantities of industrial minerals. Numerous international mining companies have considered opportunities in the country, with a number of active exploration projects on-going. In 2021, Rio Tinto announced that it would commit $2.4 billion USD to its lithium project in the north-west of the country. The project has experienced considerable issues with community objections, which remain a major hurdle to success.
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