Policy Paper | Securing Europe’s Lithium Future: The Cinovec project and sustainable lithium mining

The EU's proactive stance, introduced in the Critical Raw Material Strategy and later Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA), drives the EU approach to secure the supply of European/domestic critical raw materials for EV battery production. The Cinovec project has a large economic potential as it enhances the ability to secure domestic and regional supply of lithium, which is otherwise very geographically concentrated outside of Europe. Europe relies on a handful of countries, particularly China, for the import of lithium for the production of EV batteries.

The project, owned by the Australian company European Metals Holdings (EMH) and ČEZ Group, plans to start mining in 2026. However, mining operations are polluting and do not always have a track record of bringing benefits to local communities. The ČEZ Group, which is 70% owned by the Czech government, should increase the pressure on the project to deliver on the environmental, social and governance (ESG) aspects, including water, soil and air pollution. Particularly, the fact that the Czech government holds a stake in the Cinovec project via ČEZ Group should help ensure that the project will deliver benefits for the local community.

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Jonathan Lyons
Research Fellow