Portugal’s centre-right authorities ascended to energy in March after former Socialist Prime Minister Antonio Costa stepped down over an investigation into alleged illegalities in his authorities’s dealing with of lithium and hydrogen tasks.
“The change of presidency has led to a delay of greater than half a 12 months within the growth of the challenge,” Savannah stated, explaining that entry to land was notably affected.
Savannah stated it now expects to ship its definitive feasibility examine within the second half of 2025, with the environmental licensing affirmation accomplished in the same timeframe.
“The commissioning and first manufacturing from the challenge might then happen in 2027,” it stated.
Authorized proceedings have began to permit Savannah non permanent entry to land it doesn’t at the moment personal to proceed with the required fieldwork on its 840-hectare concession space, the corporate stated.
CEO Emanuel Proenca instructed an investor presentation in Might this 12 months that Savannah had thus far acquired over 100 plots, although it isn’t clear what number of hectares that represents.
Information from September 2023 confirmed Savannah had acquired or was in technique of buying solely 93 hectares.
Savannah reiterated on Monday that it had bought 100 plots from non-public landowners.
The corporate has beforehand stated it might ask the Portuguese authorities if essential to authorize obligatory land acquisitions for its deliberate lithium mines. The federal government has the ability to authorize a obligatory buy within the public curiosity.
The challenge, which has confronted robust opposition from native residents and environmentalists, is broadly seen as a check for the European Union’s ambition to scale back dependence on international locations resembling China for key uncooked supplies.
(By Patrícia Vicente Rua, Pietro Lombardi and Catarina Demony; Enhancing by David Evans)