Ihr Browser wird nicht mehr unterstützt Bitte verwenden Sie eine aktuellere Version von Internet Explorer oder wechseln Sie auf einen alternativen Browser wie Mozilla Firefox oder Google Chrome Morning Show Dalia’s Late Night Lemonade Davidecks Tribe Vibes Unlimited ... zum Sendeschema Film Musik Politik Umwelt Game Buch Sport Eurovision Song Contest FM4 Geburtstagsfest FM4 Festivalradio FM4 Charts Soundpark Superstar Kontakt Sendeschema FM4 Soundpark FM4 Newsletter Frequenzen & Streams Presse FM4 Shop Gewinnspiel-Teilnahmebedingungen Is the long delay in Austria’s lithium mining a story of bureaucratic overreach getting in the way of pragmatic necessity By Chris Cummins The rough mountain road up to the Weinebene is sparkling with fresh powder snow on the border between Carinthia and Styria the “energy transition” that we hope might save winters for future generations seems to be in full flow On the ridge that separates the two provinces the blades of three wind-turbines rotate in the blue sky. I’m off to see a project for mining lithium “Because it’s on the Styrian side, we couldn’t use the electricity from those turbines,” grumbles Dietrich. He’s the CEO of European Lithium the Australian company which owns the lithium mining project “We had to lay kilometres of fresh cables through the forest… that’s bureaucracy for you!” Since lithium is a key component of the batteries which power electric cars particularly if they are found within the bloc’s boundaries A new lithium mine in Austria could play an important role in reducing those transport emissions The amount of lithium we’ll need almost defies imagination. A typical EV battery has about 8 kilograms of lithium, but Tesla Model S has upwards of 60kg Presently we are importing most of our needs Although white and light metal is found in its raw form mostly in Australia and Chile as well as China it’s the Chinese who dominate the refining of the raw material into battery grade lithium That means that we are massively reliant on a single power that might not always be our friend we are reliant on China for around 90% of our critical raw materials „When you are dependent on one party, that constitutes a risk,“ warns Dietrich Wanke, „so diversification is absolutely key.“ The EU’s Critical Raw Materials Act aims to ensure that by 2030 no more than 65% of annual consumption of these products should be sourced from any single count It also demands that at least 10% of the EU’s critical raw materials are met from home-grown sources by 2030 That’s why Wanke thinks the authorities should help speed up his project rather than slowing it down At the moment Europe produces almost zero battery-grade lithium, but with a lot of determination analysts believe it could reach the goals of the Critical Raw Materials Act. Europe is estimated to be the home of 5% of the world’s reserves, some in Jadar Valley in Serbia some in Portugal’s northern Barroso as well as a big deposit right here in Austria in the beautiful surroundings of the Weinebene As he takes me into the mine in a tunnel built by the Austrian state back in the 1980s Dietrich Wanke describes the economic and strategic potential of the project He claims the annual output of the mine would cover 50% of the annual demand for a premium German car manufacturer Dietrich has provided me with a much needed geology lesson but for a mineral called spodumene which is found in an ore called pegmatite we see it in pale veins that run up the dark walls and make the shaft look like inverted strudel dough “We have these veins on a strike length of 1.2 kilometres,” explains Dietrich “and as we dip down to 600 metres that gives us about 12.9 million tonnes as an initial resource to be mined out.” So there is a big market for lithium in Europe there are deposits of lithium in Austria and there is a company that says it is ready to start digging it up if only the wheels of bureaucracy would stop seizing up But there is a reason for Europe’s rigorous bureaucracy, argues local Social Democrat mayor Günter Vallant: the regulations are checks and balances that protect our precious environment and human health. China cut red tape at great cost to both, and that, as we saw last week, has created an understandable wariness in Europe about speedily approved mining projects The Weinebene project zone lies within the municipal limits of Vallant’s community Frantschach-St. Gertraud and yet the mayor says he has only been scantily informed about the project. He has been calling for a full environmental impact assessment, an EIA (in German it’s the Umweltverträglichkeitsprüfung or UVP) “There are still many unanswered questions,” argues the mayor and “that is why we as the local community are in favour of the most transparent process possible with the involvement of civil society.” In December 2024 his company was awarded exemption from the EIA process from the Carinthian provincial government The surface area of the project is expected to cover less than 10 hectares which means an EIA is not automatically necessary under Austrian law; and Wanke says the authorities were already convinced by his own company’s report a document produced on a voluntary basis and using independent experts water and local fauna and flora has been exhaustive: “We have shown rigour and patience the local government has shown rigour and patience,” argues Dietrich “and now it is time to get going.” As we walk through the tunnel “they have all been counted and a new home has been found for them.” The Austrian NGO Global 2000 is not convinced and has filed an official complaint The NGO criticizes the lack of joined up thinking in the EIA determination procedure “Only single impacts were looked at in isolation not the cross-over impacts,” argues Anna Leitner Global 2000’s analyst on resources and supply chains She wants a more comprehensive review to be carried out by the Federal Administrative Court air and noise pollution: “If more mining is to take place in Europe,” she says „then only with strict consideration of all standards and appropriate participation procedures.“ There’s a giant paper-mill within the community boundaries a vista of steam and chimney stacks in the wooded terrain Lorries rumble regularly down the mountain roads Mayor Günther Vallant sees himself not as a defender of pristine nature but simply as a defender of transparency: “Every entrepreneur who has invested in our region so far has gone to the municipal office,” he tells me Companies in the past have presented their projects and developed them with the local municipal council they have answered legitimate questions from the population and then they received approval “But if I don’t approach the population with my information I shouldn’t be surprised that the local people are sceptical about the project.” I witness such scepticism after my visit to the mine as I sit with Dietrich Wanke in the winter sun outside a mountain hut near the Weinebene We fall into conversation with some local ski mountaineers who say they’ve heard that their water will be impacted “That is absolutely not true,” complains Wanke “I don’t know where these feelings come from.” He says the project has already gone through the processes for water approvals and emission approvals all EU industrial standards have been met for European Lithium that would mean a further loss of time and money Wanke is so personable and frank in his conversations with the ski mountaineers that I wonder why he doesn’t proactively approach local communities to clear up misunderstandings Mayor Günter Vallant says he is only asking for open and honest communication about this project One of the main issues Vallant would like to see addressed is the value chain Any environmental and social impacts will be felt by local Austrians but how much will they benefit from its riches over the past 20 years the government in Beijing has developed a huge domestic production capacity which has flooded markets with refined lithium That has meant that prices for battery-grade lithium have plummeted; and rival production ventures have tight budgets The original plan was to refine the lithium in Carinthia but that is an energy-intensive process involving gas-powered smelts - the biggest inconvenient truth of the “green” mobility revolution European Lithium now plans to move the mined ore to Saudi Arabia where energy-prices are lower and environmental bureaucracy is more relaxed Mayor Günter Vallant says the project makes no sense on a social and ecological level There were plans for a processing facility in Carinthia but these have been dropped There were originally hopes that 400 jobs could be created “Is this project really going to benefit Europe?” asks the mayor of Frantschach-St “It certainly will!” answers Dietrich Wanke He says the long-term supply deal he secured with the car manufacturer BMW guarantees that the lithium will be used for Europe’s benefit The dream of job-creating lithium production in Carinthia was ended not by him, he says, but by Russian President Putin. The 2022 invasion of Ukraine caused a spike in gas prices in Austria. Lithium production needs lots and lots of cheap energy To synthesize the materials needed for battery-grade lithium production heat between 800 and 1000 degrees Celsius is needed such heat can only be created at a cost-effective price by burning fossil fuels an Austrian facility would have added hundreds of millions of dollars to the project costs and that would not have been economically viable That is the fact that has most troubled me during the research for this story because it is something we don’t talk about nearly enough The production of a single 100kWh Tesla battery can emit 7300kg of carbon emissions If we just plan to replace the estimated 1.4 billion internal combustion engine vehicles worldwide with e-mobility how will we hit our carbon reduction targets And that’s partly why Anna Leitner of Global 2000 thinks we should think a lot more about reducing our need for lithium before we make decisions on where and when to dig up more of it “A lot of the cars on the market are unnecessarily big,” she says “They are not essential for mobility; they are status symbols.” Worse: millions of disposable vapes that could be recycled are ending up in landfills despite containing lithium. In the UK, for example, a joint investigation by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism Sky News and the Daily Telegraph suggests that two disposable vapes are being thrown away every second this is enough lithium to make roughly 1200 electric car batteries To recap: Lithium is the “white gold”; we will need to dig it up We’ll have to do it closer to home than is perhaps comfortable because otherwise we will be dangerously dependent on China for it to disappear into vanity cars or e-vapes seems utterly absurd Debatte Österreich Wetter Alle ORF-Angebote has been weighing a takeover of battery-metals miner Sigma Lithium Corp. amid rampant demand for the metal used in electric vehicle batteries The EV maker run by Elon Musk has been speaking with potential advisers about a bid who asked not to be identified discussing confidential information Sigma Lithium is one of multiple mining options Tesla is exploring as it mulls its own refining Sigma’s US shares surged more than 25% in aftermarket trading Sigma Lithium’s biggest shareholder has been exploring a potential sale of the company and gauging interest from miners and carmakers a Brazilian private equity fund that Sigma Co-Chief Executive Officer Ana Cabral-Gardner helped establish Deliberations are in the early stages and may not lead to a transaction Potential suitors may hesitate to bid after shares tripled in the last 12 months and on high price expectations by the owners Sigma’s owners could also wait to develop the company’s main project further before seeking an exit representatives for Tesla did not respond to requests for comment Sigma Lithium’s Cabral-Gardner declined to comment on “rumors.” The company is developing a large lithium rock deposit in Brazil known as Grota do Cirilo The company said in December that it’s considering nearly tripling lithium production at the project in 2024 after survey revealed mineral reserves 63% higher than previously thought Automakers have been pushing into mining more aggressively in an effort to lock in supply for metals needed for EV batteries is said to be competing for part of Vale SA’s base metals unit and took a stake last month in Lithium Americas Corp Sigma Lithium’s Toronto-listed shares have soared along with surging lithium prices giving the company a market value of C$4.2 billion ($3.1 billion) is greatly outstripping supply amid the push to electrify transportation in a shift away from fossil fuels Sigma Lithium may also attract interest from large miners as well as customers of the metal is actively looking for lithium acquisitions but isn’t currently interested in Sigma Lithium because of the high asking price The company has already signed supply deals with LG Energy Solution and Japanese trading house Mitsui & Co Related article: General Motors digs into mining business to lead race for EV metals and website in this browser for the next time I comment Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" I don’t think Elon is that stupid to not realise this Mr contributor The guy is not a Billionaire by being thick For the next few years the only competition Tesla has is BYD and VW Toyota make a lot of Hybrids but very few BEV Ford and GM are struggling to scale up production VW might be making a small profit but more than likely a loss They hoped to make 800,000 in 2022 but didn´t come close BYD makes their own batteries and Tesla is a main customer for them Panasonic make most of his current us batteries but upscaling the newest battery has been problamatic Gruyere gold mine joint venture partners Gold Fields and Gold Road Resources reach agreement on a friendly deal to consolidate ownership. The initiative will be delivered through the regional joint venture established by Fleet Space Technologies and Tahreez. The US central bank is widely expected to hold rates steady in this meeting. Romania has major reserves of rare earths, gold and copper, which have attracted interest from Canadian and American firms. Tesla Model 3 sedans currently made at the automaker's plant in China use nickel-manganese-cobalt — or NMC — batteries But Tesla will soon make some cars with cheaper The move will be officially announced as early as Thursday Cobalt is among the most expensive metals used in making EV batteries. Mining it also has a history of violating human rights, including child mining as part of its production in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Elon Musk has tweeted his intent to reduce the reliance on cobalt in Tesla's batteries and said that the next generation of batteries "will use none." Tesla plans to put LFP batteries in all standard-range Model 3s made in China It's not clear how much the new batteries will decrease the Model 3's price Reuters noted that the cars currently start at 271,550 yuan after government subsidies are factored in In terms of investment in renewable energy sources 3% of Slovenia’s population lived in the Zasavje region and it was the third most densely populated region (with an average of 118 inhabitants per square kilometre) the Zasavje region had 14,617 people in employment which is 193 people (1.3%) more compared to June 2020 there were 2,156 registered unemployed people which is 570 people (20.9%) fewer compared to August 2020 the number of registered unemployed people decreased by 53 (2.4%) Meeting with the Mayor of Litija prior to Government working consultation Prime Minister Janša began today’s visit to the Zasavska region with a meeting with the Mayor of Litija the two discussed current challenges facing the municipality and the wider region The members of the Government began today’s visit with a working consultation at the Šmelc Intergenerational Centre in Litija which was independently funded by the Municipality of Litija The members of the Government delegation were welcomed by the Mayor of Litija who mentioned that it was the first time in the history of the Municipality of Litija that a full Government delegation had visited the municipality for which he expressed his sincere gratitude Litija is first and foremost a mining town but the most important factor in the municipality’s economic development is the River Sava Mayor Rokavec noted that Litija lies at the centre of the Zasavje region and is also the municipality where the geometric centre of Slovenia is located He also mentioned Litija’s textile industry which boasts a rich and more than a century-old history stressing that the municipality has a lot of potential for future development The mayor emphasised that the current Government led by Janez Janša knows how to listen to the interests of municipalities which it has demonstrated by increasing the lump sum grants thereto the ministers spoke mainly about projects in the region relating to the areas of long-term care economic opportunities and successful businesses A lot of focus was placed on issues concerning both rail and road infrastructure This was followed by separate programmes for the Prime Minister and ministers the Prime Minister and ministers met with representatives of businesses municipalities and other stakeholders in the region Prime Minister Janša met with the Mayor of Zagorje ob Savi to discuss investments and current challenges facing the municipality and the wider region the Slovenian Guards Unit laid a wreath at the memorial statue of Janez Drnovšek the Prime Minister met with the management of Skitti a company involved in sheet metal laser cutting MIG/MAG welding and other locksmith work using modern laser cutting machines The Prime Minister was given a guided tour of Skitti's production line One of their latest projects is a lightweight wheelchair that is being made for the German company OtooBock together with the partner company MG Rohr The company cooperates extensively with the University of Maribor in several areas They place great emphasis on bringing together different stakeholders (customers as they believe that everyone in the process can benefit from working together Prime Minister Janša also visited AHAC gradbeni inženiring d.o.o. a Trbovlje-based company engaged in the installation of roof windows repair of chimneys according to the SCHIEDEL system and the production of PVC elements according to the Rehau system The discussion with the company’s management focused on the difficulties in sourcing materials The Prime Minister and Digital Transformation Minister Mark Boris Andrijanič also visited the company Dewesoft and the enterprise accelerator Katapult Dewesoft is a high-tech company that develops and manufactures data capture testing and measuring instruments used in some of the world’s most advanced laboratories to develop rockets and satellites providing fast communication services and new As part of the visit to the business incubator Katapult the Prime Minister and the Digital Transformation Minister met with representatives of Chipolo a company that makes a device and an app for finding lost objects who are developing an app to help you care for and raise your baby a company that manufactures measuring instruments and is currently working on a project worth 1 million euros The company Kooperativa 103 helps young start-ups to increase their production Kooperativa 103 helps smaller entrepreneurs to optimise their production establish connections and gain experience and offers premises for work and development they also presented the EVA robot and the RUK network which connects AI and robotics in a way that brings AI closer to people The RUK network connects the arts with science they highlighted the development of an app where you paint a picture on a digital canvas with your mind creative way and bring technology closer to the general public in a user-friendly manner the major mission of which is to support Slovenian authors Prime Minister Janša had a meeting with the Mayor of the Municipality of Trbovlje to discuss development opportunities in the municipality and The meeting with the Mayor of Trbovlje was followed by a meeting with the Mayor of the Municipality of Hrastnik The talks focused mainly on the absorption of EU funds projects in the region and the housing issue The visit by the Government delegation concluded with a public debate held in Trbovlje and featuring ministers representatives of the business sector and other development actors in the region Did you find the information you were looking for Do you want to receive a response from the responsible institution Clicking on the link will open your default e-mail program and automatically draft a message that you can send to the institution responsible for the content of this website ask for a reply State Secretary Boštjan Šefic said that the mayor and his team gave a detailed account of the situation they were facing at the beginning of August: "They also informed us of all the issues that had already been resolved since then," said State Secretary Šefic adding that certain challenges still remained riverbed maintenance and the removal of flood debris are already underway "The debris must be secured one way or another to avoid a renewed threat to watercourses during the next spell of rain," said the State Secretary The meeting participants also discussed the necessary long-term measures and infrastructure they addressed potential measures to be included in the Reconstruction and Development Act: "The municipalities were invited to propose measures that they believe are necessary and important for reconstruction and development," said the State Secretary According to State Secretary Boštjan Šefic resulting in an agreement on further operational steps to be taken ask for a reply is a solemn act that gathers a large number of citizens of Kosovska Mitrovica.Photo: Kontakt Plus (Last year's litany)The people of Mitrovica have been organizing the procession since 2008 Dimitri was consecrated by Patriarch Pavle the city and temple glory of Kosovska Mitrovica and which children especially look forward to what litias are and why they are significant for Contact Plus says the archpriest at the Church of the Holy Great Martyr Dimitrije in Kosovska Mitrovica he also explains to us frequent unknowns related to church customs "The word itself lithium comes from the Greek word – litiah He instructs us that it is a special rite of worship which is usually performed after the evening service or after the liturgy," says Father Branislav He also reminds that in the past litia was used due to heavy rain but a prayer call with the participation of its people It is the crown of what we gather in the temple for they introduced a litany that is inevitable," Archpriest Branislav explains to us especially in smaller communities or larger cities that celebrate a certain temple glory The "Walk of the Cross" is here on November 8 "Just as each of us celebrates our baptism in our homes so the church must be dedicated to a saint we usually see above the door an icon of a saint or the feast of the Virgin or the Lord and by that we know to whom the church is dedicated and who is the patron of that holy place we know that that family respects a certain saint or saint and that he is the protector of their place." The festive procession is preceded by an evening service or vigil "We still respect the Byzantine time calculation because that's when a new church day begins That is why many people celebrate on the eve of the holiday because from the evening service we celebrate the saint who is commemorated the next day "Just as the Old Testament leads us to the New which slowly introduces us to the period of Christ's life here on Earth," says Father Branislav which is organized as a tribute to the spiritual cultural and historical heritage of our region The Church Choir "Branislav Nušić" inevitably takes part in it believers gather in the city temple for the liturgy "Sometimes communion can last longer than the holy liturgy but that is precisely the meaning of the holy liturgy." When the priest with with the holy cup They say: 'It's not Christmas i easter fast all those who fast on Wednesday and Friday or those who cannot fast for health reasons The church is a spiritual hospital," says Father Branislav the faithful go on a "procession of the cross" carrying the Holy Cross and icons through the city it was Archimandrite Andrej from the Crna Reka Monastery and also Archimandrite Mihailo from the Holy Archangels near Prizren But since the bishop cannot be present in all places then the priests perform the liturgy in his name." where certain prayers are read to invoke God's mercy on the inhabitants and the city itself just to remember walk of the cross when the Lord Christ went to suffer in Jerusalem we have a street called the Street of Suffering fell three times under the weight of the cross he was mistreated and endured all kinds of things we stop at three places and read a certain prayer where we invoke God's grace on the city and its inhabitants the bishop reads the Holy Gospel and sprinkles with the consecrated Epiphany water squares and places where we pass," Archpriest Branislav further explains The faithful then come to the center of the city which is an inseparable act of the temple celebration Father Branislav reveals to us that the Slavic cake is usually prepared by a religious woman who has expressed her desire to do it and who is very devoted to the Orthodox faith and the people are the church." So that woman It represents the sacrifice that we offer to God on behalf of the people and wine is also prepared from what nature gives us the youngest ones break the cake with a gold coin which is a particularly cheerful and joyful act of candlelight The happiest child is the one in whose piece of cake a gold coin shines organized by the Provisional Municipal Authority with the Church Municipality service or lunch is served after the liturgy." It is a remnant from the first centuries when Christians gathered They didn't call it that liturgy like today the ceremony was already called breaking bread There they received communion in memory of the Last Supper So the synergy that exists today between the church and the state is very obvious and tangible in our cities It is really our wish that there will be as many citizens as possible on that day and that we will all participate together in the holy liturgy that we will receive communion and at the end that we will all be together in that community Litija in Kosovska Mitrovica is distinguished by the fact that the temple possesses a fragment of the relics of the patron saint of the city - St he is also the protector of that city." We were lucky enough to be given a garlic plant which is on the right side when we enter the temple," says Father Branislav we celebrate him perhaps more solemnly than in other places," says our interlocutor *Downloading and publishing content from the Kontakt Plus radio portal is not allowed without citing the source 08: 39Radio Kontakt Plus was founded in April 2000 It is a media that respects the rights of every citizen to truth and objective information there are currently no alternatives to Chinese lithium batteries “Garnis has a policy of minimal dependence on China and sources its components from reliable European suppliers we have the initial contacts with suppliers and subcontractors from Lithuania and Germany," Garnis told BNS on Wednesday “The lithium batteries used in the products are produced globally by Chinese manufacturers without practical substitutes and there are currently no alternatives to bringing a competitive product to the market,” the company added Garnis CEO Andrius Aglinskas told BNS on Wednesday that the company buys China-made lithium batteries through intermediaries in Germany and Poland the company has bought about 40–50 units of this component this year for several thousand euros “We are only bringing one of the components from China which is the chemical lithium iron phosphate battery itself It is a simple battery with a plus and a minus,” Aglinskas said Garnis currently only produces prototypes in small quantities He does not rule out that once real products are produced the batteries needed for them could be purchased directly from China “Our priority is to produce a fully European product nobody produces lithium batteries in Europe today,” the Garnis CEO said adding that the company is negotiating with emerging lithium battery producers in Europe “with a view to ending our dependence on Chinese producers as soon as possible” Garnis says Lithuania and neighbouring EU countries are its key markets adding that it has no plans to expand into China “in line with the company’s shareholders’ views” according to Lithuania’s social insurance fund Sodra and electronics manufacturing company co-owned by Paluckas told BNS earlier this week that the company has a “Zero China policy” but still imports non-critical components from China which account for less than 1 percent of raw material purchases Paluckas told BNS in an interview last week that his government would seek to restore full diplomatic relations with China Relations between Lithuania and China soured in 2021 after the opening of a Taiwanese mission in Vilnius forcing Beijing to downgrade its diplomatic relations with Lithuania and impose trade restrictions This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page.