The Smederevo citizens’ movement demands the termination of negotiations between Serbia and the Chinese investor regarding new oil refinery

The Association of Citizens “Tvrđava” from Smederevo assessed that Smederevo “is already facing an environmental catastrophe” which, according to them, is largely caused by the Chinese company HBIS, the owner of the Smederevo ironworks since 2016. They warn that the construction of an oil refinery in that city would be announced had “terrible consequences for human health.” They call on the Government of Serbia to “immediately” suspend negotiations on that project with Chinese investors.

“The construction of another factory of dirty industry would have terrible consequences for human health, bearing in mind that even without that factory, Smederevo has huge problems with air, water and soil pollution,” the statement reads.

They announced that in case the Government of Serbia does not accept their request, they will invite the citizens to a mass protest in Smederevo in April, when the beginning of works on the construction of the refinery was announced.

“We will not allow the construction of this factory, because Smederevo is the black spot of Europe in terms of pollution even without it.” “Instead of the city developing in the direction of agriculture, tourism and services, the state turns us into an Asian periphery where countries export their dirty technology, exploiting us and making a profit from Serbia, without obligations to respect the law,” the Fortress movement said.

A meeting with Chinese investors was held in Belgrade yesterday regarding the construction of the oil refinery in Smederevo, which is planned to start in April. The project is worth about 2.6 billion dollars, and after the meeting, it was announced that it will be “the first investment in the latest technology, where full environmental protection will be represented.”

Source: danas.rs

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