The Republic Agency for Spatial Planning and Urbanism has approved the development of a Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment (SEIA) for the Spatial Plan of the special-purpose area at the Čoka Rakita ore deposit in the Crni Vrh area. The SEIA relates to a spatial planning process for the special-purpose area associated with the deposit.
Under the decision published in the Official Gazette, preparation of the SEIA is linked to the broader decision on the Spatial Plan. The SEIA will take effect once the decision on preparing the Spatial Plan takes effect.
Financing and company involvement in SEIA preparation
The preparation of the SEIA will be financed by Crni Vrh Resources, a subsidiary of Dundee Precious Metals (DPM) based in Canada. Crni Vrh Resources is fully owned by Dundee (Dundee Precious Avala).
In a statement issued in December last year, DPM said that while Serbia’s government decision to start preparing the Special Purpose Spatial Plan was awaited, preparatory work had been completed and was ready for submission. The company also stated that it had engaged relevant stakeholders to reduce the risk of administrative delays.
Feasibility study assumptions and project timeline
DPM also reported results from its previous feasibility study for the Čoka Rakita project, which used an assumed gold price of $1,900 per ounce. The company said that the gold price at the time of the announcement was around $2,930 per ounce.
The feasibility study projected mine construction to begin by mid-2026. It anticipated first gold concentrate production in the second half of 2028.
Planned mine and processing details
Initial investment estimates for the project were set at $379 million. The planned scope includes an underground mine and an 850,000-tonne-per-year processing plant using existing equipment from the Ada Tepe mine in Bulgaria.
The study also described a fully lined dry tailings dump with a capacity of 3.93 million tonnes. Additional infrastructure listed includes haul roads, access roads, water treatment, power supply, and site services.
Estimated reserves and production profile
The feasibility study estimated probable mineral reserves at 6.6 million tons, with a gold grade of 6.38 grams per tonne. This was calculated as 1.36 million ounces of contained gold.
The mine plan was described as optimized to access the richest mineralization during early years of operation. For the first five years, average annual production was projected at 170,000 ounces of gold with an average grade of 7.42 g/t.
Over the life of the mine, average annual production was projected at approximately 147,000 ounces, with an average grade of 6.38 g/t.
Rationale for SEIA coverage and spatial boundaries
The Republic Agency for Spatial Planning and Urbanism stated that SEIA preparation is required because of potential environmental impacts and the territorial scope of the Spatial Plan for the Čoka Rakita ore deposit area. It said the aim is to protect the environment, preserve natural values, improve quality of life, and support sustainable development within the spatial plan area.
The SEIA will cover parts of Žagubica municipality, specifically the cadastral municipalities of Laznica – Selište and Žagubica. The final borders of the Spatial Plan will be determined in the draft version of the plan, according to what was noted in the official decision.