A source from the Vila Real GNR Command reported that between Wednesday night and Thursday morning, two drilling machines and a support tractor were damaged. Following the alert, a patrol from the Boticas station visited the location and filed a report.
The information was initially communicated via email, suggesting that anti-lithium mining activists vandalized prospecting machinery in Covas do Barroso after breaching the concession area, marking an escalation in opposition to the project deemed destructive to the Barroso mountain range.
The situation was confirmed with the GNR, and Savannah Resources indicated that “despite this incident, fieldwork continued today as usual” and that these operations will persist.
Savannah further clarified that the affected machinery belonged to subcontractors, including agricultural equipment and a tractor owned by a resident of Covas do Barroso, expressing “complete solidarity” with the local resident.
“Savannah is conducting work authorized by the state on land where we have permission to operate. We expect the appropriate authorities to perform their role in protecting people and property, ensuring compliance with the law,” the company emphasized.
They added that “those who boast about acts of vandalism are not activists, but criminals.”
“Unfortunately, we anticipated this response to Savannah’s commitment to creating more local jobs and fostering an increasingly constructive dialogue with the local community,” they indicated.
Savannah aims to explore lithium in the region of Covas do Barroso, located in the north of the Vila Real district, a project which faces opposition from locals, municipal leaders, and environmentalists.
Over the past seven years, various protests and legal actions have been undertaken against mining in this area.
The mining project received approval from the Portuguese Environment Agency (APA), with a favorable yet conditional Environmental Impact Statement (DIA) issued in 2023.
In February, prospecting activities were suspended for 15 days in Covas do Barroso following an injunction.
The injunction was filed at the Administrative and Tax Court of Mirandela by three property owners contesting the administrative easement granted in December by the Ministry of Environment, which allows Savannah access to private and communal lands for a year.
After a two-week halt and following the ministry’s response to the injunction with a reasoned resolution citing the project’s public interest, the company resumed its lithium prospecting campaign.
Last week, the European Commission included lithium exploration projects in Boticas and Montalegre among the first batch of projects designated as strategic under the European Critical Raw Materials Regulation.
