ZiJin Bor
Mining Case Study
Bor is city in the eastern part of Serbia that was established in the early 20th Century as a mining town. It has one of the largest copper deposits in the world. The city has been established around the mining complex and the relationship between the city and mine is very closely interconnected.
The history of Bor is complex, starting off as a French colony, then falling into Nazi hands during the Second World War, through to the times of Yugoslavia and the recent history of Serbia as a new nation state. In 2018 one of the biggest mining companies in the world, ZiJin Mining, bought the majority of shares (63%) of the Bor mining complex with no time limit on exploitation.
This project in Bor, involving a number of artists and researchers, will unpack the changes that followed the mining complex being taken over by Zijin in last 2 years and the impact of this on life in the local community.
The project has involved visits to the town and mining complex in December 2019 and January 2020, with permission given to enter the mining complex. The starting point for the project is speaking to workers, newly employed young local experts, Chinese experts, as well the owner of a local Chinese restaurant who moved to Bor after finding out ZuJin had bought the majority of shares of the mining complex. The restaurant owner, who is Chinese, and previously ran a Chinese restaurant in Cambodia, is essentially running the restaurant out of a private apartment in Bor, mainly for the Chinese mine workers employed by ZiJin.
The research on local ground has been facilitated by National Library in Bor.
More info on research to follow.