NORTH MACEDONIA Law and Practice Contributed by: Ana Tosic Chubrinovski, Ivica Jevtic, Ljupka Naumoska Gjorgjievska and Marija Boceska, JPM Partners North Macedonia
• control agreements over contractual rights (off-take agreements, supply contracts). The concession itself may not be pledged unless specifically approved by the government. Even then, enforcement by the lender is limited because the state must approve any change in control or trans - fer of rights arising from the concession agreement in accordance with the law. 6. Mining: Outlook and Trends 6.1 Two-Year Forecast for the Mining Sector Over the next two years, the mining sector in the Republic of North Macedonia is expected to undergo a phase of accelerated regulatory consolidation and investment stabilisation, driven by a comprehensive reform agenda designed to fully align national legisla - tion with European standards, most notably Regula - tion (EU) 2024/1252 (CRMA). This process is being led by the Ministry of Energy, Mining and Mineral Resources, which has positioned the modernisation of mining legislation as a central pillar of the country’s energy transition and decarbonisation strategy.
The forthcoming adoption of the new Law on Mining and the new Law on Geology is intended to strengthen legal certainty, introduce more predictable and trans - parent licensing procedures, streamline permitting timelines and integrate reinforced ESG governance, environmental safeguards and mine closure require - ments within the concession regime. These reforms aim to create a stable, compliance-driven framework capable of supporting sustained foreign investment. Exploration and development activity is expected to focus on energy-transition minerals, particularly cop - per and related polymetallic ores classified as strategic and critical under the CRMA, positioning the Republic of North Macedonia as an emerging contributor to European supply diversification initiatives. Concur - rently, national climate policies promoting long-term net-zero objectives will continue to accelerate the gradual phase-down of coal operations while incen - tivising remediation projects and circular economy mining initiatives. The implementation of the National Strategy for Geological Exploration and Sustainable Use of Min - eral Resources 2025–45 will provide long-term policy coherence, reinforcing investment confidence and supporting the responsible growth of the sector dur - ing this period of regulatory transition.
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