The Ministry of Energy, Mining and Mineral Resources of the Republic of North Macedonia (“Ministry”) has proposed two new laws — the Law on Mining and the Law on Geology – available for public consultation. The Ministry has stated that the proposed laws are fully harmonised with European regulations and are intended to replace the current Law on Mineral Resources.
A key innovation is the adoption of EU directives on critical mineral resources and “strategic projects” in mining, aligning with the EU’s 2024 directive to secure energy independence from third countries particularly for minerals such as lithium, copper, cobalt, and other minerals essential for achieving the goals of the green agenda, ensuring the supply of critical materials without which wind turbines, electric vehicles, and green energy could not be developed — an area in which the EU is largely dependent on China and the United States. Under the new laws, access to strategic mineral resources will be treated as vital to the national economy.
Following the EU’s lead, North Macedonia plans to introduce the strategic projects for critical mineral resource extraction. In the EU, 47 such projects — many in mining — have already been fast-tracked across 13 member states, and they are subject to accelerated permitting procedures. Under the new laws, Macedonia will set clear criteria and form a commission to evaluate applications, ensuring both efficiency and strong environmental safeguards.
Additionally, every three years, North Macedonia will publish and update a List of Strategic Mineral Resources and List of Critical Mineral Resources — prioritising those with the greatest strategic importance, highest demand growth, and most constrained supply.
Alongside the new laws, work is also underway on finalising the Mineral Resources Strategy 2025–2045, a text prepared by the Macedonian Academy of Sciences and Arts (MANU). The strategy promotes geological exploration, as it emphasises that the Republic of North Macedonia holds particular significance as a producer of metals such as lead-zinc, copper, and nickel and plays an important role in the broader European and global context as a key source of these critical minerals in the region.
The published laws are open for public review on the National Electronic Register of Regulations (ENER), with stakeholders invited to submit comments, proposals, and feedback.
The information in this document does not constitute legal advice on any particular matter and is provided for general informational purposes only.
