Euromax says court ruling in N. Macedonia paves way for reinstatement of Ilovica permit

The ruling confirms that the government has an obligation to consider first the merger of Euromax' two exploitation concessions, Ilovica 6 and Ilovica 11, both of which are integral to the overall project, before terminating the permit, the company said in a statement on Monday.

"The request for the concessions' merger was made on 29 January 2016, and until that is decided, the Ilovica 6 permit should not be terminated," Euromax noted, adding that the court ruling means that the government should annul the initial decision from the economy ministry to terminate the Ilovica 6 permit and approve the concessions' merger.

In December 2019, the government of North Macedonia decided to unilaterally terminate the concession agreement with Euromax Resources, citing delays in the filing of the relevant permits.

Euromax said on Monday that it plans to continue with the implementation of the Ilovica-Shtuka copper-gold project in the Ograzhden mountain once the permit process is back on track. The project would bring over 14 million euro ($17 million) in local investments in the first 12 months, opening 600 new job positions, the company said.

($ = 0.8242 euro)