North Macedonia’s Sasa mine produced 4,968 tonnes of zinc in concentrate and 7,255 tonnes of lead in concentrate in the third quarter, Central Asia Metals reported. Output rose about 18% for zinc and about 21% for lead from a year earlier, providing a positive operating signal as downstream metals companies faced weaker results.
In the first nine months of the year, the mine produced 14,062 tonnes of zinc and 20,568 tonnes of lead. The figures underline the contrast between Sasa’s higher output and financial pressure among parts of the country’s metals-processing industry.
Makstil, a steel company, reported a 28% decline in profit for the first nine months. Liberty’s loss for January–September widened to about €7 million.
The differing results reflect distinct economics for raw-material producers and energy-intensive manufacturers. Mines can benefit from contained cost structures and commodity pricing, while processors face weak demand, expensive power, financing costs and import competition.
North Macedonia needs both upstream extraction and downstream industrial activity to capture value from its metals sector. Strong mine output supports exports and employment, but a weak processing base limits the domestic economic multiplier from mineral production.
At mature mines, better recovery, stope sequencing and underground productivity can affect output without a new mine build. Whether North Macedonia’s wider industrial sector can stabilise enough to match Sasa’s production performance remains an open question.
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