Cover Story
Fall 2018 / Issue 59
Is the Macedonian mining
sector ready for the future?
Olga Rajchikj -Quality control manager
and HR & Product manager in Rudnici Banjani
W
hile the mining sec-
tor in Macedonia
is faced with the
worst public image
in the history, the
global mining industry is taking rapid
actions for technological and envi-
ronmental improvements that will
meet the upcoming changes in this
industry. One thing is inevitable, that
the near future will bring about great
changes in the mining industry. It is
evidently that world’s mining industry
is striving to go digital, engage with
their shareholders, focus of com-
modities of the future and overcome
innovation barriers, thus changing
the industry’s focus. On the other
side, the Macedonian mining indus-
try (especially non-metal mining
companies) is still struggling to even
comply with elementary EU quality
standards (that exist for decades in
other markets), and this does not
leave space to even start talking
about digitalization within this indus-
try. This evidently shows that Mace-
donian mining industry is not ready
to follow the newest trends, although
some companies are making efforts;
however serious steps need to be
taken in order to catch up with the
global trends.
Our company, Rudnici Banjani JSC
Skopje in capacity and product range
is a giant in the Republic of Mace-
donia in the field of non-metal (sep-
arated limestone, marble, dolomite
and quartzite) mineral raw materials.
As a company we strive to bring
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AmCham Macedonia Magazine
some innovation and increase the
number of products we offer, but still
innovation it is not on the top of the
agenda, due to everyday challenges
we constantly face.
Rudnici Banjani JSC Skopje is
located in the vicinity of the villages
Banjani and Mirkovci (Skopska Crna
Gora), which is only 12 km away
from the capital’s city center. The first
blasting was done in 1964, when
the mine BANJANI started oper-
ating as a part of the giant Rudnici
i Zelezarija Skopje. After the break
from Yugoslavia, in 1997 it became
a joint stock company. The location
of the separation production facility
is next to the open surface pit and is
fully automated and flexible, enabling
production of various types of fin-
ished products according to market
demand. Our production process
is environment-friendly (Ford Foun-
dation Award), and our products
are produced according to the EU
quality standards. Our approach and
dedication to quality materials and
environment protection is what distin-
guishes us among our competitors.
Last year our team saw an oppor-
tunity for changes on the market with
the introduction of the new law for
construction materials according to
EU Standards. This law stipulates
strict and constantly controlled qual-
ity measurements of products from
the non-metal industry (separated
limestone), with the aim to assure
quality of roads, railways and con-
crete. Besides having this European
law for quality control of construction
materials, still we are faced with com-
panies who are issued certificates
for quality even though their prod-
ucts do not even meet the minimal
quality requirements. This results in
unfair competition on the market,
and above all low quality of roads
and railways. One must be aware of
the fact that false quality certificates
give benefits to certain individuals in
the short-run, while creating huge