DPM’s Vareš mine keeps running as concession faces review
Bosnian authorities have six months to review disputed land agreements, leaving mining investment facing legal scrutiny.
DPM Metals (TSX, ASX: DPM) said its Vareš operation in Bosnia and Herzegovina continues to run normally after the country’s Constitutional Court found its concession agreement and related land decisions unconstitutional.
The court published its full decision on Sept. 30, giving the relevant authorities six months to review the challenged acts alongside the Attorney General’s Office and set aside those that breach the country’s law prohibiting the disposal of state property.
The ruling does not terminate or suspend the concession agreement or its annexes, the Canadian miner said. However, the decision is final and cannot be appealed.
The dispute centres on who has authority over state-owned forests and forest land, an issue DPM said affects several large concession-based investments across the country.
According to DPM’s account of the ruling, Federation, cantonal and municipal authorities lacked the authority to enter into the disputed arrangements without the involvement of Bosnia and Herzegovina and its Attorney General’s Office.
The court found that the mine’s March 2013 concession agreement, six annexes and associated decisions covering forest land conversion and easement rights breached constitutional provisions governing the rule of law and compliance with state legislation.
DPM said it intends to work constructively with the relevant authorities during the review.
The company acquired Vareš silver-lead-gold and zinc mine through its takeover of Adriatic Metals in September 2025 . The operation reached commercial production on Aug. 10 this year and continues to ramp up towards its full annual processing rate.
Vareš employs more than 600 people from Bosnia and Herzegovina and is the largest exporter in Zenica-Doboj Canton, according to DPM.
The review will determine which challenged acts must be brought into compliance or set aside, leaving the outcome for the mine’s land arrangements unresolved.
The contract, Supra said, will bolster its recovery of rare earth elements from North American industrial byproducts.
