[2] The combine was established by the decision of the Government of the Socialist Republic of Macedonia in 1952 as the Factory for Chrome Products and Ferroalloys (Фабрика за хромни производи и феролегури), with the aim of exploiting the chromium ore from the Ljuboten serpentinite massif using electricity from the newly constructed Mavrovo Hydropower System.
[1] The combine continued to be built and expanded until the 1990s when production began to be discontinued in several departments, and some of them were separated and operated as independent units.
[1] After several transformations, in 2000, it continued to operate successfully under the name Silmak with dominant foreign ownership.
[1] The main departments and products were:[1] Within the complex of the combine, there was also the railway station "Jegunovce Factory" (Јегуновце Фабрика), which is still regularly operated as part of the Skopje–Kičevo line.
[1] In 2020, a plan was presented for the cleanup of the landfill where there are waste materials containing hexavalent chromium, but due to legal obstacles, its implementation has not yet begun.