In an article published in the specialized magazine Copper Worldwide, in its volume 15, number 2, page 3, different expert opinions related to permitting are analyzed.
Deeper review needed
APR 19 – Excessive bureaucracy in obtaining project permits is a matter of growing concern in the mining and energy industries, in excellent work by Chile’s La Tercera.
Sebastián Herrera, Partner at Lathrop Mujica Herrera y Diez Abogados, and former Head of the Sustainable Development Division at the Ministry of Mining, points out that:
“According to the National Commission for Evaluation and Productivity, a new mining project takes about seven years to obtain all its approvals, while data from the SEA indicates that just the environmental qualification of an Environmental Impact Study takes nearly 1,000 days. Many of these bottlenecks do not require new laws, but rather urgent improvements in management: simplifying and digitising procedures, implementing single windows, and strengthening internal state coordination. It is also necessary to move toward risk-based regulation, as recommended by the OECD.”
Fiorella Ulloa, Head of policy and regulatory affairs at consulting firm Plusmining, reads:
“A new metallic mining project, involving tailings or other major hydraulic works, can take up to 138 months to complete if it requires an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), due to sequential procedures, high rejection rates for certain permits – such as from CONAF and the regional health authority – and risks such as archaeological findings or legal challenges to the environmental resolution (RCA).”
Winston Alburquerque, partner at law firm Vergara, Galindo, Correa (VGC), explains:
“if we could classify the stages required to develop a mining or energy project, they would fall into three categories: mining and electrical concessions (the ‘what I exploit’), land use and environmental and sectoral permits (the ‘how I exploit it’). The first two stages function relatively smoothly, but the bottleneck arises in the third: the main environmental permit, which is the Environmental Qualification Resolution (RCA), and the sectoral permits that depend on it. The focus should be on establishing faster and more efficient mechanisms through digital platforms within the administration that allow for expedited processing. Permitting itself is not the problem. What is harmful is the lack of appropriate mechanisms for processing and oversight.”
The focus should be on establishing faster and more efficient mechanisms through digital platforms within the administration that allow for expedited processing. Permitting itself is not the problem. What’s harmful is the lack of appropriate mechanisms for processing and oversight.”
Rodrigo Ropert, senior counsel at Aninat Abogados, notes:
“Some large-scale projects, particularly in the mining sector, face extremely complex assessments, which drive up both costs and processing times. If community opposition is added to the mix, this results in administrative and legal litigation, and the timeframe to have certainty that the environmental permit won’t be revoked can lengthen significantly – discouraging investment.”
Ropert cites the US$ 2.5 billion Los Bronces Integrados project in the Metropolitan Region, whose EIA was submitted to SEIA in 2019, initially rejected in 2022, and then overturned and approved by the Council of Ministers in 2023. However, multiple legal challenges from communities are still pending resolution by the council.
María Luisa Baltra, lawyer and professor at UC and Finis Terrae University, says:
“some of the proposed regulations have been developed without understanding the realities of different regions of the country. It seems that changes are designed with large companies and high-profile projects in mind, rather than the people carrying out small-scale economic activities that contribute to national growth – who may not even require these permits but are still affected by regulatory changes.”
To address this, she argues, “a deeper review is needed: analysing how the institutions involved in environmental permitting are functioning, whether they have sufficient personnel, budgets to improve infrastructure, and a clear understanding of their needs. Only then can appropriate changes be made – because modifying regulations without fully understanding the problem may not achieve the intended objectives”.
Streamlining is essential
JUN 2 – “In Chile and across South America, permitting delays are a major bottleneck for mining investment. In Chile alone, there are over 300 permits – 63 of them critical – according to the National Commission on Productivity. The system is fragmented, outdated, and generates high uncertainty. Globally, it takes over 16 years for a mine to go from discovery to production, with 12 years spent on exploration, studies, and permitting. Streamlining permitting is essential to secure the minerals required for the energy transition,” says Juan Carlos Guajardo, Executive Director, Plusmining. www.plusmining.com
Fuente: Copper Worldwide