On May 17, the Ministry of Natural Resources officially issued the "Measures for the Management of Exploration and Mining Information of Mining Rights Holders" (hereinafter referred to as the "Measures"). The Measures will come into force on 1 July 2024.
A few days ago, focusing on the background, highlights and implementation of the "Measures", the reporter of "China Natural Resources News" interviewed Wei Lihua, director of the Department of Laws and Regulations of the Ministry of Natural Resources.
Implement the requirements of the reform of the ecological civilization system and optimize the business environment in the mining sector
Reporter: What is the background and significance of the formulation of the "Measures"?
Wei Lihua: In 2015, the former Ministry of Land and Resources issued the Measures for the Publicity of Exploration and Mining Information of Mining Rights Holders (Trial) (Guo Lu Zi Gui [2015] No. 6, hereinafter referred to as Document No. 6), which established and implemented the exploration and mining information publicity system for mining rights holders, which played an important role in strengthening the supervision of mineral resources exploration and mining activities and promoting the construction of a credit system in the field of mining rights management. However, with the deepening of the national credit management system and the continuous development of mineral resources management practices, Circular 6 can no longer fully adapt to the new situation and new requirements, and it is urgent to comprehensively revise and upgrade the system level.
The formulation and implementation of the Measures are of great significance for implementing the requirements of the reform of the ecological civilization system, optimizing the business environment in the mining sector in mainland China, and promoting the high-quality development of the mining industry.
First, it is conducive to better implementing the requirements of the reform of the ecological civilization system. Mineral resources are an important material basis for economic and social development, and are related to the national economy, people's livelihood and national security. In 2015, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council issued the "Overall Plan for the Reform of the Ecological Civilization System", which clearly requires "the establishment of an information publicity system for the efficient and comprehensive utilization of mining enterprises, and the establishment of a 'blacklist' system for mining rights holders". The formulation of the "Measures" is an important measure to implement the decisions and arrangements of the Party Central Committee and the State Council, and to strengthen the construction of the credit management system for mining rights holders.
Second, it is conducive to promoting the formation of a market environment for mineral resources exploration and mining that operates in good faith in accordance with the law. Honesty and trustworthiness are the traditional virtues of the Chinese nation, and they are also the basic principles and common principles of the rule of law. In 2020, the General Office of the State Council issued the "Guiding Opinions on Further Improving the System for Restraining Untrustworthiness and Building Long-term Effective Mechanisms for the Establishment of Creditworthiness" (Guo Ban Fa (2020) No. 49, hereinafter referred to as Guo Ban No. 49), clearly requiring that the standards and procedures for designating seriously untrustworthy entities be strictly regulated in the form of departmental rules. The formulation and implementation of the "Measures" will be more conducive to giving play to the role of social supervision and credit restraint, forming a regulatory measure of "long teeth with thorns", urging mining rights holders to correct their untrustworthy behaviors on their own, and creating a good market environment for honest operation in accordance with the law.
Third, it is conducive to the implementation of credit supervision and the promotion of high-quality development of the mining industry in accordance with the law. Mineral resources exploration and mining have the characteristics of high investment, long cycle and strong professionalism. On the one hand, the consequences of untrustworthy behavior in this field are often serious and irreversible, and it is particularly necessary to strengthen supervision. On the other hand, the "blacklist" system is related to the survival and development of enterprises, and if the supervision is not standardized, it is easy to have a significant adverse impact on enterprises. In the process of formulating the Measures, we have carried out in-depth investigation and research and improved the relevant working mechanism in view of the problems that have existed in practice since the implementation of Circular No. 6, such as the large amount of information filled in by mining rights holders and the complexity of the filling indicators, the excessive principles and imperfect procedural provisions for the identification of the abnormal list of mining rights holders and the list of serious violations, as well as the lack of legal basis for the punitive measures, which are prone to excessive and improper association in practice. This will provide a clearer legal basis for the implementation of credit supervision for mineral resources exploration and mining in accordance with the law, and will also be more conducive to safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of mining rights holders and promoting the high-quality development of the mining industry.
The identification of untrustworthiness is more accurate, and there are channels for credit restoration
Reporter: What are the main highlights of the "Measures"?
Wei Lihua: There are 30 articles in the "Measures", which mainly make specific provisions on the filling, publicity, and verification of exploration and mining information of mining rights holders, the identification of seriously untrustworthy entities, and the management of abnormal lists of mining rights holders. Overall, there are five highlights worth noting.
The first is to focus on key links and clarify the identification criteria. In accordance with the relevant requirements of the No. 49 document of the State Council of the People's Republic of China that "the determination of untrustworthy conduct by administrative organs must be based on legally effective documents", the Measures focus on the identification criteria of seriously untrustworthy entities on illegal acts that have not fulfilled their statutory obligations for mineral resources exploration and mining and have been subject to heavier administrative penalties in accordance with the law. This means that if there is no basis for the provisions of laws and regulations such as the Administrative Licensing Law and the Mineral Resources Law, even if the mining rights holder violates the relevant management requirements, the administrative authorities shall not identify it as a seriously untrustworthy entity. At the same time, the Measures adjust and improve the abnormal directory system, no longer making inclusion in the abnormal directory a prerequisite for the designation of seriously untrustworthy entities, and provide for two types of circumstances for inclusion in the abnormal directory, that is, minor untrustworthy conduct that fails to perform the obligation to fill in and publicize exploration and mining information in accordance with regulations, and fails to meet the criteria for designating seriously untrustworthy entities. The main purpose of this is to urge mining rights holders to accept supervision, identify problems as soon as possible and correct them in a timely manner.
The second is to protect legitimate rights and interests and standardize the identification procedures. Taking into account that the identification of seriously untrustworthy entities is related to the vital interests of mining rights holders, the Measures strictly regulate the procedures for the identification of seriously untrustworthy entities, and stipulate that the competent departments of natural resources shall comply with the procedures of prior notification, hearing statements and defenses, making decisions and serving them on the parties, so as to fully protect the legitimate rights and interests of mining rights holders. In addition, the Measures also emphasize that those who meet the requirements after rectification shall be removed from the list of seriously untrustworthy entities and the abnormal list in a timely manner to avoid adverse effects on the normal business activities of mining rights holders.
The third is to ensure that the punishment is proportionate and strict management measures. Document No. 49 of the State Council proposes that punishment for untrustworthiness should be carried out in accordance with the principles of legality, relevance, and proportionality, and according to the nature and severity of the untrustworthy conduct, and appropriate punishment measures should be taken. To this end, the Measures strictly limit the management measures for untrustworthiness to the competent departments of natural resources to strengthen supervision in accordance with the law, and do not apply the notification and commitment system, and are not linked to the administrative licenses obtained by business entities in accordance with the law, so as to prevent improper use or even abuse. At the same time, the Measures make it clear that measures such as listing seriously untrustworthy entities as key regulatory targets, not applying the notification and commitment system, and unfavorable considerations when participating in the competitive transfer of mining rights may be adopted; For mining rights holders included in the abnormal list, measures such as listing them as key targets for supervision may be adopted.
Fourth, it is necessary to reflect inclusiveness and prudence and establish a rectification mechanism. There is a lot of information involved in the filling and publicity of the exploration and mining information of the mining rights holder, and the actual situation is more complicated. In order to avoid being included in the abnormal list due to unnecessary mistakes or problems, which will have an adverse impact on the production and business activities of the mining rights holder, the Measures adhere to the principle of inclusiveness and prudence, and stipulate the relevant rectification procedures for non-subjective, intentional and slightly untrustworthy behaviors such as the omission or misfilling of exploration and mining information by the mining rights holder, and make it clear that if the rectification is completed within the specified time limit, it may not be included in the abnormal list. At the same time, the Measures clarify the credit restoration mechanism, and if the mining rights holder actively carries out rectification and corrects the untrustworthy behavior, it may apply to be removed from the list of seriously untrustworthy entities and the abnormal list in advance, and the relevant measures will be lifted.
Fifth, pay attention to reducing the burden and enhancing the convenience of operation. In order to reduce the burden on mining rights holders, the "Measures" in accordance with the principle of "who produces, who fills in", distinguishes between the mining rights holders to fill in the publicity and the competent departments of natural resources to take the initiative to publicize, further streamlines and standardizes the scope of the mining rights holders' exploration and mining information to fill in the publicity, and clarifies that the management information generated by the competent department of natural resources in the course of performing its duties reflects the exploration and mining status of the mining rights holders, and the production and operation information of enterprises that are not strongly related to the exploration and mining activities are no longer required to be filled in by the mining rights holders. At the same time, in order to improve the operability of the mineral resources exploration and mining information filling and publicity system, the "Measures" have simplified the exploration and mining information required by the mining rights holder to fill in the publicity as much as possible, and most of them are filled in by selecting "yes" or "no".
Improve the supporting system and create a good atmosphere for the supervision of mineral resources
Reporter: What are your considerations for the implementation of the Measures?
Wei Lihua: In order to better implement the Measures, the Ministry of Natural Resources will focus on the following aspects:
The first is to improve the supporting system. Implement the relevant requirements of the "Measures", draft relevant supporting documents and standards and specifications, and further refine provisions in areas such as the division of management responsibilities, requirements for filling in and announcing exploration and mining information, on-site verification work procedures, the connection between the old and new systems, the abnormal directory, and the style of management documents for seriously untrustworthy entities, so as to enhance the operability of the system.
The second is to do a good job in publicity and training. It is necessary to increase publicity and training through various forms such as policy interpretation, organization of training, meetings and seminars, etc., to ensure that the competent departments of natural resources at all levels accurately understand and grasp the main content of the "Measures", implement relevant work requirements, and actively create a good atmosphere for the supervision and management of mineral resources under government supervision, social supervision and credit constraints.
The third is to continue to improve the efficiency of supervision and management of mineral resources. With the implementation of the "Measures" as an important opportunity and an effective starting point, deepen the reform of the supervision and management of mineral resources and the construction of the credit system, effectively safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of mining rights holders, and continuously improve the level of rational development and utilization of mineral resources and the ability to guarantee safety.
Source: China Natural Resources News
Text Editor: Liu Chao
New Media Editor: Du Xiaoyi
![The Ministry of Natural Resources issued Order No. 13 to promulgate the Measures for the Management of Exploration and Mining Information of Mining Rights Holders[fig]](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAP///wAAACwAAAAAAQABAAACAkQBADs=)