MINING NEWS
Atty. Quintero on legal framework, updates on regulations in mining By Marcelle P. Villegas
W
hat does it take to own and operate a mining company in the Philippines? Mining is one of the industries that heavily revolves around a number of laws and regulations. On Day 2 of the Philippine Mining Virtual Summit (17 March 2022), Atty Dennis A. Quintero of the Quisumbing Torres Law Office was one of the presenters. Atty Quintero gave a comprehensive report titled “Philippine Mining Legal Framework / Updates on Regulations”. Known as one of the top lawyers in the Philippines, Atty Quintero is also a Chairman and Trustee of the Philippines-Australia Business Council (PABC). He is a member and active advocate of the Philippine Mineral Reporting Code Committee. In his presentation, he stressed the importance of the adoption of international best practices and world-class standards in mining. He stated that the Philippines has taken steps to achieve the same by having the following: - World-class mining law - Requirement for free and prior informed consent for indigenous peoples/indigenous cultural communities - Local community approvals prior to commercial operations - Adoption of Philippine Mineral Reporting Code (PMRC) and
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Atty. Dennis A. Quintero at the Philippine Mining Virtual Summit last 17 March 2022
Towards Sustainable Mining (TSM) Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (EITI) New regulations on environmental safety and biodiversity. He mentioned that PMRC, TSM, and EITI are being promoted and supported by the Chamber of Mines of the Philippines. To open and operate a mine site requires different types of tenurial permits/agreements, namely: Exploration Permit, Mineral Production and Sharing Agreement (MPSA) or Financial or Technical Assistance Agreement (FTAA) (for extraction), and the Mineral Processing Permit (for processing activities). The current legal framework in the Philippine mining industry can be described as: - The state having ownership of natural resources which is the
foundation of the Philippine mining legal framework; - The state can undertake the exploration, development, and utilisation of these natural resources or it can enter into agreement with private parties or contractors under revenuesharing or production-sharing arrangements; - This is found in Article XII, Section 2 of the 1987 Constitution; - Private contractors can enter into an MPSA for the exploration, development, and utilisation of natural resources. In an MPSA, Filipino citizens or corporations must own at least 60% of the company that entered into an MPSA; and - The foreign equity limitation is removed for large-scale exploration, development, and utilisation of minerals and petroleum, and other mineral oils.
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ISSUE 2 2022 • WWW.PHILIPPINE-RESOURCES.COM
