Bill for critical minerals will be improved in the Senate, says rapporteur

Deputy Arnaldo Jardim (Cidadania-SP), rapporteur of the PL on critical and strategic minerals in the Chamber of Deputies, stated that the text approved by the deputies could be improved in the Senate, but would be unlikely to result in a structural change of direction.

The statements were made at the international seminar on critical and strategic minerals, organized by Ibram (Brazilian Mining Institute).

The proposal approved by the Chamber creates the PNMCE (National Policy on Critical and Strategic Minerals) and the CIMCE (National Council for the Industrialization of Critical and Strategic Minerals), linked to the Presidency of the Republic.

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The text will now be analyzed by senators amid pressure from mining companies for adjustments to points considered sensitive, such as the power of the council, the approval of corporate operations, rules linked to exports, the obligation to invest in R&D and the maximum period for mineral research.

According to Jardim, the Senate is experiencing a political moment in which many projects are blocked, which could influence the pace at which the proposal is processed. Even so, he assesses that the text created in the Chamber tends to be preserved in its essence.

"The set that was created will be improved, but it is unlikely that the Senate will deviate, diverge or establish a new direction, especially because I think that this harmony between the Executive and the Legislative is something that encourages the opposite", he said.

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Jardim states that the approved text represents a middle ground between views considered extreme during the process.

On the one hand, there were sectors that defended greater State intervention in critical and strategic minerals, including ideas such as the creation of a state-owned company for the sector or the adoption of a sharing regime for certain mineral assets.

On the other hand, part of the private sector defended a policy more focused on incentives and freedom to make business decisions, with less government interference in corporate operations, exports and international contracts.

The final text approved by the Chamber did not create a state-owned company or institute a sharing regime. But he also did not adopt a purely liberal logic. The proposal maintained state coordination instruments, especially through CIMCE, which will play a central role in defining priorities, updating the list of critical and strategic minerals, enabling projects and approving sensitive operations.

According to the approved version, the public authorities, through CIMCE, will be able to approve, through a screening mechanism and under the terms of regulation, changes in corporate control, relevant participation of foreign companies, access to strategic geological information, international supply contracts and operations involving mining titles linked to the Union.

The PL also provides instruments to stimulate processing, mineral transformation, industrialization and value addition in Brazil.

Among the main points are the creation of a guarantee fund, tax credit for mineral processing and transformation projects, incentivized debentures, national registration of projects, low carbon certificate, traceability of the production chain and the obligation to invest part of the companies' revenue in research, development and innovation.

Pressure from the sector
Despite recognizing progress in the text, the mineral sector intends to seek changes in the Senate.

One of the main concerns is the approval of operations by CIMCE.

Mining companies assess that the wording reduced the idea of broad prior consent, but still maintains a formal stage of state validation that needs to be delimited with objective criteria, maximum deadlines and clear hypotheses for action.

The sector also wants to discuss the article that allows the government to establish parameters, technical requirements or value-adding commitments linked to the export of critical and strategic minerals.

The text does not create an export tax, but it opens up space for the Executive to establish requirements by regulation.

Another sensitive point is the maximum non-extendable period of 10 years for research authorization in areas with critical or strategic minerals. At the end of this period, the mining right may be extinguished due to forfeiture if the company does not present the final research report to ANM.

Sector representatives argue that the rule could be counterproductive in long-term projects, which depend on licensing, financing, successive survey campaigns, metallurgical tests and market conditions.

In the view of defenders of the rule, Brazil needs to accelerate the development of projects and prevent relevant areas from being blocked by companies that do not advance in research or do not have the financial capacity to take the assets forward.

Proponents of the rule also claim that the deadline seeks to avoid the speculative retention of areas with critical minerals, in which companies maintain mining rights without effectively advancing research.

Senate
The rapporteur in the Senate has not yet been defined. It is also not clear whether the project will go through committees or whether it will be analyzed on an urgent basis.

The federal government, however, is interested in speeding up the process. The critical minerals policy is treated as one of the main bets to position Brazil in global chains linked to energy transition, defense, technology, fertilizers, batteries, permanent magnets and high value-added industry.

The dispute in the Senate should focus less on the creation of the policy itself and more on the degree of power that the government will have over projects, exports and business operations involving mineral assets considered strategic.

Source: CNN