On October 21, 2020, the MME issued Decree 1378 by which the differential requirements for granting concession contracts to small-scale miners and beneficiaries of area returns were added to Decree 1073 of 2015, in order to encourage that, for one time only, small-scale miners and area return beneficiaries can have access to a concession contract as soon as the differential requirements are met. The above, without prejudice that subsequently, they can apply to obtain more contracts by complying with the requirements of the ordinary regime.
The Decree defines small-scale miners as those who meet the following conditions:
- Not be holders of a valid mining title.
- Requiring a concession of up to 100 hectares.
- That their annual production corresponds to the volume established, according to the type of mineral, in literal c of article 2.2.5.4.1.1.3 of the Decree.
Likewise, the area return beneficiaries for formalization are conceived as small-scale miners in favor of who operates the return of areas or who require relocation due to environmental or social restrictions in the project’s area of influence.
Moreover, regarding the differential requirements to be met in order to present a proposal for a concession contract and the content of such proposal, the following conditions are established, among others:
Submission requirements: Both small-scale miners and area return beneficiaries for formalization must comply with the following:
- Select a free area, an area with a conversion request, or an area to be returned in the integrated mining management system;
- Indicate the applicable municipality, department, and competent authority according to the area;
- Indicate the minerals to be included in the contract´s object ;
- Include a technical annex with the minimum exploratory program along with the environmental suitability of the project; and
- Accredit the economic capacity based on the differential criteria established by the mining authority.
Content of the Proposal: The contract proposal must comply with the provisions of Article 2.2.5.4.1.2.1 in compliance with the differential terms of reference and the applicable technical annex, included in literal d of the mentioned Article.
Specific Characteristics: In case the proposal is accepted by the mining authority, the concession contract will be granted in the exploration stage with anticipated exploitation, whose term will be the same as the exploratory period of three (3) years established in article 71 of Law 685 of 2001, extendable for two (2) additional years, as long as the request is justified.
Additionally, it is stated that the beneficiaries of concession contracts with differential requirements will receive technical support from the mining authority if requested and will also be subject to a differential inspection process as applicable.
Finally, the holders of concession contracts can integrate the areas given in concession, without losing the benefits of the Decree, as long as with the integration, the limits of hectares are not exceeded.
Likewise, in order for a transferee of the concession contracts to be a beneficiary of the benefits contemplated in the Decree, the differential criteria must be adequately complied with.