Ministry of Natural Resources plans to make amendments to the law “On subsoil”

The Ministry of Natural Resources of Russia plans to make changes in the law “On subsoil” to specify the conditions of license issue. The respective project of the federal law “On introducing amendments in the law of Russia “On Subsoil” was published on the website of the agency and submitted for consideration of the independent expertise for corruption, that is supposed to be over on October 5th 2011.
The explanatory note to the project says that the goal of the suggested amendments to the law “On subsoil” is the specification of the conditions of license issue for the use of subsoil, regulation of the order of introduction of changes in licenses, specification of the grounds for depriving of the right to use the subsoil, including the pre-term, suspension and restriction, introducing norms stimulating the development of the produced mineral resources in Russia.
The suggested draft regulation is directed on making the amendments in articles 9, 10.1, 11, 12, 13.1, 16, 17.1, 20, 21, 22, 23.2, 23.3, 28, 40 on the law of Russia “On subsoil” and the addition of a new article 12.1 (in the part of setting the order of making changes in the licenses of the right to use subsoil).
The draft regulation suggests voiding the regulation of the Supreme Council of Russia “On the order of implementation of the provision on the order of licensing of subsoil use”. The norms, contained in this provision, are suggested being transferred to the law “On subsoil”.
In conformity with the amendments, it is suggested providing the possibility of issuing one license for the use of a group of subsoil sites granted as a result of tenders or auctions for this group of subsoil sites. The possibility of holding of such tenders and auctions at the present time is stipulated by article 13.1 of the law. In conformity with the changes, the introduction of amendments in the license for the right to use subsoil is done by the federal agency of the state fund or its territorial agency, on subsoil sites, which are controlled by the regions of Russia, - by the executive body of the respective region with the approval of the subsoil user. Moreover, the draft regulation suggests introducing amendments in article 13.1 of the law “On subsoil” regarding the possibility of license issue for the right of subsoil use to a single candidate for participation in the auction for the right to use the subsoil. Then it is not allowed to set in the license the amount of a single payment for the use of subsoil lower than the stated by the conditions of the auction at the next round in the case of granting the right to use the subsoil to the single participant of the auction.
The draft regulation also presupposes the possibility of using the subsoil aimed at the production of mineral resources, a deviation from the production level of mineral resources within the limits stated by the technical project for the development of the deposit. The introduction of the suggested norm will allow to exclude the necessity of constant changes in the project documentation for the development of deposits with insignificant, technically and economically grounded deviations from the stated levels of production. 








http://www.geonews.com.ua/index.cgi?a=42704
Translated by Galiya Musabekova