The Spanish government is the latest to use its parliament to block moves that would have had a significant impact on its mining industry.
Just weeks after the Chilean government overturned legal challenges to its mining laws, its Spanish equivalent has voted comprehensively to reject a push to bring in stringent new mining legislation.
According to critical mineral project developer Rafaella Resources Limited (ASX: RFR), the Spanish parliament has voted overwhelmingly to uphold the current mining law in Spain and reject certain amendments proposed by the political party Unidas Podemos.
Reports say the Spanish parliament rejected a motion by Unidas Podemos that would have made it more difficult to secure approvals for new mining projects and increased taxes on existing mineral producers by 283 votes against to 36 for (with 22 abstentions).
In announcing its decision, the Spanish parliament highlighted the necessity for critical minerals in the transition to environmentally responsible economies and drew attention to the call by the European Union to be self-sufficient in those critical raw materials where supply is dominated by third parties.
Rafaella Managing Director, Steven Turner, said the proposed amendment to the mining law was tabled by the same party members that recently wrote to certain Rafaella Resources’ shareholders, making various unsubstantiated allegations that have been strongly refuted by the company.
“In March of this year, two members of the Spanish parliament wrote to Rafaella’s shareholders making various allegations regarding, inter alia, supposed pre-existing environmental liabilities,” Mr Turner stated.
In the company’s announcement to the market on 25 March 2022, Rafaella refuted these allegations and made it clear that the views expressed in this letter were the authors’ personal views and not representative of the government of Spain.
“The rejection by the Spanish parliament of a motion to amend the mining law by these same members of parliament reinforces this fact,” Mr Turner said.
“Furthermore, the government of Spain has made it clear in their response to the proposal that the development of critical metals is an important contributor to the responsible ecological transition of Europe’s economies.”
Rafaella Resources has brought together two historic tungsten and tin mines in Galicia, located in the north-west of Spain. The two mines, San Finx and Santa Comba, offer tremendous upside with proven production and well understood resources.
The company says operational synergies exist making the portfolio extremely attractive with a good mix of both tin and tungsten, metals critical to the European economies and highly vulnerable to supply chain disruptions.
The company is working to reopen both mines and offer end-users a long term reliable and environmentally responsible supply, thereby displacing Asian supplies that have already seen significant price rises due to geopolitical events.
Spain a key EU supplier
Spain is considered as a key supplier of critical minerals into a European market that is looking at record electric vehicle (EV) growth.
The country has very diverse geological deposits and resources within its territory, which results in different kinds of mining production. This mining wealth positions Spain as the third largest producer of copper ore, one of only four states that produce nickel ore and the leading producer of spar-fluorine.
Spain is also home to a number of proposed tin and tungsten projects, two metals which are considered key in future EV developments.
International critical mineral market analysts suggest the geological diversity of the Iberian Peninsula’s geography gives Spain important potential in terms of mining, which has allowed the country to become one of the main producers and exporters in the European Union.
Among the possibilities offered by the extractive industry, the region could guarantee the supply of strategic raw materials for technological and sustainable development, according to Roberto Martínez Orío, head of the Mineral Resources Department at the Geological and Mining Institute of Spain (IGME-CSIC [Instituto Geológico y Minero de España]).
The EU has funnelled billions of euros through the European Battery Alliance, an initiative to boost nascent suppliers stretching from mining and refining raw materials such as lithium, the metal used in mobile phones and EVs, to manufacturing, installing recharging infrastructure, and recycling batteries.
According to a recent report by KJ Leuven commissioned by the European Association of Metals (Eurometaux), the EU energy transition will require 10–15% more zinc annually than the region uses today, 35% more copper, 100% more nickel and 330% more cobalt.
Europe currently imports most of its lithium-ion batteries, used in EVs and grid storage. Today less than 3% of battery production happens in Europe. China, Korea, and Japan account for more than 90% of worldwide production.
The European Commission aims to fully cover its needs through domestic batteries production from 2025. Significant actions have been taken in the last five years, and the European Battery Alliance now reports projects amounting to 310 GWh of gigacell production per year. More projects are in the pipeline to grow the capacity to 540 GWh per year. This would provide batteries for 5–9M vehicles per year (at a 60 kWh average battery size).
A direct metals supply will be required for battery cathode production, earlier in the value chain. Europe’s cathode production plans are also ramping up, though at a slower pace.
U.S. interests
Another interested spectator on Spain’s potential to supply critical minerals is the U.S., which recently signed a “Joint Declaration Between the Kingdom of Spain and the United States of America”.
Included in that joint declaration is a commitment to transatlantic cooperation to resolve trade, economic and technological differences; promote energy security and sustainability; and build resilient supply chains that are transparent, secure, sustainable, and diverse.
Chile voted down mining change
In late May, the Chilean parliament also declared a majority vote to clearly reject a proposed overhaul to mining rights, including expanding Chilean state ownership.
The major victory for miners came in a defeat of controversial Article 27, which would have given the state exclusive mining rights over many significant minerals where Chile is a significant global source.
Reports at the time said the environmental commission submitted multiple variations of Article 27 to the vote but they all failed to achieve the 103-vote supermajority needed to pass into the draft constitution.
