Impacts of Emerging Regulations: Part 4- the Current State of Responsible Minerals
In the latest article from our Striking the Balance: Permitting Reforms for Mining and the Energy Transition series, we explore the EU’s recent efforts to streamline the mine permitting process via the Critical Raw Materials...more
On March 28, 2024, the federal government announced, amid market uncertainty, that it would be extending the 15 percent Mineral Exploration Tax Credit (METC) for investors in flow-through shares for one additional year, until...more
This is the first article in Womble Bond Dickinson’s Energy & Natural Resources thought leadership series titled Striking the Balance: Permitting Reforms for Mining and the Energy Transition. In this series, we’ll explore the...more
Le 2 mars 2023, le gouvernement de l’Ontario a présenté le projet de loi 71, Loi de 2023 visant l’aménagement de davantage de mines, qui viendrait modifier la Loi sur les mines. Les modifications proposées ont pour but, entre...more
On March 2, 2023, the Government of Ontario introduced Bill 71, the Building More Mines Act, 2023, which seeks to amend Ontario’s Mining Act. The changes are intended to shorten timelines for starting or modifying mine...more
On Friday, December 9, 2022, the federal government released the Canadian Critical Minerals Strategy (the Strategy), a comprehensive multi-disciplinary government policy package designed to facilitate increased production and...more
Demand for rare earth and critical minerals like lithium, uranium, nickel and vanadium is growing worldwide. Recently, the government of Alberta has taken steps to position the province as a contributor to this emerging...more
We previously discussed the Court's decision in Yukon (Government of) v Yukon Zinc Corporation, 2020 YKSC 16, which opened the door to partial termination of agreements in a receivership, an action generally considered...more
On March 11, 2021, Canada unveiled its Critical Minerals List. The list includes 31 minerals considered integral to the Canadian economy, all of which are available in Canada. The list highlights focus areas in future...more
On October 31, 2018, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) announced that it adopted rules to modernize mining property disclosure in order to harmonize SEC disclosure requirements with...more
International Ferro Metals (SA) Pty Ltd (IFMSA) went into business rescue on 26 August 2015. Its ferrochrome smelter and dedicated Lesedi Mine fell victim to a combination of economic, regulatory and socio-political factors...more
On February 14, 2017, President Trump approved Congress’ joint resolution to repeal the SEC’s resource extraction disclosure rule. That action effectively brings to a conclusion the SEC’s efforts to implement a resource...more
Further to our February 2, 2017 Update, on February 14 the President signed legislation to annul the SEC’s Extraction Payment Disclosure Rule. The rule would have required public oil and gas companies to disclose in annual...more
As we previously noted, the House was set to vote on the disapproval of the SEC Resource Extraction Rule under the Congressional Review Act. The joint resolution passed the House by a vote of 235 in favor and 187 against. ...more
On Wednesday, February 1, 2017, the House of Representatives is scheduled to consider a joint resolution of disapproval of the SEC’s resource extraction rule. This resolution is provided for under the Congressional Review Act...more
According to this Reuters article and a blog by Elm Sustainability Partners LLC, an informal deal for EU conflict minerals legislation has been reached. The final text will be voted on by the member states on December 7,...more
New rules issued by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that require resource extraction issuers to disclose payments made to U.S. and foreign governments for the commercial development of oil, natural gas or...more
On June 16, 2016, the SEC proposed a major overhaul of the disclosure requirements for companies that are engaged in material mining operations, including royalty companies. The proposed rules would replace the SEC’s...more
On June 27, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) issued a new rule requiring extractive sector companies (oil, gas, and mining) to disclose the payments that they make to governments for the commercial development...more
On June 16, 2016, the SEC proposed new rules to update disclosure requirements for mining properties. The intent of the proposed rules is align them more closely with current industry and global standards, specifically...more
On December 11, 2015, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) released another set of proposed rules to implement the resource extraction issuer disclosure provisions in Section 1504 of the Dodd-Frank Act. The...more
Occasionally in my litigation experience I’m reminded of time-honored rules of law. Often I’m pleased, sometimes I’m not. So it was, I assume, for the parties in Midnight rilling, LLC v. Triche et al....more
The SEC’s conflict minerals rules have withstood judicial challenge — so far. On July 23, 2013, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia rejected the summary judgment motion of the plaintiffs challenging the...more
The United States District Court for the District of Columbia has upheld the SEC’s conflict minerals rule in National Association of Manufacturers et al v. Securities and Exchange Commission. ...more
The Government Accountability Office, or GAO, has published a study highlighting some issues with conflict-free minerals sourcing. ...more