RWANDA Law and Practice Contributed by: Aimery de Schoutheete and Penina Ngabire, Liedekerke Great Lakes
Mandatory Agreement with the RMB After the issuance of the ML and before starting any mining activity, the LH must enter into an agreement with the RMB to determine the specific conditions under which the mining activities will be carried out. 1.7 Mining: Security of Tenure Security of tenure is guaranteed if the LH complies with its legal and contractual obligations. Terms, Renewals and Rights Attached to MLs The specific mineral rights and length of tenure vary according to the type of ML, but the following gener - ally apply. • The RMB will not grant an ML in respect of an area covered by another ML of similar type. However, the RMB may, “for the purpose of national inter - ests”, authorise another person to carry out opera - tions on an area already covered by a licence if it is for the exploration of other types of minerals. • An exploration licence is valid for an initial period not exceeding four years. It carries a positive obli - gation to start exploration activities within 90 days from the date of issuance of the licence and does not allow for the commercial extraction of minerals (although it is possible to obtain a special permit to export minerals discovered during exploration work). An exploration licence may be renewed once for a period not exceeding four years, during which the LH may be required to relinquish part of the licensed area. • A mining licence is valid for an initial period that cannot exceed 15 years and carries a positive obli - gation to start mining operations within 180 days from the date of issuance of the licence. The holder of a mining licence can process and export their product themself (without a processing or trading licence), provided that only the minerals covered by the licence and coming from the licensed area are processed and/or exported. To export the minerals, the holder must also obtain an export permit from the RMB. A mining licence may be renewed more than once for a period not exceeding 15 years, upon fulfilment of the requirements provided in the 2024 Mining Law. • All transactions must be carried out at arm’s length, that is, at the price determined by the international
market. If minerals are sold below that price, the RMB or the tax authorities may refer to the price used on the international market to determine the value of the minerals sold. • Licences granted under the repealed 2018 Min - ing Law remain valid until their expiration and are deemed to have been issued under the 2024 Min - ing Law, provided that the licence holder complies with the new legal and regulatory requirements. Progression from Exploration to Mining The holder of an exploration licence receives the “first- in-time right” to apply for another ML on any portion of the exploration licence area where a mineral deposit is discovered, upon fulfilling the required conditions for that ML. On that basis, the holder of an exploration licence can apply to the RMB to add a newly discov - ered mineral to the existing exploration licence. It can also apply to the RMB to obtain a mining licence to start mining operations for the discovered minerals. Maintenance of MLs Compliance with legal and contractual obligations is all that is required to maintain the mineral rights. This includes compliance with health and safety standards, the payment of annual fees which vary according to the type of ML and, for mining licences, the size of the mining operation (small, medium or large scale). Suspension and Cancellation of MLs There is no room for arbitrary suspension or cancel - lation of MLs, as the 2024 Mining Law and the agree - ments between the RMB and the LH identify the lim - ited grounds on which such a decision can be taken by the RMB. The RMB must also give 30 days’ notice, before issuing a suspension or cancellation, for the LH to remedy any outstanding breaches. Transfer of MLs A LH may transfer its ML, subject to several condi - tions, including obtaining the prior authorisation of the RMB. Such transfer may be subject to duty and taxes.
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