CHILE Trends and Developments Contributed by: José Manuel and Felipe Curia, CoyC Minería y Regulación
and the conditions for accessing an extension were amended. Previously, areas encumbered by explora - tion concessions were often maintained through the continuous constitution of new exploration conces - sions as the prior ones expired. Following the reform, this practice is no longer permitted, as a public action was established to challenge such conduct, and upon proof thereof, the mining rights are forfeited. Notwith - standing the foregoing, the term of exploration con - cessions was extended from two to four years, and they may be extended for an additional four years if the holder certifies the performance of exploration works by submitting geological information or alter - natively demonstrates that an environmental assess- ment procedure is at least underway. Strengthening of SIGEX The Exploration Geological Information System ( Siste- ma de Información Geológica de Exploración SIGEX) is a public electronic platform hosted on the website of SERNAGEOMIN, through which geological infor - mation generated by exploration projects is made available, with the aim of ensuring that such informa - tion – potentially useful to other explorers – is pre - served and accessible. Prior to the reform, the Mining Code only required the submission of basic geologi - cal information upon request by the authority. Follow - ing the amendments, reporting becomes mandatory after certain time periods, depending on whether the concession is for exploration or exploitation, and the explorer must submit all geological information, with - out prejudice to the possibility of requesting confi - dentiality, which may be granted for up to four years. Change of co-ordinate reference datum (pending implementation) Finally, a significant amendment – still pending imple - mentation – lays the groundwork for a change in the reference datum used for the co-ordinates associ - ated with mining concessions. Mining concessions are currently tied to the Provisional South American Datum 1956 (PSAD56) or South American Datum 1969 (SAD69), which isolates them from other state databases that operate under the Geocentric Refer - ence System for the Americas ( Sistema de Referencia Geocéntrico para las Américas SIRGAS) or the World Geodetic System 1984 (WGS84). The government has been working on this co-ordinate system transition,
which requires the adoption of specific procedures and regulations. This process has generated con - siderable uncertainty within the industry and among stakeholders. National Lithium Strategy: Implementation and Outlook It is important to note that, given the non-concession - able nature of lithium – a legal regime distinct from that applicable to copper, molybdenum, gold and most mineral substances in Chile – the mining industry associated with this resource is subject to a special statutory framework that must be analysed separately. Since approximately 2012, the Chilean state has pro - moted various tender processes and defined public policies aimed at improving the development and exploitation of this strategic resource for the energy transition; however, these initiatives have gener - ally failed to materialise effectively. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the National Lithium Strategy (NLS), adopted in 2023, established guidelines, objectives and concrete actions that have begun to generate meaningful progress in this area. Specifically, the NLS enabled multiple pathways for lithium project development, distinguishing between those oriented towards a leading role for state-owned enterprises and those allowing for the entry of new actors and private investment through public-private partnership schemes. In the first case, relevant public-private partnerships have been implemented. Thus, Codelco developed a lithium project in Salar de Maricunga through a stra - tegic partnership with Rio Tinto. Similarly, ENAMI, within the framework of its Altoandinos salt flats pro - ject, conducted a national and international call for proposals that culminated in the selection of the same company as its strategic partner. Both projects are expected to strengthen Chile’s position in the global development of new lithium projects. In parallel, the NLS also created avenues for the devel - opment of private initiatives. To this end, a national and international request for information (RFI) was conducted to identify areas with high potential, as well
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