PORTUGAL Law and Practice Contributed by: Manuel Protásio and Catarina Coimbra, VdA
assets. Ordinary law regulates the terms and conditions and the limits for the use of such goods. As stated above, under the Geological Resourc - es Law, geological resources are divided into public domain goods (mineral deposits, mineral waters, mineral industrial waters, geothermic resources, and geological resources located in the seabed and subsoil of the national maritime space) and private assets (quarries and spring waters). The granting of rights over public domain assets is subject to the award of a concession con - tract, while the granting of rights over the private domain assets is subject to a licensing proce - dure. 1.6 Granting of Mineral Rights In Portugal, expertise in mining matters is cen - tralised with the Minister of the Economy, under the supervision of the Directorate-General for Energy and Geology (DGEG). Some geological resources are, by virtue of their specific char - acteristics – eg, geological resources located in the national maritime space – overseen by the General Directorate of Natural Resources, Security and Maritime Services. Specific mat - ters governed by different authorities regard - ing health and safety, environmental protection and social issues and cultural heritage may also apply. At local level, the municipalities also play an important role in the implementation of min - ing projects. The Portuguese Environment Agency (APA) also plays a significant role in the environmental approval process for mining activities. While the DGEG serves as the primary authority for grant - ing mineral rights, the APA is heavily involved in
managing the environmental aspects of these projects. Mineral rights are primarily granted through administrative contracts. However, the granting of rights over private domain assets is subject to the award of a licence. 1.7 Mining: Security of Tenure The security of tenure for mining rights is guaran - teed through a comprehensive legal framework. Rights Required to Conduct Reconnaissance The Mining Regulations acknowledge and regu - late the concept of reconnaissance. To conduct reconnaissance, an entity must hold a prior evaluation right over an area or areas designed for the exercise of activities for the use of metal - lic mineral deposits. The right is granted under an administrative contract (with a maximum non-renewable term of one year) and may be requested from the DGEG by any entity with recognised technical, economic and financial suitability. Prior evaluation rights entitle the rights holder to develop studies to allow a bet - ter knowledge of the geological potential of the area in question through the analysis of available information and samples taken from the area. Rights Required to Conduct Exploration To conduct exploration for mineral deposits requires a prospecting and research right or an experimental exploitation right. The procedure for obtaining prospecting and research rights may be initiated by the interested parties through the submission of an applica - tion, or by the Portuguese state through a ten - der procedure (subject to the provisions of the Public Procurement Code), while experimental exploration rights are granted at the request of the interested parties. These rights may only be
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