Regulations on the Implementation of the Mineral Resources Law
On 15 May 2026, State Council published the Regulations on the Implementation of the Mineral Resources Law, due to take effect on 15 June 2026. The regulation sets a policy framework for more sustainable mineral resources management, including:
- Rational development and use of mineral resources
- Strengthening ecological and environmental protection
- Advancing high-quality mining development
- Safeguarding mineral-resource security.
It promotes a coordinated approach to exploiting strategic minerals, requiring coordination across fiscal, financial, land, industrial, trade and environmental policy across the whole chain from exploration to storage. The regulation makes competitive allocation the default for mining rights and gives priority to tendering for strategic mineral blocks with higher scarcity, larger reserves or special technical and environmental requirements.
It further allows direct grant of mining rights for urgently needed strategic minerals with State Council approval, rather than through the usual competitive process. The regulation clarifies renewal, transfer and permit procedures, requires exploration and mining operators to secure the relevant project, land, sea-use, environmental and safety approvals before operations, and supports more flexible land use for strategic open-pit mining where phased mining and reclamation are feasible.
Official Ministry of Justice interpretations add that the regulation strengthens the strategic mineral reserve and emergency system, including product, capacity and origin reserves, and further refines ecological restoration obligations.
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