Nearly 500 mining exploration licences have been issued so far for Sri Lanka’s heavy mineral sector, but only a small number have moved into active operations, according to Geological Survey and Mines Bureau (GSMB) Chairman Saman Jayasinghe.
The GSMB last week announced that it had officially transitioned towards a new National Mineral Policy, resulting in a temporary pause in the assessment of new industrial mining licences.
The GSMB Chairman confirmed that the move was designed to curb speculative behaviour in the mining sector and ensure that licences were granted to entities capable of genuine industrial operation.
According to Jayasinghe, the previous system, which operated on a first-come, first-served basis, is being replaced by a more stringent evaluation framework.
The Chairman noted that while a large volume of exploration licences had been issued in the past, the conversion rate to actual mining remained remarkably low.
He explained that the suspension was a necessary intervention to stop the practice of obtaining licences solely for financial speculation on the stock market rather than for industrial production.
“Up to this point, many have been obtaining these licences simply to market them on the stock exchange. This is precisely why the Government decided to temporarily hold the process until we can establish a more concrete and productive solution,” Jayasinghe said.
Under the new policy, the GSMB will utilise a competitive selection process. This involves a shift towards public transparency where the Government identifies locations and invites qualified parties to apply through a formal evaluation of expressions of interest.
When asked about the current backlog of applications during this transition period, the Chairman indicated that the queue was manageable and that no new licences had been granted recently.
“I cannot state the exact number of pending applications right now, but I believe it is fewer than 50. We have not issued any new licences during this year or the previous year,” Jayasinghe said.
The GSMB Chairman also emphasised that an exploration licence did not guarantee a mining licence and that the latter was only granted upon the submission of comprehensive mineral data that met the bureau’s technical standards.
“A mining licence is only granted once the exploration phase is complete. To date, however, only a few licences have successfully moved from exploration to the mining stage,” Jayasinghe said.