Brazilian Mining Industry

The wheels of government seem to turn slowly in almost every country, but some would say that Brazil’s takes the cake. After changes to codes were first announced in 2009, some companies delayed the start of projects, others rushed to lock in projects before the codes changed, while other companies decided to avoid working in the country completely until the dust settled (). After all, they thought it wise to wait and see how the economic landscape would be affected by the proposed changes before making commitments.

Now, five years later, amid talk of further delay, comes the news that the new protocols may be ditched entirely, making room for fresh concerns to rise to the surface of an already boiling stew of confusion:

It is not just lack of progress that has caused concern. A number of experts have issues with the code itself, saying it would kill exploration by squeezing out smaller players who often drive the discovery of new deposits ().