Permit Periods in Mines to be Shortened

Strong Mining Strong Türkiye

Türkiye Mining Summit, which discussed mining in all its dimensions, brought together all stakeholders of the sector. Organised at Lütfi Kırdar International Convention and Exhibition Centre with the slogan ‘Strong Mining, Strong Türkiye’, the summit included sessions on Mining Strategy, OHS and Advanced Technology in Mining, Environment and Sustainability in Mining.

Celebrated Miners' Day

The opening speech of the assembly was delivered by Alparslan Bayraktar, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources. Minister Bayraktar started his speech by congratulating the mine labourers on 4 December, World Miners' Day. 

Final Target 5 per cent

Noting that 70 of the world's 90 or so mines are found in Türkiye, Bayraktar said, ‘This makes our country a very important centre in the international arena. In the last 22 years, we have increased the share of mining in the gross domestic product from 6 per thousand to 1.4 per cent. Our ultimate goal is to raise this rate to 5 per cent.’

Net Export Target

Bayraktar stated that for this purpose, they should increase investment, production, employment and exports in every field from domestic coal to gold, rare earth elements and boron mines and said, ‘We will process our rich resources in a value-added way and bring them to our economy and make Türkiye a net exporter in the field of mines.

Gold Production in Niger

Pointing out that they also carry out activities in different geographies from Asia to Africa within the scope of raw material supply security, Bayraktar said, ‘We plan to start the first production in 2025 with MTA IC in one of the gold fields we are exploring in Niger.’

Borda New Facility

Bayraktar stated that 73 per cent of the world's reserves of boron ore are found in Türkiye. 

‘Our biggest goal is to sell boron not only as a raw material but also as an intermediate and end product by making it value-added. In the coming days, we will open the Ferrobor Production Facility with a capacity of 800 tonnes/year, which we have started to build in Bandırma, which is used in many areas, especially in steel production and neodymium magnets.’

Critical Raw Materials Report

Emphasising that Rare Earth Elements (REEs) are one of the most strategic areas that will develop energy, industry, production and thus the economy, Bayraktar said: ‘We have prepared the Türkiye Critical and Strategic Raw Materials report. We will share this report, which will reduce our import dependency on critical minerals and reveal our supply security strategy, with you in the coming days.’

Integral Part of National Security

Underlining that the region where Türkiye is located is facing different crises and challenges, Bayraktar said: ‘This situation reveals the necessity of obtaining minerals from domestic sources as much as possible. For this reason, we do not consider independence in mines, as in energy, separate from the independence of our country, and we see this issue as an integral part of national security.’

13 Years Required

Referring to the length of the permit processes as one of the most important challenges faced by investors, Bayraktar said, ‘Today, a metallic mine site requires 7 years of exploration, 3 years of institutional permits and 3 years of preparation for production. In other words, it takes at least 13 years for a mine site to be put into production. We aim to increase legal reliability and predictability, improve the investment environment by shortening the permit processes, reduce the current account deficit with new reserve discoveries, and ensure the supply security of our country in strategic and critical mines by making legal arrangements if necessary.’

Mindset Transformation

Bayraktar also stated that a transformation of mindset is needed in the new period as the public-private sector and said, ‘The relationship that our miners will establish with our citizens at the local level through social responsibility projects and close communication by increasing good examples within the responsible sustainable mining understanding will bring our sector to another level.’

Improvement of the Investment Environment

Mehmet Yılmaz, President of the Turkish Miners' Association, said in his speech that they expect support on some issues in order to move the sector forward and added: ’Improving the investment environment, developing incentive mechanisms that will pave the way for new projects and implementing predictable policies for our sector will attract not only domestic investors but also foreign capital to our country.’

Fast Licensing

Stating that a faster, more transparent and effective licensing system will make significant contributions to the growth of mining, Yılmaz said: ‘We believe that special attention should be paid to supporting and encouraging mineral exploration activities.’