China’s revised Mineral Resources Law became effective on July 1, 2025, approximately eight months after the country’s legislature approved the adoption of a new regulatory system that recognizes the geopolitical significance of minerals and avoids irreversible damage to natural ecosystems.  These and other regulatory changes will likely bring more domestic and foreign investment to Tibet to help solve a big puzzle: can Tibet better utilize its abundant mineral resources without compromising its natural beauty?  If Tibet succeeds, the accomplishment will inspire China’s neighboring nations facing similar challenges and, as many in China hope, will also strengthen international cooperation in this area.

China’s Revised Mineral Resources Law

Promulgated initially in 1986, the Mineral Resources Law was amended in 1996 and 2009, but neither amendment was as thorough as the revision passed in November 2024 (“2024 Revision”).

The 2024 Revision covers three key aspects.  First, the revision identifies “safeguarding national mineral resource security” as one of the legislative purposes of the Mineral Resources Law by adding the phrase to the first article of the law.  To safeguard such security, a new article (i.e., Article 3) now specifies that “the development, utilization, and protection of mineral resources should adhere to the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party” and “implement the overall national security concept”.  Further, a new chapter (i.e., Chapter 5; Articles 50 to 55) provides details about how reserves should be established to ensure a steady supply of mineral resources and what measures may be taken to respond to emergencies threatening such a supply.

The second key aspect of the 2024 Revision addresses concerns that environmental protection provisions in the older versions of the Mineral Resources Law were quite toothless.  As a result, a new chapter (i.e., Chapter 4; Articles 44 to 49) now covers the establishment of an ecological restoration system for mining areas.  Under the system, if mining conducted by a “holder of mining rights” causes ecological damage in a mining area, the holder is required to “perform ecological restoration obligations in accordance with law” and these obligations continue to exist regardless of whether the holder’s mining rights have expired.  In addition, before mining begins, the holder of mining rights is required to prepare an ecological restoration plan for the mining area and seek public opinions on the plan.  The restoration plan, together with the mining plan, must be submitted to the authorities for approval.  Thereafter, the restoration plan should be strictly followed to conduct ecological restoration of the mining area.

“[…] the 2024 Revision aims at encouraging more investment in the mining sector.”

The third key aspect of the 2024 Revision aims at encouraging more investment in the mining sector.  Instead of administrative approvals as required in the older versions of the Mineral Resources Law, Article 17 of the revised law puts in place a more market-driven system by stating that the primary methods for the authorities to grant mining rights are bidding, auctions, and other competitive means.  In addition, Article 23 now provides for two major incentives to attract investment.  The first incentive is that “a holder of mineral exploration rights” has the rights to “explore relevant mineral resources within the exploration area” that the holder is registered for and to “obtain mining rights [in the area] in accordance with law”.  This is a major improvement from older versions of the law, which merely gave “a holder of mineral exploration rights” “priority” to obtain mining rights in the exploration area, giving rise to worries that the holder could lose such “priority” if other entities were able to offer more favorable terms and conditions.  The second incentive included in Article 23 is that a holder of mining rights has the right to obtain, “on a priority basis in accordance with law”, the mining rights of other mineral resources newly discovered in the mining area that the holder is registered for.

Tibet and Foreign Investment

“The regulatory changes brought about by the revised Mineral Resources Law appear to be exactly what Tibet needs to address its challenge […].”

The regulatory changes brought about by the revised Mineral Resources Law appear to be exactly what Tibet needs to address its challenge: utilizing its abundant mineral resources without damaging its natural environment.

In Tibet, there are more than 100 types of minerals, including chromite, the only ore from which metallic chromium is extracted.  Chromium is valued for its hardness and high corrosion resistance and is used in the production of corrosion- and heat-resistant materials.  More than 75% of chromite used in China is from Tibet, where nearly 10 million tons of chromite have been discovered.

Despite these mineral resources, Tibet cannot implement mining projects without considering their potential adverse impact on the region’s unique natural environment.  Tibet is home to many species of animals and plants.  Specifically, Tibetan antelopes, which were once classified as endangered, primarily live on the Tibetan Plateau.  In addition, of more than 9,600 species of wild plants in Tibet, 855 are endemic to the region.

With provisions offering holders of mining rights stronger protection and requiring ecological restoration of mining areas, the revised Mineral Resources Law will likely bring more experienced foreign investors to Tibet to conduct mining of chromite and other scarce minerals in a protective manner.  This is particularly true because mining of scarce minerals is identified in China’s Catalogue of Industries Encouraged for Foreign Investment as an industry that foreign investors are “encouraged” to invest in, while highlighting that Tibet specifically values foreign investment in “ecosystem restoration and reconstruction projects in mining areas”.

If Tibet succeeds in striking a good balance between mining and ecological restoration, its experience will be considered valuable by China’s neighbors facing similar challenges.  As a result, Tibet will be able to help China promote international cooperation in the field of mineral resources—another goal specified in the revised Mineral Resources Law.

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• The citation of this article is: Dr. Mei Gechlik, China’s Mineral Resources Law, Ecosystems, and Foreign Investment, SINOTALKS.COM^®, In Brief No. 58, July 30, 2025, https://sinotalks.com/inbrief/mineral-foreign-investment.
  The original, English version of this article was edited by Nathan Harpainter. The information and views set out in this article are the responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect the work or views of SINOTALKS®. ↩︎