Overview
- The Executive sent the Ley MAPE to the Chamber of Deputies on Monday, formally beginning the bill’s parliamentary review and the process that could lead to new mining rules.
- The proposal creates a new national agency, FORMAPE, attached to the Ministry of Energy and Mines to run authorizations, accreditations, registers and national traceability systems for small and artisanal miners.
- The bill closes the Registro Integral de Formalización Minera (Reinfo) on December 31, 2026 and opens a temporary consolidation regime from January 2027 to June 30, 2028 to let eligible registrants complete formalization requirements.
- It requires environmental certification to operate, mandates progressive elimination of mercury in gold processing, and assigns OEFA, Osinergmin and Sunafil to enforce environmental, safety and labor rules respectively.
- Implementation would see Minem temporarily carry out FORMAPE’s tasks, a planned five‑year phased transfer of powers, a 120‑day deadline for the Executive to issue regulations if the law passes, and steps to give miners bank accounts and other tools that could change how informal operators enter formal value chains.