Recently, reporters learned at the national training workshop for inspectors responsible for verifying and publicizing exploration and mining information of mineral rights holders, held in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, that, in accordance with the Party Central Committee and the State Council’s policy directives on “delegating power, strengthening regulation, and improving services” as well as the reform guidelines for ecological civilization construction, the Ministry of Natural Resources has reformed the supervision and management approach for mineral resource exploration and mining in China. The annual inspection system has been replaced by an information-publicization system. A pilot program was launched in 2016, and the system was fully implemented nationwide in 2017. Currently, significant progress has been made in the publicization of information on mineral rights holders. As of the end of March 2017, the nationwide rate of publicized exploration information reached 93.14%, and the rate of publicized mining information stood at 87.67%. The pilot province of Zhejiang has achieved particularly positive results.

　　So, what progress has been made in the public disclosure of information on mining right holders? What is the significance of establishing a system for publicly disclosing information on mining right holders? What challenges have emerged during the implementation process, and how should we move forward with the next steps? At the training session, officials from relevant regulatory authorities and experts shared their respective insights.

　　Significant progress has been made in the public disclosure of information on mining rights holders.

　　China's approach to regulating mineral resources is undergoing a transformation!

　　Change stems from the demands of the times.

　　In August 2014, the State Council promulgated the "Interim Regulations on Enterprise Information Disclosure," proposing the establishment of an enterprise information disclosure system aimed primarily at promoting corporate integrity and self-discipline and expanding social oversight.

　　In 2015, the central government issued the "Overall Plan for Reform of the Ecological Civilization System," explicitly proposing the establishment of an information disclosure system for efficient and comprehensive utilization by mining enterprises, as well as the creation of a blacklist system for mining rights holders.

　　In September 2015, the Ministry of Natural Resources issued the “Measures for the Public Disclosure of Exploration and Mining Information by Mineral Rights Holders (Trial),” requiring reform of the annual inspection system for mineral rights and promoting a system that includes enterprise information disclosure, social oversight, random inspections by competent authorities, and a “blacklist” management system. This move represents a systematic improvement to China’s regulatory framework for mineral resources, aimed at adapting to new situations and meeting new requirements—specifically, to ensure fair competition, encourage integrity and self-discipline among mineral rights holders, standardize the public disclosure of exploration and mining information by such holders, strengthen credit-based constraints, enhance the effectiveness of government regulation, expand social oversight, and further reinforce the supervision of mineral rights holders’ fulfillment of their legal obligations and their rational development and utilization of mineral resources.

　　The new institutional design introduces changes in at least the following areas: abolishing the annual inspection system for mineral resource exploration and mining, and shifting to a supervisory and management approach that combines daily oversight by administrative authorities with comprehensive public supervision; changing the way materials are submitted—relevant documents no longer need to be submitted in paper form by mineral rights holders, but rather electronic data should be proactively entered through the online information disclosure system; provincial-level departments of natural resources will use a random lottery method to determine the list of entities subject to spot checks, and will conduct spot checks on the public disclosure status of mineral rights holders; establishing lists of abnormal entities and those with serious violations, as well as mechanisms for handling complaints and objections; expanding the scope of application of disclosed information results—for example, in the approval of special funds for land and resources, bidding and tendering for projects in the field of land and resources, transfer of state-owned land, approval of mineral rights applications, and conferment of honorary titles—mineral rights holders listed on the abnormal entity list will be legally restricted, while those listed on the serious violation list will be legally barred from participating.

　　According to materials provided by the Department of Reserves, in 2016, the Ministry of Natural Resources conducted a pilot program for information disclosure in three provinces—Zhejiang, Hubei, and Heilongjiang—and carried out related work such as the development of the disclosure system and training. In 2017, the work of publicly disclosing exploration and mining information by mineral rights holders was fully implemented. From January to March, during the first phase, efforts were mainly focused on encouraging mineral rights holders to enter and disclose their information through the system, achieving significant phased progress. At the national level, statistics show that as of the end of March, a total of 27,812 exploration projects had been disclosed nationwide, with a disclosure rate of 93.14%; and 71,126 mining sites had been disclosed, with a disclosure rate of 87.67%. Among the provinces, those with exploration project disclosure rates exceeding 95% include Ningxia, Shanxi, Tianjin, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Hebei, Qinghai, Liaoning, Jilin, Hunan, Hubei, Chongqing, Fujian, Gansu, and Inner Mongolia—totaling 15 provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities). As for mining sites, the provinces with disclosure rates exceeding 95% include Ningxia, Tianjin, Zhejiang, Liaoning, Qinghai, Hubei, Jiangsu, Jilin, Hebei, and Shandong—totaling 10 provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities).

　　Based on the pilot practices in Zhejiang, the work of publicly disclosing information on mining rights holders has achieved significant results.

　　The advancement of work in Zhejiang Province is being pursued under the broader context of building “Credit Zhejiang” and in conjunction with the development of a land and mineral resource credit system. Initiated in 2014, after three years of exploration and practice, the public disclosure of exploration and mining information by mining right holders has been smoothly advanced. As of the end of March 2017, 405 exploration projects and 837 mining projects across the province had completed public disclosure, with disclosure rates consistently above 98%.

　　More importantly, Zhejiang’s disclosure of mining rights holder information has been deepened to the level of credit supervision.

　　Zhejiang has established a public disclosure system, essentially putting in place a system for publicly disclosing exploration and mining information. It has also assembled a team of field verification experts and set up a credit supervision system covering four categories of entities: mining right holders, prospecting right holders, geological and mineral service providers, and geological and mineral experts. Furthermore, it has launched a credit rating evaluation program for mining right holders. In February 2016, the Zhejiang Provincial Department of Natural Resources released, for the first time, a list of credit ratings for enterprises engaged in the development and utilization of mineral resources across the province, making Zhejiang the first province nationwide to issue such a list of mining right holders’ credit ratings. In March 2017, the Zhejiang Provincial Department released the 2016 credit rating list for units (enterprises) involved in the exploration, development, and utilization of mineral resources across the province. A total of 230 prospecting right holders were included on the list, among which 226 were rated as Grade A, 3 as Grade B, and 1 as Grade C. As for mining right holders, a total of 721 were listed, with 688 rated as Grade A, 9 as Grade B, 19 as Grade C, and 5 as Grade D. Enterprises with lower credit ratings are subject to differentiated regulatory measures, including restrictions or outright bans at various stages of geological and mineral administrative approvals. Mining right holders and their legal representatives rated as Grade D are placed on a blacklist and reported to the provincial credit center for joint punitive measures.

　　The implementation of Zhejiang’s information disclosure system has already shown certain positive results: it has facilitated a shift in management approaches and enhanced the efficiency of administrative governance.

　　Through information disclosure and credit supervision efforts, mining right holders have come to place greater value on their credit rating assessments, enabling many tasks previously handled through mandatory supervision by the land and resources administration department to now be proactively consulted and processed.

　　Zhejiang’s information disclosure system has achieved real-time data and information exchange with the province’s geological and mining credit supervision platform. Meanwhile, data from the Administration for Market Regulation, safety supervision authorities, courts, and environmental protection agencies are automatically obtained through data exchanges with the provincial credit center, laying the foundation for preliminary implementation of big data management in the province’s geological and mining sector. Through this geological and mining credit big data management system, land and resources departments at all levels can promptly grasp the status of daily inspections, dynamic monitoring of mine reserves, and information disclosure efforts across various regions, thereby promoting the comprehensive implementation of regulatory tasks and effectively enhancing administrative efficiency.

　　The public disclosure of information on mining rights holders is a pioneering effort with no precedent to follow. According to reports, although this initiative has been fully implemented and promoted at the national level, several difficulties and challenges still remain. First, some mining rights holders are not yet accustomed to the regulatory approach that has shifted from passive data submission to proactive reporting and acceptance of social oversight. Second, some mines that have been closed under policy actually no longer exist but have not been promptly identified and their mining licenses have not been canceled in a timely manner, thereby affecting the baseline data used for public disclosure. Third, a small number of grassroots administrative departments have not yet adapted promptly to this shift in regulatory approach, and their awareness of proactively providing services and promptly tracking management remains insufficient. Fourth, a few mining rights holders do not fully recognize the importance of the information reporting process, leading to inaccuracies and unreliability in the data they submit.

　　Recognize and promote the information disclosure system from the perspective of reform.

　　At the national training session for inspectors responsible for verifying and publicizing exploration and mining information of mineral rights holders, Ju Jianhua, Director of the Department of Reserves at the Ministry, who is in charge of the work on publicizing exploration and mining information, emphasized in response to certain issues that promoting the information-publicization system represents a major shift in the regulatory approach for mineral resource exploration and mining under the new circumstances. This initiative is a key reform task for the Ministry of Natural Resources and Land, and it holds significant practical importance for enhancing the fairness, standardization, and effectiveness of government regulation. We must adopt a reform-oriented perspective, further deepen our understanding of and fully grasp the requirements set forth by the Party Central Committee and the State Council, and strengthen our sense of urgency and responsibility.

　　Ju Jianhua believes that, first, this work is an important initiative for advancing ecological civilization construction. The Party Central Committee and the State Council have explicitly set forth this task in the "Opinions on Accelerating the Promotion of Ecological Civilization Construction" and the "Overall Plan for Reform of the Ecological Civilization System."

　　Second, this initiative represents a fundamental shift in the way mineral resources are regulated. Further transforming government functions, continuously promoting “delegation of power, regulation, and service,” innovating regulatory approaches, strengthening and improving ongoing and post-event supervision, enhancing the effectiveness of government oversight, and stimulating market vitality and social creativity—these have been repeatedly emphasized and demanded by the State Council since the Third Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee. Annual inspections of mining rights and exploration rights have played an important role in standardizing exploration and mining activities since their inception. However, given today’s new circumstances, it has become increasingly difficult to truly hold enterprises accountable for their responsibilities. The traditional regulatory methods and tools can no longer keep pace with the rapid development of the times. Therefore, we must deepen reform, innovate regulatory approaches, and establish an information disclosure system, using scientific and effective “regulation” to facilitate greater “delegation.” On the one hand, we must firmly enforce the principal responsibility of mining enterprises; on the other hand, we must expand societal oversight to prevent arbitrary inspections by regulatory authorities, enhance the fairness of government regulation, foster an open and competitive market environment, and improve the business climate for enterprises.

　　Third, this work is an important component of building a social integrity system. Without integrity, there can be no order. Establishing an information disclosure system is a key measure for advancing the construction of a social integrity system in the field of land and resources. It plays a crucial role in promoting self-discipline and integrity among mining right holders, strengthening credit-based constraints, and enhancing the effectiveness of regulatory oversight.

　　Fourth, through this work, we will provide a true and reliable data foundation for comprehensively reflecting the current status and changing trends in mineral resource development, thereby supporting the formulation of resource strategies, industrial policies, and management measures.

　　Speaking of the information disclosure system, Zhang Jinggen, Deputy Director of the Department of Natural Resources and Planning of Zhejiang Province—the pilot province—believes that implementing an information disclosure system for exploration and mining activities by mineral rights holders is not only an important measure to deepen reform in the supervision and management of mineral resource exploration and mining under the new circumstances and strengthen ongoing and post-event oversight, but also a concrete step to implement government information disclosure and promote law-based administration. This system helps foster integrity and self-discipline among mineral rights holders, expand social oversight, and enhance the effectiveness of government regulation. It is of great significance for accelerating the establishment of a new integrity-based regulatory mechanism in the field of mineral resources—one characterized by “enterprise self-discipline, departmental oversight, and social supervision.”

　　Researcher Zhang Yinghong, an expert and deputy director of the Strategic Research Center for Oil and Gas Resources at the Ministry of Natural Resources, believes that the public disclosure of exploration and mining information by mineral rights holders represents a significant reform in the supervision and management of mineral resources. This is a new undertaking that is highly policy-oriented and technically demanding, requiring coordinated planning and a phased approach. Among these efforts, on-site verification is a crucial component of the information disclosure process. It must be carefully organized and rigorously enforced to ensure the accuracy and authenticity of first-hand data collected during verification, thereby objectively reflecting the actual exploration and mining conditions of mineral rights holders.

　　Solidly advance and ensure that the reforms are effectively implemented.

　　This year marks the first full-year implementation of the information disclosure system. What are the next steps for advancing the information disclosure work?

　　At the training session, the Department of Reserves made arrangements, calling for careful organization, solid implementation, and ensuring that the reform is effectively put into practice.

　　The head of the Department of Reserves emphasized: First, we must attach great importance to this and effectively strengthen organizational leadership. “All localities should place great emphasis on this issue and, from the perspective of advancing reform, prioritize information disclosure as a key component of our current work. Leaders at all levels must take personal charge, devote full energy to implementation, promptly address any challenges that arise, provide feedback on existing issues, and ensure robust organizational support.”

　　Second, we must strengthen institutional development. Provincial departments of natural resources and land should, based on the “Measures for Publicizing Exploration and Mining Information of Mineral Rights Holders,” and in light of local conditions, formulate corresponding implementation rules; clearly define the division of responsibilities among provincial, municipal, and county levels; refine management procedures; optimize internal workflows; clarify work requirements; and provide comprehensive institutional safeguards.

　　Third, it is essential to carry out thorough on-site verification of the publicly disclosed information, checking the accuracy and authenticity of the data reported by mining right holders and objectively reflecting their actual exploration and mining activities. Provincial-level departments of natural resources and land administration shall, in accordance with the “double random, one public” requirements, establish a pool of verification personnel, allocate sufficient funds, and organize and implement spot-check activities effectively. As stipulated, provincial authorities shall determine and publicly announce the list of entities to be spot-checked, while city- and county-level authorities shall specifically organize and implement the checks and publicly disclose the results. Verification personnel shall conduct on-site inspections, accurately record the inspection findings, and assume responsibility for the conclusions drawn from their verification efforts.

　　Fourth, we must strictly enforce the list of abnormal entities and strengthen credit-based constraints. In addition, we need to step up publicity efforts to create a favorable external environment and promptly summarize and evaluate our work to achieve tangible results.

　　The message conveyed at the training session gives people the impression that the countdown has begun for the public disclosure of information on mining rights holders, and this effort is steadily advancing. It will surely be fully implemented across China and deepen further in the years to come.