El futuro de la tributación de los recursos naturales: 10 ideas de política fiscal para movilizar los ingresos provenientes de la minería

The report examines the current state of mining taxation and proposes ten innovative policy ideas to increase government revenue. It highlights the shift toward critical minerals for the energy transition and the risks posed by automation and profit shifting. The proposed ideas include minimum profit sharing, production sharing contracts, state equity, state-owned enterprises, variable royalties, the 'Sixth Method' for transfer pricing, carbon pricing, development taxes for communities, competitive bidding for licenses, and remote monitoring for quarries. It also provides a framework for evaluating these reforms and discusses the legal challenges associated with fiscal stabilization clauses and international investment treaties.

• The traditional mining tax regime, relying on corporate income tax and royalties, is often vulnerable to profit shifting and base erosion. The IMF estimates that African countries lose up to USD 730 million annually in mining tax revenues due to these practices.
• The energy transition is driving a surge in demand for critical minerals like lithium, cobalt, and copper, providing resource-rich developing countries a 'second opportunity' to redesign their internal resource mobilization for sustainable development.
• Automation in mining is reducing the number of unskilled jobs, which were previously a primary benefit for host countries, necessitating a shift toward a greater reliance on fiscal revenues to maintain social and political viability.
• Variable royalties can mitigate the impact of volatile mineral prices by adjusting rates based on price or profitability, making the regime less regressive than fixed royalties and reducing the need for frequent legislative changes.
• The 'Sixth Method' for transfer pricing, developed in Latin America, simplifies the determination of prices for sales between related parties by using quoted exchange prices (e.g., London Metal Exchange), reducing the administrative burden and vulnerability to tax avoidance.
• The European Union's proposed Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) could negatively impact mineral-rich developing countries by taxing imports based on carbon emissions, potentially reducing their exports to the EU.
• A proposed 'turnover tax for development' (between 0.5% and 3% of revenue) would require mining companies to invest in shared public infrastructure or pay into a government-managed fund to ensure local communities benefit from mining activities.
• Competitive bidding for mining licenses can increase government revenue through signing bonuses and higher royalties, while reducing information asymmetry and the risk of corruption compared to 'first-come, first-served' systems.
• Remote monitoring technologies, such as laser scanning of trucks, can significantly increase tax collection from industrial minerals like quarry aggregates by providing independent verification of production and sales volumes.
• Fiscal stabilization clauses in mining contracts often freeze tax conditions for long periods, which can lead to unsustainable benefits for investors and hinder a government's ability to update its tax regime.

APA

Readhead, A., Tarus, V., Lassourd, T., Madzivanyika, E., & Schlenther, B. (2023). El futuro de la tributación de los recursos naturales: 10 ideas de política fiscal para movilizar los ingresos provenientes de la minería. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2023-06/future-of-resource-taxation-es.pdf

Chicago

Readhead, Alexandra, Viola Tarus, Thomas Lassourd, Ezera Madzivanyika, and Bernd Schlenther. El futuro de la tributación de los recursos naturales: 10 ideas de política fiscal para movilizar los ingresos provenientes de la minería. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2023. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2023-06/future-of-resource-taxation-es.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Readhead |first1=Alexandra |last2=Tarus |first2=Viola |last3=Lassourd |first3=Thomas |last4=Madzivanyika |first4=Ezera |last5=Schlenther |first5=Bernd |title=El futuro de la tributación de los recursos naturales: 10 ideas de política fiscal para movilizar los ingresos provenientes de la minería |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=23 June 2023 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2023-06/future-of-resource-taxation-es.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{readhead2023futuro, author = {Readhead, Alexandra and Tarus, Viola and Lassourd, Thomas and Madzivanyika, Ezera and Schlenther, Bernd}, title = {{El futuro de la tributación de los recursos naturales: 10 ideas de política fiscal para movilizar los ingresos provenientes de la minería}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2023}, month = jun, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2023-06/future-of-resource-taxation-es.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }