Ministry of Economy to Cancel 805 Mining Concessions

The Ministry of Economy (SE) initiated procedures to cancel 805 mining concessions located within Natural Protected Areas (ANPs), reports media. The move allegedly cites non-compliance with obligations, including the failure to pay mining duties.

The action follows a review completed in April 2025, which found that out of 2,007 mining concessions overlapping with ANPs, 1,043 were in breach of their obligations. The cancellation process, which began in May 2025, targets concessions with at least 70% of their surface area inside an ANP and that failed to pay mining duties for two consecutive years, specifically 2023 and 2024, according to media reports.

The 805 concessions in question cover a total area of over 216,000ha. SE stated that the outcome of these procedures, expected in the 2H25, will either be the recovery of national territory within the protected areas or an increase in tax revenue from mining duties. SE has already canceled a separate group of 344 concessions for non-compliance, recovering 450,764 hectares of land, reports El Economista.

Supreme Court Decision Ends Free Ground for Mining Concessions

The Supreme Court (SCJN) validated a relevant segment of the 2023 Mining Law reform. In a seven-to-two vote, the court revoked two amparos and confirmed the constitutionality of the law's fifth transitory article.

This ruling orders the immediate dismissal of all pending applications for new exploration and exploitation concessions that were filed under the previous legal framework. The decision effectively ends the terreno libre (free ground) concept and ratifies that new concessions can now only be granted through public bidding. The court determined that pending applications did not represent an acquired right, and therefore, the reform does not violate the principle of non-retroactivity, according to Mundo Minero’s report.