Patrushev stated the importance of monitoring the use of licenses for the subsoil of the Russian Federation

In Russia, it is necessary to increase the efficiency and coverage of monitoring the use of subsurface licenses, as well as digitalization and automation of processes in this area. This was announced on April 1 by Dmitry Patrushev, Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, at a meeting on the management system of the subsoil fund.

He noted that mining is one of the leading sectors of the Russian economy. However, for their uninterrupted production, in order to ensure the availability of sufficient reserves for the future, it is necessary to conduct continuous search and exploration of the area.

"Despite the fact that the conditions for obtaining licenses are clearly regulated by law, practice shows that a number of companies do not fully fulfill their obligations. To improve the existing mechanisms, it is necessary to use not only direct regulation, but also adjust economic incentive tools so that companies have an interest," Patrushev said.

The Deputy Prime Minister discussed with the heads of relevant departments the effectiveness of the application procedure for issuing licenses for geological exploration of subsurface. It was noted that since 2014, when this mechanism became operational, companies have invested about 100 billion rubles in the industry, about 700 deposits have been discovered, and reserves for key types of resources have increased in the country.

However, there are also negative consequences of obtaining licenses for companies that do not have the necessary capital and competencies. To prevent such cases, the Russian Ministry of Natural Resources and Rosnedra will have to evaluate the current mechanism for each type of mineral, Patrushev said.

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On March 26, Secretary of the State Council of the Russian Federation Alexey Dyumin also stressed the importance of mineral development for Russia, specifying that the Arctic is a huge resource base for this. He pointed out the presence of deposits of coal, polymetals, copper and other minerals in the region.