Javier Divany | The sun of Mexico
With 87 votes for, 20 against and 16 abstentions, the Senate of the Republic approved overall the reform of the mining law sent by the President of the Republic, Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
The Senate of the Republic approved in general and the non-reserved articles, and the reservations to the mining law filed by the opposition parties will be debated.
Earlier, with 15 votes in favor and 4 abstentions, the Mining Unit and Second Legislative Points Committees approved the mining law reform initiative, which was sent yesterday by the Chamber of Deputies.
Mining law aims to nationalize lithium; however, given the messiness of the parliamentary process and the lack of analysis, Senator de Morena and coal businessman Armando Guadiana criticized the speed with which the Upper House is dealing with this matter, although he said that he would vote for.
“In the Chamber of Deputies, well, I think they were already fed up with Sunday, with everything they shouted there and, rather than analyzing, they devoted themselves to shouting between the parties and they haven’t seen this issue again, but I don’t know how rushed I am, because it seems they want to expedite this issue,” Armando Guadiana said.
That’s a bit odd, he added, because Mexico doesn’t even have large lithium deposits.
In his speech, the senator of Morena, Napoleón Gómez Urrutia, said that this issue has aroused the interest of all those who defend individuals and wrap themselves in the national flag, that lithium belongs to Mexicans,
He said that the gold and the silver belong to the Mexicans, and who has it – he answered -, the individuals have it and what we are looking for is to prevent this from happening with lithium, that the big national monopolies keep it, not just the foreigners and the national groups like Grupo México and Grupo Peñoles, and other groups, plunder the natural resources.
“In three years, Canadian companies have extracted more gold from this country than in 300 years from the Spanish colony,” said the mining senator.
The priority of the government is that this does not happen again, by nationalizing lithium the well-being of the populations is put forward, not only the present but that of future generations, since this initiative aims to position the State as guarantor of the exploration and exploitation and use of the national resource and this reform is not intended to close investment.
When Senator Napoleón Gómez Urrutia was questioned by Senator Marcela Mora on the conditions of the concessions, the leader of the mining union mentioned that the 8 concessions currently granted in terms of lithium exploration are not intended for exploitation, c That’s why it was important to make this decision. now to control, to regulate the terms and conditions under which these concessions will be granted, for exploitation, especially since it is a state entity, as has been envisaged.
“It is right time to anticipate and anticipate that what has happened with the rest of the metal mining in the country will not happen, where, through concessions, it has been monopolized and concentrated between a few hands, domestic and foreign. This initiative is perfectly in line with this vision of the future and patriotic of the interests of the nation”, he underlined.
Puebla State Morenista Senator Armando Armenta was bombarded with questions from senators of all parties, to which he deftly gave unspecified answers about lithium.
Meanwhile, Senator Gustavo Madero, of the plural group, recalled that since 1917 all the minerals belong to the Mexicans and that what is being done is to “nationalize”, because a public body is going to be created, because concessions will not go not be granted. .
This government, which has been in place for 3 years and four months, has granted no lithium concessions and you are welcome, zero concessions, and that is not a good sign, they stigmatize economic activity, and we have 37 projects for 10 companies.
A disturbing fact, he said, is that the President has not reserved the lithium in the T-MEC as a product reserved for the exclusive nation of the State of Mexico, so we will be exposed to the demands of men businessmen, “these are buckets of cold water for businessmen”.
In those three years, Mexico has held the record for the lowest public and private investment and infrastructure, relative to GDP, because billions of dollars sit idle and Mexico does nothing to generate public confidence. business, said Senator Gustavo Log.
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