Minerals on land
In the natural resource laws, "minerals" refers to all geological substances and other minerals, metals, metal alloys, and metal ores, coal, oil, natural gas, and other usable substances that can be found in the Earth.
What we do
The National Energy Authority carries out its legal role regarding permit issuance and monitoring of permits for exploration and utilization of subsurface resources (in this case, minerals) in the earth. Additionally, the institution oversees general administration for this category of matters, which can involve considerations such as environmental impact assessments of operations and other planning-related issues. This is done in collaboration with other entities, authorities, and authorized evaluators as needed.
All utilization of subsurface resources is subject to the utilization permit granted by the National Energy Authority, in accordance with the natural resources laws. An exception is that the landowner (or a party to an agreement with the landowner) is allowed, without the need for a permit from the National Energy Authority, to investigate and utilize certain volcanic and mineral substances on their own land, including rocks, gravel, soil, clay, sand, pebbles, scoria, and similar materials, as well as humus, muck, and peat.
This means that a permit from the National Energy Authority is required for exploration or utilization of other subsurface resources, regardless of whether they are within private land, state land, or national territory. Additionally, a permit from the National Energy Authority is always required for exploration or utilization of subsurface resources within national territory.
Furthermore, the National Energy Authority is authorized to initiate, sponsor, or conduct research and exploration for resources (in this context, minerals) in the earth anywhere in the country. This applies even if the landowner has already initiated such research or exploration or has granted permission to others, unless the involved party holds a valid exploration permit.
Applications and licensing
Applications for exploration or utilization of minerals on land (as applicable) are submitted to the National Energy Authority. If the institution finds the application satisfactory, it is sent for opinions from legally designated parties for review and, as circumstances dictate, other organizations or stakeholders. The opinions are then presented to the applicant, who is given the opportunity to provide comments on them. Based on the application, opinions, and applicant's comments, the National Energy Authority makes a decision to issue a permit or reject the application.
According to Article 3, Paragraph 3 of Act No. 57/1998, administrative decisions of the National Energy Authority related to granting, reviewing, or revoking exploration or utilization permits under these laws are subject to appeal to the Environmental and Natural Resources Appeals Board. Matters related to the appeal process, including membership, time limits, proceedings, and more, are governed by the Act on the Environmental and Natural Resources Appeals Board.
Applications
Regarding exploration, research, or utilization permits, the following information needs to be provided:
1. Purpose of the research.
2. Precise delineation of the research area.
3. Timing of the research and its phases if applicable.
4. Analysis of potential impacts on neighboring areas.
5. Overview of previous research in the area, reports, and data.
6. Research plan in outline, stages, and components.
7. Plan for proposed drilling and other activities related to the research, and disposal of drill cuttings and structures.
8. Information about landowners in the specified area.
9. How to handle equipment and facilities after the permit period ends.
Exploration permit
An exploration permit according to the natural resources laws grants the authority to search for the relevant resource (in this context, minerals) in a designated area during the permit period, investigate its extent, quantity, and potential yield, and adhere to other conditions stipulated in the natural resources laws and deemed necessary by the National Energy Authority. An exploration permit is granted to a single party for each specific area.
Utilization permit
A utilization permit, as defined by the natural resources laws, grants the permit holder the right to extract and use the relevant resource (in this context, minerals) during the permit period, in the specified quantity, and under the conditions stipulated in the laws and deemed necessary by the National Energy Authority.
In cases involving mandatory environmental impact assessments, as per the Environmental Impact Assessment Act, a decision from the Planning Agency is required before a utilization permit can be granted.
Before an exploration or utilization permit is issued, the National Energy Authority must seek evaluations from the following institutions, in accordance with the provisions of maritime jurisdiction laws:
Marine Research Institute (as applicable)
Relevant municipality (for utilization permits)
Additional evaluation parties that the institution may consult, depending on circumstances, include:
Cultural Heritage Agency of Iceland
Other relevant stakeholders in specific cases in the mentioned area.
Monitoring of mineral resources
According to the Energy Act No. 87/2003, one of the National Energy Authority’s (NEA) main roles is to collect data on energy sources and other natural resources, their utilization and the country’s energy economy, preserve them and disseminate information to the government and the public. In order to carry out this role, the NEA is authorized to request data concerning the utilization of terrestrial resources, energy production and energy consumption.
The NEA’s monitoring of resource utilization is divided into four categories
- Internal monitoring.
- Regular monitoring.
- Unannounced monitoring.
- Additional monitoring.
Internal monitoring
Internal monitoring is the license holder’s own control of his own activities, carried out by his employees or a hired service provider, who has the required permits for this purpose, in order to ensure that the requirements in the license, laws and regulations are met.
Regular monitoring
It is assumed that regular inspections of permits are carried out annually. In regular monitoring, it is ascertained whether the activities of license holders/recipients are in accordance with laws, regulations and licenses, both by making site visits and also by conducting general supervision of license holders.
The scope of supervision includes, on the one hand, on-site supervision and, on the other hand, the receiving and reviewing of data, suggestions and inquiries regarding the activities. The ratio of the time spent on an on-site inspection versus other types of monitoring (monitoring from the office) varies considerably depending on the type of activity, and therefore the amount of time billed for the inspection of licensed activities that fall within the same category may vary.
Unannounced monitoring
Unscheduled and unannounced on-sight inspections are done following tips or indications of deviations from permits. In general, unannounced inspections are only used to investigate serious and/or repeated violations of the conditions of exploration, research and exploitation permits. An unannounced inspection shall be carried out as soon as possible and as is appropriate, prior to the granting, revision or renewal of a permit.
Additional monitoring
If an inspection reveals a significant violation of permit conditions, an additional inspection must be carried out within 6 months from the time the violation occurred, or knowledge of the violation reached the supervisory body.
Follow-up due to deviations is billed according to an hourly rate, and should the need for extensive monitoring arise, e.g., due to suggestions, data submission or other unforeseen factors, the NEA will charge an additional fee according to rates and real-time registrations in the organization’s project accounting.