Mining

Members of Holland & Knight's Mining Team have experience representing companies in all aspects of mining, including land use entitlement, permitting and environmental issues, mine construction and operations, mergers and acquisitions (M&A), and a variety of business transactions. We have substantial experience regarding the planning and permitting of new mines, including government agency reviews, approvals and ongoing compliance matters. Our experience includes construction, commissioning, extraction, processing and transporting materials, and project reclamation. Our clients include public and private companies as well as government organizations.

Attorneys on our team represent mining clients in acquisitions and joint ventures throughout multiple jurisdictions. We also assist in drafting and negotiating an array of mining-related documents, from royalty agreements and environmental studies to leasing and disposition agreements for mining-related properties.

In addition, our team assists mining companies in obtaining government approvals and entitlements, and maintaining government compliance in the United States and globally. We regularly advise mining companies and mining trade associations on a wide range of environmental compliance issues such as disposal of contaminated waste, handling of chemicals, stormwater management and noise issues. We also assist clients in complying with international regulatory standards and laws such as the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), the International Cyanide Management Code, and the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.

Our team collaborates with attorneys in related practice groups to provide comprehensive counsel for a full range of mining-related matters, including:

• mining tenement acquisitions, landowner issues, maintenance of mining tenements and tenement rights, assignment and surrender of mining tenements
• environmental laws and standards and their application to mining activities
• water issues for mine development, operation and closure
• extraction and processing in the U.S. and other jurisdictions
• government policy recognition and compliance
• export licenses and product export
• project finance for mine and resource development
• public and private M&A, asset sales versus stock sales, due diligence, traditional contract mining, joint ventures and joint operating agreements, and EPC/EPCM contracting
• taxation and royalty issues for mining projects
• environmental, carbon emissions, safety and health management laws
• anti-corruption/anti-bribery laws and regulations in multiple jurisdictions
• labor and human resources support of the mining sector
• Mine Safety and Health Administration regulations and compliance

Team Strengths and Approach

Our team draws upon the experience of attorneys who have substantial experience advocating on behalf of mining clients. Specific team strengths include:

• multinational, multilingual representation in the U.S., Canada, Latin America, Europe and Asia
• experience with and before local, state, and federal agencies such as various states' Attorneys General and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
• technical knowledge to complement legal experience

Holland & Knight applies a functional team approach, tapping into extensive knowledge across the firm to provide high-quality, cost-effective, client-focused representation.

Representative Matters

• Represent a global leader in coal production in all aspects of its Colombian mining operations and infrastructure projects, including the joint venture negotiations, operating and managing rail operations for the Atlantic Railway Network in Colombia, and the development of a port facility, as well as assisting in numerous environmental, regulatory and commercial matters relating to the company's new port facility, mining and operating activities, and resolution of commercial disputes
• Represent a gold and mineral company in corporate formation matters, a joint venture among its stakeholders and obtaining the first gold mining license issued in Afghanistan
• Represented clients in leveraged lease financings for a coal preparation plant and material handling and conveyor system, a coal washing facility and coal mining dragline, and other heavy mining equipment
• Obtained phosphate mining permits and defended against multiple challenges to those permits involving mining in wetlands and floodplains in Florida, including appeals to state courts of appeal
• Assisted in preparing environmental impact statements for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers dredge and fill permits for phosphate and aggregate mining projects in residential and commercial developments
• Represented a mining client in defending challenges from competing uses to surface water management systems
• Obtained water supply permit for consolidated mining and chemical manufacturing facilities on more than 300,000 acres
• Defended clients against allegations of environmental violations, including alleged illegal fill of wetlands and streams
• Defended entitlements for a wide spectrum of activities, including mining operations, offshore drilling activities and a myriad of commercial projects
• Represent a Venezuelan-owned mining operator in an arbitration against the government of a Caribbean country regarding the cancellation of a new, $540 million mining project involving the construction, commissioning, operation and maintenance of an aluminum smelter, anode plant, rod mill, wire and cable plant, and other assets
• Assisted a U.S. company in a joint venture project to acquire interest in a salt mine in Chile
• Assisted numerous companies in obtaining mining concessions
• Advised mining clients on compliance matters involving the Mine Safety and Health Administration
• Represented a large exploration project as intervenor in litigation brought by a non-governmental organization (NGO) to challenge state-issued exploration and development permits
• Represented one of the largest gold mining companies in the world with regard to its developing operations in Latin America, including permitting, EPC and related contracting, interface and negotiation with government agencies, litigation and arbitration management, M&A activities, divestment of assets, greenfields and brownfields agreements, and general corporate matters