Minera is demanding “unlawful expropriation” from Mexico to cancel lithium concessions

Mining company Cadence and its subsidiary REM Mexico Limited have issued a request for consultations and negotiations to the Government of Mexico under the UK-Mexico Bilateral Investment Agreement.

The application refers to pMining concessions for the Sonora Litio project.

This decision is part of the policy of the Federal Government and was announced by the General Directorate of Mines of Mexico. President Lopez Obrador explained this in his conference:

The company stated that the affected concessions include those granted to Mexilit SA de CV and Minera Megalit SA de CV, which include the participation of… 30% of the company with capital from the United Kingdom.

The company alleges in its application that Mexico has breached its obligations under the UK-Mexico trade treaty, including “Mexico’s obligation to… Not to illegally confiscate the investments of British companies“And” deal with these investments fairly and equitably.

In this first phase, the company requested consultations and negotiations with the Mexican government to try to resolve the dispute amicably.

However, the company recalls that if a settlement is not reached, the matter could be referred to international arbitration:

The Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) provides for disputes to be resolved by international arbitration if they cannot be resolved through consultations and negotiations.

For this process, the company hired an international law firm specializing in arbitration cases related to mining-related investment treaties.

In his statement, Kiran Murzaria, CEO of Cadence, commented:

“The Clifford Chance team has many years of experience in mining-related investment treaty arbitrations and has successfully resolved similar cases in the past. With your guidance, we hope that a constructive solution can be reached through consultations and negotiations with Mexico under the BIT.

Cadence has a stake in the Sonora Lithium Project through its 30% stake in Mexilit and Megalit.

The project consists of nine granted concessions.