LIMA, Dec 17 – Peru’s Congress on Wednesday approved a one-year extension to a temporary permit program for small-scale miners amid ongoing protests that sought a longer timeframe for miners to regularize their operations.
The extension will run through the end of 2026. The government had previously opposed a bill that sought to extend the program, known as REINFO, by two years.
The extension was approved with 13 votes in favor, four against and two abstentions in a second vote required for its official adoption, after receiving initial approval in early December.
This is the fifth extension to the REINFO permits since the program was introduced a little over a decade ago. The program covers small-scale, informal miners who extract gold and copper and are allowed to operate thanks to these temporary permits.
According to Peruvian police and industry sources, the temporary permits have also fostered a surge in illegal mining at a time when such precious metals are trading at record prices on the international market.
In July, the government removed more than 50,000 small-scale miners from REINFO, leaving about 31,000 responsible for bringing their status up to date before the end of 2025.
Peru exported $15.5 billion worth of gold in 2024, a significant jump from $11 billion the previous year. It is estimated that about 40% of this gold is of illegal origin, according to sector data and the local financial regulator.
(Reporting by Marco Aquino, Writing by Iñigo Alexander; Editing by Brendan O’Boyle)
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