Europe’s green and digital transitions depend on secure, sustainable and resilient supplies of critical raw materials. Spain is well placed to contribute to this objective, with relevant geological potential in strategic minerals such as lithium, tungsten, cobalt and rare earth elements.

However, Spain’s mining policy still rests on a legal framework largely defined by the 1973 Mining Law, adopted before the 1978 Constitution, Spain’s EU accession and the current environmental and social standards that now shape mineral resource governance.

In my recent article, I analyse the legislative evolution of Spanish mining policy, the challenges created by decentralised governance, and the alignment of Spain’s recent policy initiatives with the European Critical Raw Materials framework.

The study combines legal and institutional analysis with an exploratory stakeholder consultation in Spain. The results point to a clear diagnosis: land-use conflict, regulatory fragmentation, lengthy permitting procedures, weak coordination between administrations and legal obsolescence are among the main barriers to sustainable mining development.

This is not an argument for lowering environmental standards. On the contrary, the paper argues that Spain needs a modernised governance model capable of integrating environmental safeguards, territorial planning, social participation and permitting efficiency into a coherent framework.

A comprehensive reform of the 1973 Mining Law, together with stronger coordination between national and regional authorities, could help Spain turn its mineral potential into a strategic asset for Europe’s raw materials security, rural development and sustainable industrial policy.

I would be very interested to hear views from researchers and practitioners working on mining governance, permitting reform, critical raw materials, social licence to operate and decentralised resource policy.
More details in: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.exis.2026.101964