MOSCOW, June 5 (RIA Novosti) - Russia may include nickel in a list of the country's strategic deposits that have restricted access for foreigners, a deputy minister of natural resources said Monday.
Foreign companies are allowed to hold no more than 49.5% in projects on the deposits, which are primarily in the energy sphere, but also include metals such as gold and copper.
But Anatoly Tyomkin said that could change. "We are considering including more natural resources in the list," he said. "It may be nickel."
He said that the issue, which is part of the draft law on mineral reserves, was yet to be resolved, but he added that the bill was almost complete.
Tyomkin said a group of experts and officials was coordinating which natural resources should be considered strategic and in what volumes.
The bill establishes that the state has the sole right to sell or transfer subsoil exploration licenses and that rights to subsoil exploration should be sold primarily through auctions. The bill also includes provisions establishing the bond security and transferability of rights mechanisms and limiting subsoil contract rights in favor of Russian companies.
He added that the strategic volume for natural gas deposits would start from 75 billion cubic meters and for oil it would be no less than 150 million metric tons (1.1 billion bbl).
