Projects

Resources and Tools + Extractive Industries


Measuring and Integrating Non-Financial Parameters in Project Decision Making

Extractive industry investments are oftentimes divisive. Those that support a project, will likely emphasize the benefits resulting from tax revenues and employment. Those that oppose the project, will often highlight the adverse impacts on the environment and impacted communities. To date, this debate can be informed by several tools. On the benefit side, stakeholders can… read more

OpenCommunityContracts.org: A Database of Publicly Available Community-Investor Contracts

In September 2018, CCSI launched OpenCommunityContracts.org, a collection of publicly available agreements between local communities and investors. In some instances, the repository also features agreements that include host government parties. The agreements featured on the repository include benefit sharing agreements, leases, memoranda of understanding (MOUs), and revenue sharing agreements concluded in the context of agriculture, forestry, mining, oil and gas extraction, renewable energy, and other natural resource projects.

ResourceContracts.org: A Database of Publicly Available Oil, Gas and Mining Contracts

CCSI, together with the World Bank and Natural Resource Governance Institute, has developed ResourceContracts.org, an online, searchable and user-friendly database of publicly available oil, gas and mining contracts from around the world. Users can search contracts by country, by natural resource or by type of contract; view summaries of key social, environmental, fiscal, and operational provisions; and download full contracts.

Assessing Water-Related Risks in the Mining Sector

As part of a 3-year grant from Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM), CCSI worked with the Columbia Water Center to develop and benchmark a modeling platform for quantitatively assessing the environmental risks associated with gold and copper mining projects and their resulting financial implications.

Fossil Fuel Companies and Climate Change

CCSI has been exploring the strategies fossil fuel companies have embraced in order to address climate change concerns, and the strategies responsible investors could potentially request from fossil fuel companies in order to move towards a decarbonized economy.

Designing a Legal Regime to Capture Capital Gains Tax on Indirect Transfers of Mineral and Petroleum Rights: A Practical Guide

Building on the momentum created by the Platform for Collaboration on Tax’s draft paper regarding taxing indirect transfers of source country assets, CCSI and the International Senior Lawyers Project (ISLP) wrote a paper providing practical guidance to developing country governments on the taxation of indirect transfers of extractive industries’ assets. Indirect transfers occur when—instead of selling the asset—the shares of the domestic subsidiary, the shares of the foreign company with a branch in the country, or the shares of the holding company are sold.

Community Development Requirements: Laws, Best Practices, and Community Development Agreements Database

CCSI has a growing portfolio of activities regarding community development requirements and community development agreements (CDAs) that includes: (i) mapping domestic legal requirements for community development in the context of mining projects; (ii) policy and research on best practices around CDAs and benefit sharing for extractive, agricultural, and forestry projects; and (iii) regularly maintained collection of publicly available community agreements relating to extractive, agricultural, and forestry projects.

Open Fiscal Models

Alongside growing revenue and contract transparency, increasing fiscal model transparency is needed. Only with financial model transparency can relevant actors better assess whether contracts are balanced in terms of fiscal returns and understand when revenues start flowing to the government. CCSI strongly supports financial model transparency and has developed two open fiscal models. We are currently welcoming feedback on their usefulness, user-friendliness, and on any observed inaccuracies.

Mining and the Sustainable Development Goals

In September 2015, the UN member states agreed on a set of 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which represent the global agenda for equitable, socially inclusive, and environmentally sustainable economic development until 2030. Mining companies have the potential to become leading partners in achieving the SDGs. Through their direct operations, mining companies can generate profits, employment, and economic growth in low-income countries.

Mining and Metals: The Transformation Map

In partnership with the World Economic Forum, CCSI curated the Transformation Map of the Mining and Metals sector; it maps out the seven drivers that are already and will continue transforming the mining and metals sector.

Negotiation Support to Resource Rich, Low-, and Middle-Income Countries

CCSI created and manages the Negotiation Support Portal to improve the accessibility of tools, resources and technical assistance to support host governments’ planning, preparing for, negotiating, monitoring, and implementing large-scale resource and infrastructure investments. The portal also facilitates coordination among support providers and host governments. In addition, CCSI has launched a series of meetings of negotiation support providers to create a forum to discuss common challenges and opportunities, and to facilitate greater coordination among support providers.

Handbook on Measuring Employment from Extractive Industry Investments

CCSI prepared a report on measuring employment from extractive industry investments that outlines two modeling techniques used to estimate employment multipliers: 1) The input-output (IO) model, and 2) The computable general equilibrium (CGE) model. The handbook explains the advantages, disadvantages, necessary inputs, and results associated with each model.

Local Content Laws & Contractual Provisions

CCSI is examining local content provisions contained in legal frameworks governing resource investments, including in contracts, legislation and bidding practices.

Mining Contracts: How to Read and Understand Them

In December 2013, a diverse group of 14 experts from Africa, Asia, North America, South America, and Europe worked together for five days to produce a user-friendly guide in English and in French on “Mining Contracts: How to Read and Understand Them.” The guide was produced to help policy makers, civil society, citizens, and the media understand the often complex and opaque terms of mining contracts.

A Framework to Leverage Mining-related Infrastructure

Thanks to a grant from the Australian Government, CCSI has developed an economically, legally and operationally rational framework to enable shared use of mining-related infrastructure, including rail, ports, power, water, internet and telecommunications.

Support for Host Country Governments in the Planning, Preparation for, Negotiation, Implementation, and Monitoring of Large-Scale Investments

CCSI created a Negotiation Support Portal designed to improve the accessibility of technical assistance and of useful tools and resources to assist host governments planning, preparing for, negotiating, monitoring, and implementing large-scale investments in the extractive industries, land and agriculture, and infrastructure sectors, and to facilitate coordination among support providers and host governments.

Policy Briefs, Guides and Other Publications

CCSI produces a number of policy briefs, guides and other publications that are useful resources on topics of extractive industries, land and agriculture, and investment law and policy.