Venezuela plans to approve a new mining law before the end of the year, Basic Industries Minister Rodolfo Sanz said Tuesday. Venezuela's lawmakers will be in charge of passing the law and the government is still deciding if it will include a provision for the creation of joint mining ventures between the state and private companies, Sanz said. 'We hope to present the new law before the end of the legislative year,' which ends in December, the minister said. Essentially, it didn't matter if the new law included the provision for the creation of the joint mining companies since the government was already applying that framework in some cases, he said. The government recently created a joint venture with Rusoro Mining Ltd. (RML.V) for a gold mining project. On the negotiations with Ternium SA (TX) regarding its compensation for Sidor, its seized steelmaker unit in Venezuela, Sanz said that the negotiations should be closed by Sept. 30. Negotiations have recently stalled as Ternium is demanding to receive immunity against possible future labor demands, something that Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez isn't willing to grant. The company had apparently agreed to stay in Venezuela with a 10% stake in the newly nationalized steel mill, but Sanz didn't rule out that the company or the government could change their mind regarding that arrangement.
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