The Basque Government has delegated minor competencies to territorial delegations to adapt to the new decree

José Luis Azkue Arrastoa, Director of Industrial Development and Administration of the Department of Industry, Energy Transition and Sustainability, has approved the delegation of certain competencies in the field of mining to the territorial representations. The decision is the Resolution of September 8, 2026, and was published in issue number 179 of the Official Gazette of the Basque Country, on September 18, 2026, with official reference 2026/3936. The delegation will enter into force the day after its publication in the gazette, that is, on September 19, 2026.

The legal basis of the resolution is Law 40/2015, of October 1, on the Legal Regime of the Public Sector; its article 9 allows for the delegation of competencies between organs of the same administration, even without being hierarchically subordinate. The text recalls that through the Resolution of November 13, 2015, certain competencies in the field of mining were delegated to the territorial representations of the then Department of Economic Development and Competitiveness, and that this regime must now be adapted to the new structure.

Delegation adapted to the new organic structure

Decree 410/2024, of December 3, established the organic and functional structure of the Department of Industry, Energy Transition and Sustainability, which brought about the reallocation and specification of the competencies assigned to the department’s organs. Article 12 of the decree, linked with article 7, assigns the Director of Industrial Development and Administration the competence to issue administrative acts regarding the mining regime and the research and exploitation of mineral deposits, other geological and geothermal resources and reserves.

Article 20 of the decree, on the other hand, establishes that there will be a territorial representation of Industry, Energy Transition and Sustainability in each historical territory, which will carry out the executive functions of the department’s competencies within its territorial area. Paragraph 8 of that article lists the files that will be processed in the field of mining until a resolution is issued:

• Mining safety.
• Control and monitoring of the operation of mining activities and exploitations.
• Restoration of natural areas affected by mining activities.

Four procedures have been delegated

The first point of the resolution specifies that each territorial representation will act, within its territorial area, in the following procedures:

• A) or B) resource exploitation permits and C) or D) exploitation concessions: initiation, ordering, and instruction are delegated; the completion of the procedure corresponds to the Director of Industrial Development and Administration.
• Extensions, suspensions, expirations, and cancellations of mining rights: initiation, ordering, and instruction are delegated, and the conclusion corresponds to the director.
• General Exploitation Projects and their modifications, Rehabilitation Plans and their modifications, and Work Abandonment Plans and their modifications: initiation, ordering, and instruction are delegated, while the conclusion corresponds to the director.
• Files requiring Environmental Impact Assessment: the initiation, ordering, and instruction of the phases pertaining to the mining area are delegated.

Final decision remains with the director

The delegation does not shift the decision-making power: procedures will be processed in the territorial representations, but the conclusion corresponds to the Director of Industrial Development and Administration. Decisions made under this delegation must explicitly state that they were issued via delegation, and they will be considered as having been issued by the delegating body. Furthermore, the delegation shall not override the guidelines and criteria established by the director regarding the matter, and the director may revoke the delegation or assume knowledge of any specific file at any time.

2015 delegation revoked

The fifth point of the Resolution revokes the Resolution of November 13, 2015, issued by the then Director of Energy, Mines, and Industrial Administration to delegate certain competencies in the field of mining to the territorial representations of the Department of Economic Development and Competitiveness. The text explains that it was necessary to approve a delegation regime adapted to the department’s new organic and functional structure to replace the previous one.

Validity

According to the sixth point of the Resolution, the decision will take effect the day after its publication in the official gazette; therefore, it will be applied from September 19, 2026, onwards. The delegation, however, is not permanent: the director may explicitly cancel it and may reclaim knowledge of specific files on a case-by-case basis.

Impact

The change brings the management of mining procedures closer to each territory: the initiation, ordering, and instruction of mining and geothermal permits will henceforth be carried out in the territorial representations, but the final resolution will remain with the directorate in Vitoria-Gasteiz. This seeks to speed up procedures and better adapt them to territorial realities, while maintaining unified departmental criteria and ensuring the director retains the final word.

Fuente: Boletín Oficial del País Vasco, n.º 179, 18 de septiembre de 2026, Otras Disposiciones (official reference: 2026/3936).