Construction of Mining Facilities and Plants

Under the Croatian Mining Act (NN 56/13, 98/19, 83/23), mining facilities and plants are considered to include all facilities, installations, equipment, tools, devices, and systems used for carrying out mining operations, which encompass all activities related to the exploration and exploitation of mineral resources, as well as reclamation.

A building permit is required for the construction of mining facilities and plants, which is issued by the mining authority. The participants in the construction process are:

• Investor – the holder of the exploitation field license;
• Designer – responsible for ensuring that the design meets all prescribed requirements, particularly its compliance with the location permit;
• Contractor – carries out construction or specific works following the building permit;
• Supervising engineer – responsible for ensuring that the construction is carried out in compliance with the building permit and is obligated to report any deficiencies or irregularities during construction.

CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS FOR MINING FACILITIES AND PLANTS

The construction projects for mining facilities and plants include: the main construction project, the detailed construction project, and the as-built project.

The first step in the construction process of mining facilities and plants is the preparation of the main construction project for mining facilities and plants. This project is comprised of a set of mutually coordinated projects that provide the technical solution for the building of mining facilities and plants and demonstrate compliance with the Mining act, specific regulations and technical specifications. It is important to emphasise that the main construction design must be consistent with the verified mining project. Depending on the type of mining facilities and plants, the main construction project includes the following:

1. a) Technical and technological project,
2. b) Mechanical engineering project,
3. c) Electrical engineering project,
4. d) Surveying project,
5. e) Overview of measures for: fire protection, occupational safety, and environmental and nature protection,
6. f) Cost projection for the designed works.

The detailed construction project of mining facilities and plants provides an in-depth elaboration of the technical solution set out in the main construction project. The as-built project of mining facilities and plants reflects all the changes and additions made concerning the main construction project, according to the actual works.

The main construction project of mining facilities and plants is submitted with the application for the building permit, and the as-built design is submitted with the application for the use permit.

PROCEDURE FOR ISSUING THE BUILDING PERMIT AND THE USE PERMIT

The building permit is issued for the construction of mining facilities and plants that are covered by a verified mining project (constituting of a separate technical and technological unit) and the location permit of the mining site.

Procedure flow for issuing the building permit:

Procedure for issuing the building permit

Upon completion of the construction of mining facilities and plants, they may be put into use only after the mining authority issues a use certificate for the mining facilities and plants. The use certificate is issued after a technical inspection confirms that the mining facilities and plants have been constructed in accordance with the building permit for the construction of mining facilities and plants.

The use certificate for mining facilities and plants is issued at the request of the Investor. The request must include the building permit for the mining facilities and plants, construction documentation, and the as-built project of the mining facilities and plants. Upon receipt of the request, the mining authority initiates the technical inspection. The inspection is carried out by a commission in the presence of the construction participants. Based on the commission’s positive opinion regarding the usability of the installations and facilities, the usage permit is issued.

LEGAL REGULATIONS

The construction of mining facilities and plants is regulated by the Mining Act (NN 56/13, 98/19, 83/23) and the accompanying regulations:

• Regulation on the Conditions for the Design and Construction of Mining Facilities and Plants, NN 79/14;
• Regulation on the Mandatory Content of the Design for the Construction of Mining Facilities and Plants, NN 79/14;
• Regulation on the Conditions and Method of Keeping Building Diaries, NN 142/13.