Predation & Neo-latifundismo

ByCarlos Fernández-Vega

This column by Carlos Fernández-Vega originally appeared in the February 10, 2026 edition of La Jornada, Mexico’s premier left wing daily newspaper. The views expressed in this article are the authors’ own and do not necessarily reflect those of Mexico Solidarity Media or the Mexico Solidarity Project.

In his first year in office, then-President López Obrador announced that no new mining concessions would be granted, “because what was given (to local and foreign consortiums in the sector) was excessive, and if we analyze it, we will conclude that not even in a thousand generations would the 108 million hectares (equivalent to 54 percent of the national territory) that were handed out” by the PRI-PAN governments be fully exploited. That was in August 2019, and seven years later, Claudia Sheinbaum reaffirmed that no new concessions would be granted and that, in fact, more than 200 completely unproductive concessions would revert to the Mexican State.

The President explained that although the federal government made the respective request, the mining consortiums that held the mines among their assets “agreed (to return them) voluntarily” and, in case there was any doubt, she made it clear that “we will not change that policy; there are, now, groups that say that ‘we are going to enter an extractive process and we are handing over the natural resources’; none of that is true.”

It seems someone has finally grasped the significance of the message sent years ago by the national leader of the Mining Union, Napoleón Gómez Urrutia: “The granting of concessions to extract resources has been characterized by a particular phenomenon: complicity. In exchange for political and financial support, politicians betray the Constitution and grant favorable concessions to private companies and a select few individuals. In addition to signing unlimited permits to exploit natural resources, government officials grant tax exemptions, authorizations to dump toxic waste, and force the displacement of Indigenous communities. The companies have become monopolies that work to generate profits at any cost. Meanwhile, health and safety issues are completely ignored. All of this happens with the backing of politicians, who continue to grant more concessions to abusive companies.”

Indeed, if there is one thing that characterizes mining in Mexico, it is the concentration of concessions granted to private capital (Germán Larrea, the Bailleres family, Carlos Slim, Canadian consortiums and a few others), of the land (they are the neo-latifundistas) and of the hundreds of billions of dollars that this activity generates annually, without much benefit for the country.

President Sheinbaum’s announcement is all the more necessary given the cheerful assertion by Economy Secretary Marcelo Ebrard (head of the institution that grants these concessions) that “we signed an action plan with the United States, which involves mutual consultations and anticipates that within 60 days we will present different alternatives regarding critical minerals,” while also announcing that Mexico “will hold talks with other nations to sign an action plan on critical minerals similar to the one signed with the United States” (La Jornada, Braulio Carbajal). However, the president was very clear: “absolutely nothing has been signed,” a point that must be emphasized because the insatiable American predators have their eyes on the country’s mineral wealth.

To give an idea of ​​the sheer volume of mining concessions granted by the neoliberal regime, it’s worth noting that the area is equivalent to the combined territory of 11 Mexican states, 3.8 times the size of Central America, 2.8 times the size of Texas, or the combined area of ​​Spain and France. Felipe Calderón takes the gold medal with 36 million hectares; Ernesto Zedillo the silver with 35 million; and Vicente Fox the bronze with just over 27 million (Peña Nieto, 8 million; and Salinas de Gortari, 2.2 million).

The government must be very cautious, because the neoliberal regime handed out mining concessions to its predatory cronies like candy, so that more than half of the national territory ended up in their hands in one way or another. Given this situation, it’s worth remembering: large-scale mining accounts for 77 percent of national production; medium-sized mining, 7 percent; and small-scale mining, 16 percent. As of mid-2025, 22,247 concessions remained in effect, and nearly 451,000 hectares of land were recovered through the cancellation of 344 permits for non-compliance. Of the total concessions still in effect, 56 percent are concentrated in four states: Sonora, Durango, Chihuahua, and Zacatecas.