142. The Minister shall grant a lease in respect of a given parcel of land to any person who meets the requirements and pays the rental prescribed by regulation.
Notwithstanding the first paragraph, no non-exclusive lease shall be granted, except to the State, where the land concerned is subject to a mining lease, a mining concession, an exclusive lease to mine surface mineral substances or, subject to the fourth paragraph, an application for such an exclusive lease, held or made by a third person.
No exclusive lease shall be granted where the land concerned is subject to a mining lease or an application for a mining lease, a mining concession, an exploration licence for surface mineral substances or an exclusive lease to mine surface mineral substances, held or made by a third person. Moreover, no exclusive lease shall be granted where the land concerned is subject to a claim or mining exploration licence held by a third person, except for the part of the land subject to a licence to explore for surface mineral substances held by the applicant, unless the lease applied for is only for the mining of a surface mineral substance referred to in paragraph 2 of section 64 or 84.1 that is excluded from the exclusive right to explore for mineral substances granted to the holder under the claim or mining exploration licence.
The Minister may refuse an application for an exclusive lease where he considers it necessary to reserve the land in order to guarantee the supply required for the carrying out of a non-exclusive lease already granted or other non-exclusive leases which may be granted subsequently.
1987, c. 64, s. 142; 1990, c. 36, s. 4; 1999, c. 40, s. 178; 1998, c. 24, s. 64.