The court affirmed that the absence of a statutory requirement for hearings or reasons in mining lease applications does not violate natural justice principles when the decisions are rational and legally supported.

Mary Lim Thiam Suan JCA:

Introduction

[1] The appellants refused to approve the respondent's application for a mining lease over certain lands. On 13 February 2019, the respondent succeeded in its application for a judicial review of the appellants' decisions. The High Court granted an order of certiorari quashing the appellants' decisions and a further order of mandamus directing the appellants to reconsider or re-determine the respondent's application for a mining lease.

[2] The appellants appealed; and the respondent cross-appealed over the refusal of the learned Judge to order a mandamus in the particular terms sought.

[3] Upon consideration of the submissions of both parties before us, the grounds for His Lordship's decision, and the relevant law, we allowed the appeal holding that the decisions did not violate the rules of natural justice as alleged, and that the decisions were lawful and did not violate any Wednesbury principles. We further dismissed the cross-appeal. These are our reasons in full.

The General Prospecting Licence

[4] The respondent is principally in the business of prospecting and developing coal mines. It is also a holder of a General Prospecting Licence ("GPL") issued by the 4th appellant. A GPL offers the holder a right to prospect for metals and minerals other than mineral oils. The GPL was issued under s 22 of the Minerals Ordinance 2004 (Cap 56) which repealed and replaced the Minerals Ordinance 1958 (Cap 83) [Minerals Ordinance]. The GPL was valid for 2 years from 23 May 2014 and it expired on 22 May 2016. The GPL covered an area totaling 15,346 hectares at Sungai Tutuh, Baram, Miri. It is an undisputed fact that save for a relatively small area in the north, that 15,346 hectares comprised almost entirely of the Batu Belah Forest Reserve vide Gazette Notification No: 1144 of 16 December 1936 and a Provisional Lease under Lot 4 Apoh Land District.

[5] Using its GPL, the respondent carried out exploration and prospecting and found "substantial mineable coal reserves" in four areas within the 15,346 hectares.

Applications For Mining Leases

[6] On 24 November 2015 and 5 May 2016, the respondent submitted a total of four applications for mining leases to the 1st appellant. All four applications were made under s 44 of the Minerals Ordinance and all four were for a term of 20 years each over four separate plots at Sungai Tutuh, Baram, Miri.

[7] All these four plots were within the 15,346 hectares of the GPL. On 24 November 2015 the respondent also applied for renewal of the GPL. The details of the four areas identified by the respondent as plots A, B, C and D in a plan annexed to its applications are as follows:

[8] By letter dated 16 May 2017, the 1st appellant refused to approve all four applications under s 44(1) of the Minerals Ordinance - see p 145 of the record of appeal. No reasons were given for the rejection. The respondent also treated this letter as a rejection of their application for renewal of the GPL vis-a-vis "the remaining unexplored of (sic) 6597 hectares".

[9] The respondent appealed vide letter dated 13 June 2017 [p 147 of the record of appeal]. It appealed to the Chief Minister/Minister of Resource Planning for a "review / reconsideration of the applications for mining lease and the GPL renewal". In that same letter, the respondent stated that they "understand the proposed mining leases encompassed some water catchment areas" and that it was "fully agreeable that the boundaries of these proposed mining leases be realigned to exclude such water catchment areas". The respondent further alluded to the fact that its GPL was approved over a forest reserve and that the forest reserve areas had been fully harvested by licenced timber companies as approved by forestry department, that these areas are now under tree replanting program but that as per EIA specific terms and conditions, it undertakes to replant and rehabilitate the mined areas after mining and to hand back the areas to the fore