Since the dictatorship of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo reestablished diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of China in December 2021—after severing relations with Taiwan—it has already granted 43 mining concessions to eight Chinese companies. These companies received 660,006.70 hectares, equivalent to 6,600.06 square kilometers, under concession for a 25-year period.
According to a review conducted by LA PRENSA in the editions of the official newspaper La Gaceta, between January 2022 and October 10, 2025, the 43 mining concessions began to be granted in 2023, but the majority were finalized this year. Through ministerial agreements issued by the Ministry of Energy and Mines (MEM), the eight Chinese companies received 6,600.06 square kilometers. This area represents 5.06 percent of the country’s 130,373 square kilometers.
It is worth mentioning that since the resumption of diplomatic relations with the Asian giant, the Central Bank of Nicaragua (BCN) has reported Chinese investment in Nicaragua for the first time. A recent report details that in the first half of 2025, of the $818.7 million in net Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), $29 million came from China to finance activities in the mining and services sectors.
The Latest Mining Concessions Granted
The areas granted to the Chinese under mining concessions encompass entire communities and municipalities. In some cases, a single concession is even larger than some municipalities.
The most recent mining concessions are six, awarded to the Chinese company Thomas Metal. These were officially announced in the October 7 edition of the official newspaper, La Gaceta. The six concessions cover a total of 621.89 square kilometers. This area is larger than the department of Masaya, which, with its nine municipalities, has a total of 610.8 square kilometers.
Read also: Why Nicaragua’s massive granting of mining concessions to China should be a cause for concern
Controversial Mining Concessions
The Chinese companies that received the concessions have not announced the start of mining operations in the areas they received. However, some of them have already been involved in abusive and anti-business practices.
One such case is that of Zhong Fu Development, which in September, with the support of the police, forcibly seized the BHMB Mining Palacaguina de Madriz mine site. This property legally belongs to BHMB Mining Nicaragua, a subsidiary of US-owned BHMB Inc. Furthermore, this company received, through a transfer, a concession from a mining company linked to the head of the Ministry of Energy and Mines, Salvador Mansell, who has been sanctioned by the United States since November 2021.
A similar case occurred with Nicaragua’s XinXin Linze Minería Group S.A., which was the first to receive a concession for areas within the Indio Maíz and Río San Juan Biosphere Reserves, which, according to environmental laws, should be protected from these activities.
Also read: Dictatorship and Chinese company dispossess US investors of mining facilities in Palacagüina
43 Concessions in Two Years
The first concessions granted by the Ministry of Energy and Mines (MEM) to Chinese companies were announced in the December 20, 2023, edition of La Gaceta. They marked the entry of Chinese companies into the metal mining sector.
On that occasion, Estela María Martínez Cerrato, then-Vice Minister of the Ministry, authorized six concessions to Zhong Fu Development S.A. for a total of 174,005.68 hectares. In 2025, the MEM transferred one of those six concessions, covering 49,950 hectares, to Waslala Mining.
The concessions granted to Chinese companies are notable for the size of the areas granted and also for the speed with which the procedures are carried out. A benefit that, according to critics of the Ortega-Murillo dictatorship, reflects their interest in demonstrating that they have «something to offer» to the Asian giant, which has become their new political ally, on whom they also pin their hopes for financing and investment.
Read also: Chinese company accumulates more than 44,000 hectares for mining exploration in Nicaragua
Dictatorship’s Interests
According to economist and political analyst Enrique Sáenz, the granting of concessions to Chinese companies has political and economic objectives. Political, because they calculate that by generating interest derived from investments and trade, they will achieve a strategic alliance that will commit the support of the Chinese regime to guarantee the Ortega-Murillos’ permanence in power. And on the economic side, they intend to increase their business.
«The problem here is that compared to Chinese economic interests in other Latin American countries, the size of Nicaragua’s economy doesn’t allow for significant investment. Furthermore, with the uncertainty in trade relations with the United States, the regime thinks it will have a secure market, at least for gold,» said Sáenz.
Sáenz even believes that these concessions don’t reflect the Chinese interest in controlling Nicaraguan territory. Instead, they are the dictatorship’s eagerness to show that they are bringing large Chinese investments to the country.
«To demonstrate this, the dictatorship is willing to mortgage the entire territory; it already did so with Wang Jing. So, in addition to the Interoceanic Canal project, we would be seeing them in megaprojects that for now are unseen. I think it’s more likely that Ortega has made them offers they can’t refuse. The concessions are practically a gift,» Sáenz asserts.
Chinese companies benefiting from concessions: Zhong Fu: the first and most controversial
It has already received a total of 181,253 hectares in eight concessions. It has registration number MC-XFZRH1 with the Public Property Registry of the department of Managua and is represented by Chinese businessman Feiwu Bian. It was in the public eye for forcibly taking over the Palacaguina mining site.
Some media sources claim it is a subsidiary of the Beijing-based ZhongFu Invest Group. However, the website shows no evidence that it has a subsidiary in Nicaragua. Furthermore, the Ministerial Agreements for the concessions refer to the local company and its legal representative, and do not mention Zhong Fu Investment Group.
In addition to acting as the company’s legal representative, Feiwu Bian is one of the top executives of the Nicaragua-China Chamber of Industry and Commerce (CCNC). A binational business organization that was authorized by the Ministry of the Interior (Mint) on January 17, 2024, to operate as a non-profit organization.
Helped Salvador Mansell Dodge Sanctions
On February 27, 2024, Zhong Fu received approval from the Ministry of Energy and Mines (MEM) for the International Mining Company S.A. (Comintsa)—owned by MEM head Salvador Mansell—to transfer the 6,000-hectare Tutuwaka lot located in El Rama, Chontales. Comintsa held this concession since June 8, 2022, according to Ministerial Agreement 002-DM-001-2024, published in the April 17, 2024, edition of the official newspaper La Gaceta.
On May 15 of that same year, the United States Department of State sanctioned Comintsa, which belonged to Mansell, who was sanctioned on November 15, 2021. According to the State Department, the General Directorate of Mines—sanctioned on October 24, 2022—removed the concession from an artisanal mining company and granted several to the company owned by Mansell.
Before being transferred to Zhong Fu, the Tutuwaka lot passed into the hands of Mansell’s company for two of the four years granted by the MEM (Ministry of Energy and Mines) for the initial explorations to be carried out.
«Rest assured that underneath, there has to be an agreement where both parties benefit. They give it to the Chinese for production, while the others (the regime) reap benefits without needing to invest, overcoming the limitation of not having the capacity to undertake it,» a specialist told LA PRENSA on condition of anonymity.
Three New Companies from the Zhong Fu Group
So far this year, three new mining companies have emerged and received concessions. One of these is Waslala Mine Sociedad Anónima, which the Ministry of Energy and Mines (MEM) authorized on September 3 to transfer the 49,950-hectare «Waslala» lot, which was previously held by Zhong Fu, starting in December 2023.
LA PRENSA confirmed that Zhong Fu, Waslala Mine, Norther Mining, and Three Golds Mining use the same physical address to receive notifications: Building 695, Rotonda Los Cocos, Residencial Altamira, Managua. This suggests that these four companies are part of a single business network that owns a total of 266,262.21 hectares across 12 concessions.
Three Gold Coins is represented by Qinqyang Li. On September 30 of this year, it received a concession for 23,222.53 hectares in the municipalities of Murra, Quilalí, and San Juan del Río Coco.
And on September 30, Northern Mining Company S.A. received two concessions: one for 3,115.50 hectares in Villanueva, Chinandega; and another for 8,720 hectares in El Cuá, Jinotega.
Thomas and Brother Metal: Sisters with a Strange Board of Directors
Thomas Metal was the second Chinese company to receive mining concessions from the Ministry of Energy and Mines (MEM). It recently became the second most controversial company, as it was granted areas located within the Indio Maíz Biosphere Reserve. Furthermore, as of October 10, it holds the most concessions, 15 in total, which grant it control over 189,708 hectares.
This company first applied for a mining concession on September 27, 2023. Its applications were approved on November 24 of the same year, when it was awarded the Wonderful Gold lot, totaling 1,200 hectares and located in Villanueva, Chinandega municipality.
According to public records, both Thomas Metal and Brother Metal are managed by the same business group. The president of Thomas Metal is Xiangming Gu, and the vice president is Xiaocun Bao, who serves as president and representative of the board of directors of Brother Metal. Gu also appears as the legal representative in the application for some of Brother Metal’s concessions.
This overlap in positions at both companies suggests an operational relationship and shared control over the concessions they hold, which cover strategic areas in Villanueva, Siuna, Chinandega, Río San Juan, and Nueva Segovia.
Xin Xin and Linze Minería
LA PRENSA’s review of La Gaceta publications reveals that XinXin Linze Minería Group S.A. and Linze Excelente Minería are part of the same business group. This is supported by the fact that, in July of this year, XinXin transferred the Río Rosa and Río Santo lots to Linze Excelente Minería, which only holds those two mining concessions, suggesting that it is a new company.
Just five months after XinXin obtained permits for both lots in October 2024, Linze requested the transfer from MEM Vice Minister Santiago Bermúdez, who gave his approval on July 26 of this year.
«The ministerial agreements provide a three-month period to submit to the MEM the complete plan for how they will exploit the concession. This could indicate that they failed to do so,» said a source familiar with the matter, who requested anonymity for fear of reprisals.
For now, we can only wait and see. Time will tell how many more hectares of national territory will continue to be handed over to the Chinese through mining concessions. It will also tell whether these investments materialize or whether only Chinese companies will maintain control of these vast areas of Nicaraguan territory.
