近来，又(yòu)有(yǒu)一例中國(guó)公司对加拿(ná)大矿业公司的投资受到了《加拿(ná)大投资法》（“加拿(ná)大投资法"）的审查（该法案系规制对加拿(ná)大的外國(guó)投资）。该等审查突显出中國(guó)矿业公司如今在海外投资时面临的困难。随着资源类项目越来越多(duō)地在國(guó)家安全的背景下被审查，加拿(ná)大对矿业交易的审查亦成為(wèi)在全球范围内资源國(guó)家主义大趋势的一部分(fēn)——从赞比亚加强对國(guó)内成分(fēn)要求的审查，到津巴布韦对锂矿开采的國(guó)内选矿要求，再到澳大利亚对外國(guó)投资越来越严格的國(guó)家利益测试。源于以下一组数字，根据加拿(ná)大投资法进行的加拿(ná)大國(guó)家安全审查在矿业领域尤為(wèi)突出：全球75%的矿业公司在加拿(ná)大注册、该等矿业公司持有(yǒu)全球超过3200亿美元的矿业资产；全球近50%的上市矿业和矿产勘探公司位于加拿(ná)大、该等公司的总市值达5200亿美元（截止2022年）。虽然加拿(ná)大投资法对中國(guó)矿业投资设置了一系列障碍，特别是在涉及新(xīn)能(néng)源技术的关键资源时，但适当的交易架构、谨慎的信息公开和审慎的准备工作可(kě)以大大增加中國(guó)投资不适用(yòng)加拿(ná)大投资法审查程序的可(kě)能(néng)性；或者在无法规避的情况下，成功应对加拿(ná)大投资法审查。我们在下文(wén)中讨论了一些可(kě)能(néng)的策略。

Recent news of another Chinese company’s investment in a Canadian mining company following scrutiny under Canada’s Investment Canada Act (ICA), legislation which governs foreign investment in Canada, highlights the difficulties Chinese mining companies face when investing abroad today. With resource projects being increasingly examined in the context of national security, Canadian reviews of mining transactions are part of wider trend of resource nationalism occurring around the world - from increased scrutiny of domestic ownership requirements in Zambia[1] to domestic benefaction requirements for lithium mining in Zimbabwe[2] to ever more stringent national interest tests for foreign investment in Australia.[3] The Canadian national security reviews, arising under the ICA, loom particularly large in the mining sector due the fact that 75% of the world’s mining companies are domiciled in Canada[4] with global mining assets valued at over $320 billion[5] and almost 50% of the world’s publicly listed mining and mineral exploration companies are in Canada with a combined market capitalization of $520 billion as of 2022.[6] While the ICA throws up a number of barriers to Chinese mining investment, especially when it comes to resources deemed critical for new energy technologies, proper transaction structuring, careful public messaging and prudent preparation can greatly improve opportunities for Chinese investments to avoid ICA review processes or, if unavoidable, successfully navigate ICA reviews. We discuss a selection of possible strategies below.  

I. 加拿(ná)大投资法速览 / A quick review of the ICA

中國(guó)矿业公司投资加拿(ná)大公司或收購(gòu)加拿(ná)大公司持有(yǒu)的资产（无论是境内外）的主要障碍是加拿(ná)大投资法。加拿(ná)大投资法是加拿(ná)大的一项联邦法律，旨在审查和评估非加拿(ná)大实體(tǐ)在加拿(ná)大的重大投资，以确保该等投资：（1）给加拿(ná)大带来净利益，和/或（2）不损害加拿(ná)大的國(guó)家安全。创新(xīn)、科(kē)學(xué)和经济发展部部長(cháng)（The Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development）通过外國(guó)投资审查和经济安全局（Foreign Investment Review and Economic Security Branch）行使广泛的权力，禁止潜在投资或对潜在投资施以附加条件，或者在交易和投资已经完成的情况下要求剥离。尽管该项法案已经存在了几十年，但最近在以國(guó)家安全為(wèi)由审查涉及中國(guó)企业的交易时，其使用(yòng)频率大大增加。随着2022年12月加拿(ná)大启动了“关键矿产战略"——优先审查对31种关键矿产的控制权产生影响的投资（最初的重点是六类关键矿产——锂、石墨、镍、钴、铜和稀土元素），加拿(ná)大投资法的审查便主要集中在自然资源领域。值得注意的是，在2022-2023年间，受加拿(ná)大投资法延長(cháng)审查的32项投资中，26项（81%）涉及投资者的最终控制人是中國(guó)人。欲了解更多(duō)信息，可(kě)阅读我们之前关于加拿(ná)大投资法以及加拿(ná)大投资法修正案的文(wén)章（该修正案最近已经于2024年3月22日成為(wèi)法律，并且将在近期生效）。

The main barrier for Chinese mining companies investing in Canadian companies or acquiring assets held by Canadian companies, whether domestically or abroad, is the ICA. The ICA is a Canadian federal law designed to review and evaluate significant investments in Canada by non-Canadians to ensure that such investments are (1) a net benefit to Canada and/or (2) not injurious to Canada’s national security. The Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, acting through the Foreign Investment Review and Economic Security Branch (FIRESB), exercises broad power to prohibit or impose conditions on potential investments or, in the case of a completed transactions and investments, order divestures. Although the legislation has been around for decades, it has seen a surge in use recently to review transactions involving Chinese enterprises on national security grounds. Much of his interest has focused in on natural resources, with Canada’s Critical Minerals Strategy launched in December 2022 prioritizing reviewing investments that would impact control over 31 critical minerals,[7] with an initial focus on six minerals - lithium, graphite, nickel, cobalt, copper, and rare earth elements.[8] Notably in 2022-2023, of the 32 investments subject to extended review under the ICA, 26 (81%) involved investments where the ultimate controller of the investor was Chinese.[9] More can be read in our previous articles about the framework of ICA  and coming amendments to the ICA that recently became law on 22 March 2024.[10] The amendments will come into force over the coming year.

II. 加拿(ná)大投资法背景下常见的投资或者并購(gòu)方式 / Common Investment or Acquisition Approach under the Context of the ICA

目前，加拿(ná)大投资法对加拿(ná)大公司的子公司的（境外）活动或其资产没有(yǒu)域外管辖权。加拿(ná)大投资法仅适用(yòng)于加拿(ná)大企业的直接或间接行动，即在加拿(ná)大经营业務(wù)并具备以下条件：（1）在加拿(ná)大有(yǒu)营业地点，（2）在加拿(ná)大雇佣或自雇从事与业務(wù)有(yǒu)关的个人，和（3）在加拿(ná)大有(yǒu)用(yòng)于经营业務(wù)的资产。因此，我们将简要介绍三种常见的可(kě)能(néng)收購(gòu)加拿(ná)大公司且不会触发加拿(ná)大投资法审查的交易结构。但是，特别需要提示的是，故意规避加拿(ná)大投资法审查的行為(wèi)确实会受到处罚。因此需要特别注意政策信息，以确保以下交易结构不会被认為(wèi)是為(wèi)了规避加拿(ná)大投资法审查所设立。

Currently, the ICA does not have extraterritorial jurisdiction over the activities over the subsidiaries of Canadian companies, or their assets. The ICA only applies to the indirect or direct action of Canadian businesses, which is defined as a business carried on in Canada that has (1) a place of business in Canada, (2) an individual or individuals in Canada who are employed or self-employed in connection with the business, and (3) assets in Canada used in carrying on the business.[11] As such, we have provided general overviews of three possible transaction structures for acquiring Canadian companies that that will not trigger ICA review. It’s important to remember that penalties do exist for purposefully circumventing the ICA[12] and particularly care needs to be given to public messaging to ensure the use of the following transaction structures don’t appear to be for the purposes of avoiding ICA review. 

a. 直接投资或收購(gòu)非加拿(ná)大子公司或资产

Direct investments or acquisitions of non-Canadian subsidiaries or assets

最简单、最直接的交易结构是将投资或者收購(gòu)的范围限制在（加拿(ná)大的）海外，最好是（海外的）项目公司。因為(wèi)非加拿(ná)大公司的股份或其资产不是“位于加拿(ná)大的资产"，所以不会在加拿(ná)大投资法的审查范围之内。虽然在实践中，在上市公司层面进行投资也包括了投资下属的项目公司，但是对于加拿(ná)大上市公司的投资為(wèi)加拿(ná)大投资法的审查建立了必要的联系。根据我们的观察，在2022年被要求剥离相关业務(wù)的三家中國(guó)矿业公司的原因都是因為(wèi)收購(gòu)了在多(duō)伦多(duō)证券交易所创业板（TSX-Venture）上市的加拿(ná)大公司。因此，将投资或收購(gòu)限制在非加拿(ná)大实體(tǐ)通常可(kě)以消除来自于加拿(ná)大投资法的管辖权威胁。但遗憾的是，这种简单和直接的方法将随着加拿(ná)大投资法修正案的出台而改变，该修正案将扩大范围，如果收購(gòu)方為(wèi)國(guó)有(yǒu)企业，那么加拿(ná)大境外的资产也包括在内。根据加拿(ná)大投资对于國(guó)有(yǒu)企业的扩展定义，该等定义将受到一國(guó)“控制或者影响"的公司也纳入其中，许多(duō)中國(guó)公司将会受限于该等新(xīn)的限制。

The simplest and most straight forward transaction structure is to limit the investment in or acquisition of an overseas project which is to limit such investment or acquisition to the overseas entity, ideally the project company. Because the shares of a non-Canadian company, or its assets, are not ‘assets in Canada’, there is no ICA jurisdiction. While there is a practice of investing on the public company level as part of an investment in a project company, the investment in the Canada public company level creates the necessary nexus for ICA review. Indeed, three Chinese mining companies that received divesture orders under the ICA in 2022 were the result of investments at the public company level of TSX-Venture listed Canadian companies. Limiting the investment or acquisition to a non-Canadian entity simply eliminates any threat of ICA jurisdiction. Unfortunately, this simple and straight forward approach is set to change with coming amendments to the ICA which will expand the definition to include assets outside of Canada when the acquirer is a state-owned enterprise.[13] Due the ICA's expansive definition of state-owned enterprise - which includes companies under the ‘control or influence of a state - many private Chinese companies will likely fall under the new restrictions. 

b. 背靠背交易 Back-to-back Transactions

在加拿(ná)大投资法修订后，一种仍然可(kě)行的替代方法是将加拿(ná)大一方从与中國(guó)公司的交易中剔除。这可(kě)以通过背靠背的股权或资产交易实现：加拿(ná)大卖方将股权或资产出售给中间商(shāng)，该中间商(shāng)再通过单独的交易将其出售给中國(guó)投资者。理(lǐ)想情况下，该中间商(shāng)来自于项目公司所在地或者来自于对加拿(ná)大“友好"的地方，以避免引起不必要的关注。当中國(guó)公司購(gòu)买目标股权或资产时，卖方不是加拿(ná)大主體(tǐ)，因此加拿(ná)大投资法对该交易不具有(yǒu)司法管辖权。如果是為(wèi)了设立合资公司或者类似架构（而需要引入中國(guó)企业），加拿(ná)大公司可(kě)以将项目出售给中间商(shāng)，然后在项目（经由中间商(shāng)）转让给中國(guó)实體(tǐ)后回購(gòu)该项目。上述回購(gòu)构成加拿(ná)大公司的收購(gòu)，而加拿(ná)大主體(tǐ)的收購(gòu)和投资明确不受加拿(ná)大投资法的管辖。但是需要明确的是，该等模式需要充分(fēn)考虑其税務(wù)影响，并确保其他(tā)因素不会触发加拿(ná)大投资法，例如目标公司雇佣加拿(ná)大籍员工。

An alternative approach that will likely still be viable after the amendments to the ICA is to simply remove the Canadian party from a transaction with a Chinese company. This can be done through a back-to-back equity or asset transaction in which the Canadian owned party will sell off equity or assets to a neutral intermediary who will then in turn sell it on to the Chinese party in separate transactions. Ideally, this intermediary would be from the project’s jurisdiction or from somewhere ‘friendly’ to Canada to avoid unwanted attention. When a Chinese company buys the equity or assets, the seller won’t be Canadian person and therefore ICA would not have jurisdiction over such transaction. For the purposes of establishing a joint venture or similar structures for an existing company, the Canadian company can sell the project to an intermediary and then buy back into the project after it has been transferred to a Chinese entity as it would constitute an acquisition by a Canadian company and acquisitions and investments by Canadian persons are explicitly not subject to the ICA. Significant consideration needs to be given to tax implications of any such arrangements as well as to ensure other elements will not trigger the ICA, such as the target having Canadian employees. 

c. 迁址境外 Redomiciling

另外一种清晰但也耗时的方法是将加拿(ná)大公司搬迁至加拿(ná)大以外的另一个司法管辖區(qū)。由于加拿(ná)大投资法仅适用(yòng)于对加拿(ná)大企业的投资，一旦加拿(ná)大公司在另一个國(guó)家合法注册，该公司即不再是加拿(ná)大公司，且处于加拿(ná)大投资法的司法管辖范围之外。常见的是，在加拿(ná)大公司搬迁至新(xīn)加坡或阿拉伯联合酋長(cháng)國(guó)等对中國(guó)更友好的司法管辖區(qū)后，中國(guó)公司可(kě)以根据新(xīn)的司法管辖區(qū)的投资法律进行任何交易或投资。在这一过程中，加拿(ná)大公司需要摆脱加拿(ná)大业務(wù)、资产和员工以规避加拿(ná)大投资法司法管辖权，因此可(kě)能(néng)需要复杂的重组。这是一个耗时的过程——有(yǒu)时需要長(cháng)达半年时间——并且取决于股东的成功支持。在实践中我们也见到有(yǒu)其他(tā)重组方法可(kě)能(néng)更快，但可(kě)能(néng)更昂贵。

Another clear although time-consuming way is to have the Canadian company redomicile outside of Canada to another jurisdiction.  Once a Canadian company is legally registered in another country, it ceases to be a Canadian company and it is unequivocally outside of ICA jurisdiction as the ICA is only applicable to investments into Canadian businesses. Commonly speaking, after the Canadian company has moved to a more China friendly jurisdiction such as Singapore or the United Arab Emirates, the Chinese company can enter into any transaction or investment, subject to the new jurisdiction’s investment laws. During this process, the Canadian company would need to get rid of Canadian business, assets and employees to avoid ICA jurisdiction, potentially necessitating a complicated restructuring. This is a timely process - sometimes taking up to half a year - and subject to successful shareholder support. We also see some other restructuring methods are available that may be speedier but can more expensive.

III. 应对无法避免的加拿(ná)大投资法审查流程 / Managing an Unavoidable ICA Process

在涉及投资或收購(gòu)加拿(ná)大國(guó)内资产或股权时，或当上述方案不可(kě)行时，投资者须做好应对加拿(ná)大投资法审查程序的准备。该程序本身具有(yǒu)政治性，投资审查的最终决定由加拿(ná)大创新(xīn)、科(kē)學(xué)和经济发展部長(cháng)通过外國(guó)投资审查和经济安全局做出。因此，这个过程既昂贵又(yòu)缓慢，需要与政府官员反复开会、不断处理(lǐ)信息和文(wén)件要求，并且可(kě)能(néng)还需要游说政客。如果投资者想得到附加条件的批准可(kě)能(néng)需要就具體(tǐ)条款进行長(cháng)期的谈判。但是，只要对加拿(ná)大及其盟友的实际利益是显而易见的，外國(guó)投资审查和经济安全局也未必会预设建议禁止投资或对投资施加苛刻条件的结论。如果想在敏感行业成功申请，就需要在提交初步通知之前就与外國(guó)投资审查和经济安全局讨论并制定计划，确保加拿(ná)大政府层面的担忧得到解决。这可(kě)能(néng)包括：确保合资企业中的公司控制权在加拿(ná)大实體(tǐ)手中，或者确保销售优先考虑西方公司而不是中國(guó)公司。周密的计划和合理(lǐ)的交易结构可(kě)以将不太可(kě)能(néng)获得批准的交易变成有(yǒu)可(kě)能(néng)获得批准的交易。

When it comes to investing in or acquiring domestic Canadian assets or equity, or the above options are unavailable, it is best to come prepared to deal with ICA review process. The process itself is political in nature, with final decisions on investment reviews being made by the Canadian Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development acting through its Foreign Investment Review and Economic Security Branch (FIRESB). As such, it is both an expensive and slow process due to repeated meetings with government officials, dealing with constant information and document requests, and potentially the need to lobby politicians. Conditional approvals may require prolonged negotiations on the specific terms. However, it is not a forgone conclusion however that the FIRESB will recommend prohibiting or placing onerous conditions on an investment provided that tangible benefits are clear for Canada and its allies. Successful applications in sensitive sectors involve beginning discussions with the FIRESB before even filing an initial notification and having a plan to ensure Canadian concerns will be addressed. This may range from ensuring company control in a joint venture rest with the Canadian entity or that sales prioritize western companies before Chinese companies. Careful planning and well-structured transactions can turn a transaction that is unlikely approval into a transaction that is likely to be approved. 

IV. 结论 / Conclusion

中國(guó)投资者与加拿(ná)大公司进行交易存在许多(duō)可(kě)行的选择，包括但不限于上文(wén)讨论的那些，但最终目的无非要么完全规避加拿(ná)大投资法的审查，要么成功应对加拿(ná)大投资法审查程序。虽然中國(guó)对加拿(ná)大公司的投资需要比前几年更加复杂的结构，但我们认為(wèi)精心策划以及妥善管理(lǐ)的公共信息仍然可(kě)以促成交易。

A number of viable options exist for Chinese investors to enter into deals with Canadian companies, including but not limited to those discussed above, in a way that can either avoid the ICA altogether or successfully manage an ICA review process. While Chinese investments into Canadian companies require more complicated structuring than in years past, we believe careful planning and well-managed public messaging can still get deals done.

[注] 

[1] https://赞比亚矿业权拥有(yǒu)者接受审查的beneficial-ownership-to-come-under-spectiny-for-mining-righders-in-zambia/

[2] https://Bloomberg.Com/News/Article/2023-11-30/Zimbabwe-plans-14-fold-increase-in-spending-to-aid-economy

[3] https://Minterellison.Com/Article/Firb-2024-Outlook-And-Foreign-Investment-2023-Recap

[4] https://www.canada.ca/en/global-affairs/news/2021/03/minister-ng-promotes-canadas-mining-industry-at-virtual-prospectors--developers-association-of- canada-2021-convention.html

[5] https://natural-resources. canada.ca/maps-tools-and-publications/publications/minerals-mining-publications/canadian-mining-assets/19323

[6] https://www. canada.ca/en/campaign/critical-minerals-in-加拿(ná)大/canadian-critical-minerals-strategy.html

[7] The entire list of 31 “critical minerals" are aluminum, antimony, bismuth, cesium, chromite, cobalt, copper, fluorspar, gallium, germanium, graphite, helium, indium, lithium, magnesium, manganese, molybdenum, nickel, niobium, platinum group metals, potash, rare earth elements, scandium, tantalum, tellurium, tin, titanium, tungsten, uranium, vanadium, and zinc.

[8] https://www. canada.ca/en/campaign/critical-minerals-in-canada/canadian-critical-minerals-strategy.html

[9] https://ised-isde. canada.ca/site/investment-canada-act/en/home/annual-report-2022-2023

[10] https://ised-isde.canada.ca/site/investment-canada-act/en/investment-canada-act/modernization

[11] https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/-21.8/index.html

[12] https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/-21.8/index.html

[13] https://www.parl.ca/DocumentViewer/en/44-1/bill/C-34/three-reading