(Adds industry view, comment from law firm)
By Silvia Antonioli and Karolin Schaps
LONDON, Aug 22 (Reuters) - Britain announced that energy andmining firms would have to disclose from next year any paymentsmade to governments in countries where they operate as it aimsto curb corruption in the natural resources sector.
UK-registered companies will have up to 11 months after theend of their financial year to report payments to CompaniesHouse under the new rule, which will take effect from Jan. 12015.
"The UK is determined to lead by example, which is why wehave introduced reporting requirements on UK-based extractivescompanies early," Business Minister Jo Swinson said in astatement.
"Oil, gas and mining can, if well managed, deliver preciouseconomic benefits to the populations of developing countries.Too often, though, the assets from resource-rich countries arenot benefiting local people or the local economy."
The announcement on Friday follows a period of consultationwith industry and the public on the proposal.
"While these reforms may be a step in the right direction toeradicate corruption, tax evasion and reduce extreme poverty inemerging markets, a disclosure regime is not of itself a cure,"Rachel Speight, a partner at law firm Mayer Brown, wrote in anemail to Reuters.
"The changes may also negatively impact upon the commercialprospects for companies, with significant increased compliancecosts and disclosure of sensitive information in circumstanceswhere not all companies operating in the extractive industry aresubject to the same regulations."
In the consultation, oil and mining majors including BHPBilliton , Chevron and ExxonMobil expressed concerns about the potential costs ofimplementing such measures.
Some of them said that a British move ahead of othercountries could hit companies as well as the attractiveness ofBritain as a place to list shares and establish operations.
BP estimated costs of about $6.5 million to deliverthe first filing and $2.5 million a year thereafter, mainlyrelated to setting up a team to interpret the legislation,develop relevant processes and implement them in the variouslocations where the company operates.
The Association of British Independent Oil ExplorationCompanies (BRINDEX) said the requirements might affect itssmaller members disproportionately, since their systems may notbe as sophisticated as the large companies.
"There appear to be very few benefits to our members ofpublishing the new extractive report, but instead it is imposinganother administrative and unnecessary burden on our sector at atime of other similar transparency initiatives," it said. (Additional reporting by Karolin Schaps; editing by Jason Neelyand Jane Baird)