What is the procedure to drill an industrial well in Guatemala City or the metropolitan municipalities?

The typical path has three steps. First, an approved MARN environmental instrument matching the project's category (the Aprende Guatemala page describes the procedure and a Q5,000 fine for operating without a license, without giving a fee schedule). Second, the municipal drilling license and fee: each municipality sets the amount in its schedule of fees; in the capital it is handled at the municipal single window, and the municipality requires the approved environmental instrument before it will license. Third, once drilling is finished, a report with the well's stratigraphy and yield goes to the municipality; for projects EMPAGUA reviews (through its Project Evaluation Unit), pumping tests, level measurements and production capacity are required. The municipal license amounts by municipality are not held centrally and remain to be compiled.