1 Introduction The aim of a resource rent tax is to capture resource rent realized by the exploitation of a mineral or hydrocarbon deposit. 1 Resource rent is classically understood to be the surplus value generated by such exploitation over all necessary costs of production, including rewards to capital. Following this principle, a resource rent tax targets the returns made on investment that exceed the minimum reward necessary for capital to be deployed. In practice, this means that an investor enjoys relief from taxation until a satisfactory rate of