Using geospatial data from 12 emerging market economies (EMEs), this analysis attempts to guide investors in emerging markets by shedding light on a difficult problem: overlapping land claims that diminish the value and viability of industrial concessions. We refer to this as “land tenure risk”…which imperils investments in mining, energy, agriculture and forestry projects…We found that companies ignoring pre-existing or customary local land rights in their acquisition process experienced financial damage ranging from operating costs increased by as much as 29 times to outright abandonment of operations…Within the geospatial datasets we reviewed, industrial concessions on public lands representing 31% of the total hectares sampled had some overlap with a demarcated local territory…This implies that there is a three in ten chance that a given EME concession incurs tenure risk…[Refers to Aracruz, Barrick Gold, Celulose, CRA Fitch, Fibria Celulose, GeoVille, Glencore Xstrata, Goldfields La Cima, Hochschild Mining, HSBC, Indophil, McGraw-Hill, Metria AB, New Britain Palm Oil, PT Tebora, Rio Tinto, Sagittarius Mines, Standard and Poor’s (part of McGraw-Hill), Stora Enso, Talisman Energy, Xstrata (part of Glencore Xstrata)]