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Released November 27, 2012 | MANILA, PHILIPPINES
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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--The impact of recent reforms in the Philippines mining sector are now being felt, as five mega-mining projects worth about $2.9 billion have been delayed or deferred until 2013. The projects were set to commence this year as part of the industry's goal of hitting $2 billion of fresh investments in 2012.
Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) Director Leo L. Jasareno said the delays are a setback to the country's investment target and could be a result of investors' uncertainties about the government mining policy.
Earlier this year, available data from the Ministry of Mines showed a half-semester investment of $160 million, compared with $309.31 million in the same period last year. The decline worsened when five investors indicated their inability to continue with projects this year as earlier scheduled. The companies include Intex Resources (ITX), Red 5 Limited, Taganito HPAL Nickel Corporation (HPAL), St. Augustine Gold & Copper Limited (TSX:SAU), and joint venture Far Southeast Gold Resources Incorporated (FSGRI).
Intex Resources, which has an $811 million nickel project in Mindoro Oriental, has halted construction because of a lack of social acceptance. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) recently withdrew its environmental compliance certificate (ECC) because the local government and churches are opposing the project. Jasareno confirmed the project status, saying "their problem started during Secretary Lito's time, and they haven't progressed since then."
Australian miner Red 5 Limited deferred its $39 million Siana Gold project due to uncertainty in the new executive order EO 79. Jasareno also said that HPAL's processing plant in Taganito was delayed by a fire-related incident last year. HPAL's planned projects in the Philippines total about $1.59 billion.
St. Augustine, a Canadian miner with Philippines partner Queensberry Mining and Development Corporation, was working on the $350 million King King gold project in Compostella Valley, but failed in its attempts to get immediate approval from MGB after submitting the required declaration of mining project feasibility through foreign partner Nationwide Development Corporation.
Far Southeast Gold Resources Incorporated, a subsidiary of Lepanto Consolidated Mining Company Incorporated, had started a $66 million gold-copper project in Mankayan. Benguet also has shifted mine development and construction of a processing plant to next year.
The Far Southeast copper-gold project is a joint venture between Lepanto Consolidated Mining Company Incorporated and Gold Fields Limited of South Africa. Developmental reports show that Gold Fields, which has other heavy exploration and developmental prospects in Finland, Ghana, Australia, Peru and South Africa, recently paid its fourth down-payment of $110 million to secure a 40% stake in the Far Southeast project. Industrial Info gathered that this project, which experienced a major delay in the pre-feasibility study stage, would eventually hit a bankable feasibility study next year, during which Lepanto is likely to provide about $340 million as part of the joint venture commitment to aid project development.
Gold Fields is also set to acquire a majority stake in the Far Southeast project, but it depends on its acquisition of a financial technical assistance agreement (FTAA) license, which allows foreign ownership of full- or large-scale mining projects that attract competitive investors globally.
Meanwhile, Philex Mining Corporation, the country's biggest gold producer, has announced a shift in the start-up production at its Silangan project in Surigao del Norte to 2017.
Total investment in the mining sector for 2011 stood at $624.06 million. Now that the pace in project development has slowed down, Jasareno is considering a review of the investment target for 2012. "We will obviously revise our targets," he said. "We will consolidate them."
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, and eight offices outside of North America, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.
Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) Director Leo L. Jasareno said the delays are a setback to the country's investment target and could be a result of investors' uncertainties about the government mining policy.
Earlier this year, available data from the Ministry of Mines showed a half-semester investment of $160 million, compared with $309.31 million in the same period last year. The decline worsened when five investors indicated their inability to continue with projects this year as earlier scheduled. The companies include Intex Resources (ITX), Red 5 Limited, Taganito HPAL Nickel Corporation (HPAL), St. Augustine Gold & Copper Limited (TSX:SAU), and joint venture Far Southeast Gold Resources Incorporated (FSGRI).
Intex Resources, which has an $811 million nickel project in Mindoro Oriental, has halted construction because of a lack of social acceptance. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) recently withdrew its environmental compliance certificate (ECC) because the local government and churches are opposing the project. Jasareno confirmed the project status, saying "their problem started during Secretary Lito's time, and they haven't progressed since then."
Australian miner Red 5 Limited deferred its $39 million Siana Gold project due to uncertainty in the new executive order EO 79. Jasareno also said that HPAL's processing plant in Taganito was delayed by a fire-related incident last year. HPAL's planned projects in the Philippines total about $1.59 billion.
St. Augustine, a Canadian miner with Philippines partner Queensberry Mining and Development Corporation, was working on the $350 million King King gold project in Compostella Valley, but failed in its attempts to get immediate approval from MGB after submitting the required declaration of mining project feasibility through foreign partner Nationwide Development Corporation.
Far Southeast Gold Resources Incorporated, a subsidiary of Lepanto Consolidated Mining Company Incorporated, had started a $66 million gold-copper project in Mankayan. Benguet also has shifted mine development and construction of a processing plant to next year.
The Far Southeast copper-gold project is a joint venture between Lepanto Consolidated Mining Company Incorporated and Gold Fields Limited of South Africa. Developmental reports show that Gold Fields, which has other heavy exploration and developmental prospects in Finland, Ghana, Australia, Peru and South Africa, recently paid its fourth down-payment of $110 million to secure a 40% stake in the Far Southeast project. Industrial Info gathered that this project, which experienced a major delay in the pre-feasibility study stage, would eventually hit a bankable feasibility study next year, during which Lepanto is likely to provide about $340 million as part of the joint venture commitment to aid project development.
Gold Fields is also set to acquire a majority stake in the Far Southeast project, but it depends on its acquisition of a financial technical assistance agreement (FTAA) license, which allows foreign ownership of full- or large-scale mining projects that attract competitive investors globally.
Meanwhile, Philex Mining Corporation, the country's biggest gold producer, has announced a shift in the start-up production at its Silangan project in Surigao del Norte to 2017.
Total investment in the mining sector for 2011 stood at $624.06 million. Now that the pace in project development has slowed down, Jasareno is considering a review of the investment target for 2012. "We will obviously revise our targets," he said. "We will consolidate them."
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, and eight offices outside of North America, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.
