MANILA, Philippines – The Silangan Mindanao Mining Co. Inc., a subsidiary of Philex Mining Corp., expects its mine in Surigao del Norte to commence commercial operations by 2020 or a year later than it initially planned.
Businessman Manuel V. Pangilinan said the company is currently completing the requirements for the planned feasibility study on the Silangan mine, which has estimated reserves of five billion pounds of copper and nine million ounces of gold for the first 30 years.
Initial ore production at the Silangan mine was targeted to start as early as 2019.
The Silangan project is located at the northern part of Mindanao that combines the development of Boyongan and Bayugo deposits, which comprise gold, copper and silver.
It is classified as a mid- to large-scale mining operation by international standards.
The Silangan project is Philex’s next big prospective mine that will replace the Padcal mine whose mine life is expected to end by December 2022.
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The company has invested over P13 billion for the initial exploration and related works on the site as of the end of 2014.
Pangilinan has placed the estimated cost of developing the Silangan copper-gold mine at $900 million, lower than the $1.2 billion indicated earlier.
Meanwhile, Philex reported a 34 percent jump in its first half profit to P757 million, largely driven by higher metal prices and improved production.
Revenue from gold rose to almost P3 billion from P2.8 billion due to improved gold prices in the world market.
Copper revenues, on the other hand, fell four percent to P1.79 billion while revenues from silver slid to P37 million.
The Padcal mine milled 4.7 million tons of ore, translating to 17.3 million pounds of copper and 49,589 ounces of gold produced.
The increased metal production for the six-month period was driven by improved equipment efficiency, manpower optimization and better ore grades as new draw points started to deliver higher grades.
