April 03, 2023

Photo credit: Apex Mining

Apex Mining Co., Inc. recorded a PHP 3.339 billion consolidated net income in 2022. Meanwhile, consolidated revenues reached Php10.310 billion. The consolidated revenues were up 39% YoY with gold accounting for Php9.854 billion and silver Php0.456 billion. Apex Mining’s consolidated net income increased 408% YoY.

Total volume of gold sold by Apex Mining was 101,096 oz, an increase of 28%; silver sold totaled 382,345 oz, an increase of 6%. Realized prices were $1,797/oz (+1%) for gold and $21.78/oz (-11%) for silver.

The expansion plans that were rolled out in 2022 generated the desired efficiencies. The two operating mines namely, Maco and Sangilo increased their milling capacity by 250 tpd (up 11%) and 200 tpd (up 100%), respectively. The Maco mine averaged 2,330 tpd which resulted in a total tonnage milled of 815,910 tonnes (higher by 15% YoY). Coupled with higher feed grades of gold (3.96 gpt) by 6%, the resulting gold production of 91,072 oz and silver production of 377,729 oz were up 23% and 5%, respectively. ISRI milled a total of 131,481 tonnes in 2022 and produced 9,270 oz of gold and 629 oz of silver.

Consolidated cost of production was up 28% at Php5.433 billion. Mill production was up 15% but the cost of materials and supplies only accounted for 12% of the increase. Other factors that caused the uptick include depreciation and depletion costs (6%), personnel cost (3%), and repairs and maintenance (2%).

The resulting consolidated net income after tax is Php3.339 billion, an increase of 408% YoY. The consolidated revenues and net income are an all-time high for Apex Mining.

March 28, 2023

Photo credit: Global Ferronickel Holdings

Global Ferronickel Holdings, Inc. (PSE: FNI) delivered resilient financial results and key operating achievements in 2022, with net income growing 9% to ₱2.2 billion and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) margin expanding to 48% from 39% in the previous year.

“Our performance during the year showed our Company’s ability to evolve and make further progress against our strategic priorities,” said Dante R. Bravo, FNI President. “Most notably, we completed the commissioning and started commercial export of nickel ore from our mine in Palawan. We also completed the acquisition of a 20% stake in Guangdong Century Tsingshan Nickel Industry Co. Ltd (GCTN), the owner of a 33-hectare rotary kiln-electric furnace (RKEF) processing facility in China that caters to customers from within and outside Guangdong’s Economic and Technological Development Zones. Finally, for the second consecutive year, we received the highest Presidential Mineral Industry Environmental Award by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the Philippine Mine Safety and Environment Association in recognition for our environmentally and socially responsible surface mining operations.”

Revenues decreased 13% year-over-year to ₱6.7 billion due to adverse weather, partially offset by a rise in medium-grade ore prices and a favorable foreign exchange impact when compared to 2021. Total shipped volume declined 24% to 3.735 million wet metric tons (WMT) resulting from weather events such as more rain days that affected the production of nickel ore. Overall product mix was 76% low-grade ore and 24% medium-grade ore with an average realized price slightly lower by 0.3% from prior year to US$31.68 per WMT.

“The start of commercial operations at the Palawan mine along with the acquisition of 20% interest of GCTN, both in the fourth quarter, should enable us to carry out production all year-round and generate improved financial growth as we scale and integrate the business. We believe this positions us to achieve more consistent profitability throughout the year. It will also allow us to benefit from higher nickel prices and China’s ongoing reopening, which is expected to prompt a rebound in stainless steel production and in the new energy vehicle supply chain.”

"Moving forward, we are very excited about expanding our nickel ore production by 20% this year with the addition of our Palawan mine with an annual production capacity of 1.5 million WMT that would complement our Surigao mine's 7.5 million WMT. We are also on track with our medium-term strategy which includes the construction of a steel processing plant in Mariveles, Bataan and its commercial production, and the development of a nearby port,” Bravo concluded.

 

Article courtesy of Global Ferronickel Holdings

March 21, 2023

Photo credit: Global Ferronickel Holdings

Global Ferronickel Holdings, Inc. (FNI), has just signed an Annual Purchase Agreement with Baosteel Resources International Co. Ltd. for the supply of 1.5 million WMT of nickel ore for the 2023 mining season. The nickel ore will be coming from FNI’s operating mines in Surigao del Norte and Palawan, operated by Platinum Group Metals Corporation (PGMC) and Ipilan Nickel Corporation (INC), respectively.

“Our two operating mines have given us the ability to undertake year-round production to better support the growing demand from China. The easing of COVID-19 restrictions and the robust growth of China’s property sector that is driving the need for stainless steel will help boost the nickel industry,” said Dante R. Bravo, FNI President.

Should stockpile inventory permit, one-third of the shipment will be composed of lowgrade nickel ore with 0.90% nickel content and 49% iron content while the remainder will be medium- to high- grade nickel ore with 1.30%-1.60% nickel content and 15%- 25% iron content. The selling price of each shipment will be set on a monthly basis according to the prevailing market price at the time of price setting.

Baosteel Resources International Co., Ltd. is a wholly owned subsidiary of the top Chinese steel manufacturing corporation China Baowu Steel Group and is engaged in the business of mineral resource investment, trading, and logistics services. Notably, the company highly specializes on trading of metallurgic raw material with annual volume of over 60 million tons covering a vast range of products such as iron, ore, coal, alloys, non-ferrous metals, ferrous scraps, metallurgical flux, etc. Baosteel Resources maintains over 100 overseas suppliers and over 40 overseas clients. The Company’s headquarters is located in Hong Kong with footprints in Australia, Singapore, South Africa, Indonesia, and several others.

 

Article courtesy of the Philippine Stock Exchange

March 21, 2023

Photo: Signing of Binding Deed and Agreement (Left to right: PMR Holding Corp. President Dan Chalmers, CLA Chairman and MMCI President Atty. Julito “Sarge” Sarmiento, Sodor, Inc. President Ms. Erika Chalmers, and CLA Executive Director and MMCI Country Operations Director, Peter Hume).

Celsius Resources Limited  is pleased to announce that on 17 March 2023 the Company’s wholly owned subsidiary, Makilala Holding Limited ("MHL"), entered into a binding deed with Sodor, Inc. for Sodor to acquire a 60% legal ownership in Makilala Mining Company, Inc. (“MMCI”) for consideration of PHP 300 million (approximately A$8.2 million as at the date of this announcement), on terms and conditions described in the following paragraphs.

The signing of the Deed is a significant milestone as it will enable MMCI to apply for an MPSA for the MCB Project with the Philippine Government. As previously advised by the Company, under Philippine law, an MPSA must be held by a company that is at least 60% Filipino owned.

In addition, the Company and its wholly owned subsidiaries MHL, MMCI, and PDEP Inc. (“PDEP”) entered into an accompanying binding letter agreement with Sodor and its affiliate PMR Holding Corp. (“PMR”) (together, the “Parties”) to agree on the timeline for, and that delivery to Sodor Inc. of share certificates representing 60% of MMCI’s outstanding shares pursuant to the Deed shall be made only after, the funding by Sodor Inc. and PMR of approximately ~US$43 million for a 30% economic interest in the MCB Project ("Funding Commitment"). 3 The MCB Project will be composed of MMCI and PDEP, both wholly owned subsidiaries of Celsius. The Parties shall rescind the Deed if Sodor and PMR are not able to provide the Funding Commitment within two years from signing, unless the period is shortened or extended by mutual agreement of the Parties.

As at the date of this announcement the amount of the Funding Commitment, which is inclusive of the MMCI Consideration, is approximate as the Parties will confirm the size and timing of payment of the Funding Commitment following completion of a bankable feasibility study on the MCB Project. Provision of the Funding Commitment also remains subject to completion of negotiation and execution of binding definitive long form legal documentation.

The Philippine Government has otherwise advised MMCI that it has met all of the other technical requirements to obtain the MCB Project’s required environmental and mining permits.

Celsius Non-Executive Chairman and MMCI Chairman and President, Atty Julito R. Sarmiento, commented: “We are indeed honored to have Sodor Inc. as our local partner in our vision to develop the MCB Project as a model for Transformative Mining in the Philippines. Our principles and visions are aligned, which is a powerful step towards developing and operating the MCB Project in a responsible and sustainable manner benefitting both our shareholders and local stakeholders. It has always been our commitment, particularly to the Balatoc Tribal Community, that central to the mine development is cultural respect, social development, and environmental protection. Sodor Inc. shares the same commitment, and is thus a perfect partner in developing the MCB Project.”

 

Article courtesy of Celsius Resources. The full press release can be found HERE

March 20, 2023

Photo credit: Marcelle Villegas

Environment Secretary Antonia Loyzaga has underscored the need for the mining sector to prioritize actions to end gender inequality as part of the effort to promote responsible mining.

In her keynote speech, Secretary Loyzaga underscored the need to ensure that women’s representation in the mining industry is meaningful , substantive, and in all levels of decision making.

The environment chief discussed pressing issues affecting women, including indigenous women, in the mining sector and the impacts of the industry on communities.

She pointed to a 2020 scoping study commissioned by the Philippine- Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), which listed key issues women face in the mining industry, such as gender-inequalities in the workplace, challenges they face as a result of environmental problems due to mining operations, lack of livelihood outside employment by mining firms, and absence of guidelines on the inclusion of gender-responsive projects in the Social Development and Management Programs (SDMP).

An SDMP, as required by the Philippine Mining Act, lays down the comprehensive five-year plan of a mining firm on how it would conduct its actual mining and milling operations toward the sustained improvement in the living standards of the host and neighboring communities.

Loyzaga lamented that women constitute the minority in the sector’s workplace and only a few women occupy technical and leadership positions, prompting her to call for “an enabling and empowering environment for women.”

“We hope that this will include the upscaling, strengthening STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) education to motivate women to pursue careers that are very important and related to the industry,” she said.

Loyzaga also noted that women are most affected by degradations linked to mining operations, such as pollution of rivers and drying up of water sources, and that “these have added pressures on women as household managers and also as providers.”

The EITI-commissioned study likewise said that there are gaps in the context and implementation of policies and frameworks to address gender dimensions in the mining industry.

Loyzaga said this is one area that can be looked into when revisiting the Philippine Mining Act of 1995. “We will be looking at this in tandem with the Magna Carta for Women,” she added.

In closing, Loyzaga stressed that women should be recognized “not because they are women, but for the merit that they bring to the purpose of their organizations.”

“We cannot just rest on our laurels and say we need to be recognized. We must be women of substance, women of purpose, and women of achievement,” she pointed out.

 

Article courtesy of the DENR

March 16, 2023

Photo credit: Taganito Mining

Natural resources development company Nickel Asia Corporation logged an attributable net income (net of minority interest) of P7.93 billion for 2022, an increase of 1.5 percent from the P7.81 billion it reported in 2021, based on its audited financial and operating results.

Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) amounted to P14.31 billion against P14.42 billion in the prior year.

“Despite the inclement weather that affected our nickel mining business, 2022 remained a good year for NAC with prices for the metal buoyed by high demand. Our renewable energy business also made strides as it was able to increase its generational capacity and forge a partnership with an international player, Shell Investments B.V.,” said Martin Antonio Zamora, NAC President and CEO.

“The gains we made in 2022 show that we remain committed to our ambitious 2025 target of becoming the premier ESG investment in the country and top 25 in market capitalization of the listed companies in the Philippine Stock Exchange. This year will be no different as we continue to build a strong foundation to achieve our goals," he added.

Nickel Mining

The Company’s five operating mines – Cagdianao, Dinapigue, Hinatuan, Rio Tuba, and Taganito – sold a combined 15.94 million wet metric tons (WMT) of nickel ore during the year, a decrease of 11 percent from the 2021 level of 17.94 million WMT.

Despite the lower sales volume during the period, the higher nickel ore prices and favorable exchange rates raised the Company’s revenues by 2 percent to P28.03 billion from P27.40 billion in 2021.

The drop in sales volume was almost in direct proportion to unrealized workable days caused by unfavorable weather that adversely affected the Company’s mining operations during the period.

The weighted average nickel ore sales price during the period slightly increased to $29.17 per WMT against $29.13 per WMT in the same period last year. The Company realized P54.90 per US dollar from these nickel ore sales, an 11-percent increase from P49.48 last year.

Breaking down the ore sales, the Company exported 8.15 million WMT of saprolite and limonite ore at the average price of $39.39 per WMT during the year from 10.79 million WMT at $40.40 per WMT last year.

Likewise, the Company delivered 7.79 million WMT of limonite ore to the Coral Bay and Taganito high pressure acid leach (HPAL) plants, the prices of which are linked to the London Metal Exchange (LME) and realized an average price of $11.64 per pound of payable nickel.

This compares to 7.14 million WMT at $8.35 per pound of payable nickel in 2021. Expressed in US dollar per WMT, the average price for the deliveries to the HPAL plants were $18.72 and $12.03 in 2022 and 2021, respectively.

Owing to the higher LME nickel price during the period, NAC also recognized gains from its equity share in investments in the two HPAL plants in the combined amount of P942.1 million against P557.9 million the prior year.

Pujada Nickel Project

On Feb. 17, NAC disclosed that Hallmark Mining Corp. and Austral-Asia Link Mining Corp. accepted its Letter of Intent (LOI) to become the sole and exclusive contractor for two mine properties located in Davao Oriental.

NAC’s commitments under the LOI are subject to its conduct of due diligence and exploration activities, as well as the execution of definitive agreements among the parties.

Under the LOI, NAC or its wholly owned subsidiary will be the contractor for Hallmark’s mineral production sharing agreement (MPSA) that covers 4,999.71 hectares (ha) in Mati and San Isidro, Davao Oriental, and Austral-Asia’s MPSA covering another 5,000 ha in Mati and Gov. Generoso, Davao Oriental.

It also permits the conduct of a feasibility study to determine the economic and technical viability for the Company to establish an HPAL plant or an equivalent mineral processing plant within the MPSA areas.

Renewable Energy

Last June 2022, EPI successfully expanded Jobin-SQM Inc. (JSI) by another 38-megawatt peak (MWp), bringing the Sta. Rita, Subic site’s total solar generation capacity to 100 MWp.

For 2022, JSI increased generation by 56 percent to 114,824-megawatt hours and revenues by 79 percent to P609.52 million. Higher revenues and effective cost management kept EBITDA margin at 86 percent and resulted in a 756-percent increase in net income to P146.03 million. As of November 2022, JSI was ranked for three consecutive quarters first among large-utility solar generators in Luzon in terms of compliance with the Forecast Accuracy Standards of the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM).

In September 2022, JSI began developing and constructing an additional 72-MWp farm in Sta. Rita, Subic, which is scheduled to go online by 4Q 2023.

Moreover, EPI secured another long-term lease agreement with the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA), where it plans to build a 130-MWp plant. Pre-development activities started this year, with construction expected to begin in early 2024.

In July 2022, EPI also entered into a 60/40 investment and development agreement with Shell Overseas Investments B.V. to build 1 GW of onshore solar, onshore wind, and battery storage capacity by 2028, and potentially 3 GW thereafter. This new company, named Greenlight Renewables Holdings Inc., is slated to launch its first project of 240-MWp in 2023.

Sustainability

Based on the latest assessment of its external ESG rating partner Sustainalytics, NAC was able to improve its Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) performance after earning an ESG risk score of 33.6 – an improvement on its previous rating of 43.7.

NAC improved its risk score by 10.1 points, and now ranks 54th out of 210 firms assessed by Sustainalytics under the Diversified Metals category and 37th out of 174 firms under the Diversified Metals Mining sub-industry.

This also puts NAC under the “High Risk” category from a “Severe Risk” category. A “High Risk” rating is garnered by a company with risk scores between 30 and 40 while a “Severe Risk” rating is for firms with risk scores of 40 above.

Regular Cash Dividend

The NAC Board of Directors approved the declaration of a regular cash dividend of P0.17 per common share payable on April 12, 2023, to shareholders of record on March 29, 2023.

 

Article courtesy of the Philippine Stock Exchange

March 15, 2023

Photo: Participants from MGB Central and Regional Offices, JOGMEC, and JMEC capping off the seminar

The Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) and Japan Organization for Metals and Energy Security (JOGMEC) organized a Seminar on Environmental Cooperation last February 23, 2023 at Park Inn Radisson Hotel North EDSA, Quezon City.

The seminar, which was attended by personnel from the MGB Central and Regional Offices, JOGMEC, and Japan Mining Engineering and Training Center (JMEC), aimed to strengthen the partnership between MGB and JOGMEC in undertaking measures to protect the environment and rehabilitate the areas affected by mining operations.

Atty. Danilo U. Uykieng, Officer-in-Charge (OIC), Office of the Director, MGB, opened the program by recognizing the importance of the collaboration between the Philippines and Japan towards environmental management and sustainable development.

“Throughout the seminar, you will have the opportunity to engage with industry experts and practitioners, share your experiences, and explore new strategies to tackle the challenges of mine pollution prevention and control,” Atty. Uykieng said.

The seminar provided platform to JOGMEC and MGB key personnel to discuss mine pollution controls, overview of on-the-job trainings, and case studies and best practices of mining companies in mitigating mine pollution. Engr. Marcial H. Mateo, Chief, Mine Safety, Environment and Social Development Division (MSESDD), delivered the closing message and highlighted the key takeaways during the seminar, ways forward, and future collaborations of MGB and JOGMEC.

It may be recalled that MGB and JOGMEC entered a Memorandum of Understanding on mine rehabilitation and mine pollution control last August 16, 2019. This is in relation to the Memorandum of Cooperation signed by and between the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan.

 

Article courtesy of the MGB

March 13, 2023

Taganito Mining Corporation (TMC), a subsidiary of natural resources development firm Nickel Asia Corp. (NAC), once again demonstrated its adherence to ESG (Environment, Social, and Governance) compliance by winning the major awards during the 68th Annual National Mine, Safety, and Environment Conference on Nov. 18, 2022. 

TMC bagged the Presidential Mineral Industry Environmental Award (PMIEA) – considered as the highest industry accolade for social, environment, health, and safety excellence – for the second year in a row. 

Further demonstrating its commitment to establishing land use values equal to or better than those existing before mining activities, TMC also won this year’s Best Mining Forest Award under the Metallic Category. 

In addition, TMC proved its deeply entrenched culture of safety in its operations after being declared as having the "Most Improved Safety Performance" under the Safest Mines Award. 

The subsidiary is engaged in mining and exporting nickel ore in barangays Hayanggabon, Urbiztondo, Taganito and Cagdianao in the municipality of Claver, Surigao del Norte. 

"These awards are a testament of the continuing commitment of NAC to uphold the highest standards of Responsible Mining," said NAC Chairman Gerard H. Brimo during the award's acceptance speech, in which three other NAC affiliates also won major awards.   

Brimo also recognized the community stakeholders who "keep us on our toes, and who inspire us to constantly strive beyond compliance." 

He also lauded the work of "managers, supervisors, and rank-and-file [employees]" who ensured that NAC's operating firms uphold the tenets of Responsible Mining. 

These awards come at a crucial time as TMC, together with the other subsidiaries of NAC, is formalizing its ESG processes. 

This is in line with the Company’s twin goals of becoming the premier ESG investment in the country and becoming among the top 25 companies listed in the Philippine Stock Exchange in terms of market capitalization by 2025. 

“This year's Presidential Award is the fifth for TMC, and the fourth for Best Mining Forest, since PMIEA was launched in 1997. With this milestone, we are humbled and more excited to move further with our thrust on ESG and responsible mining operations,” said Engr. Artemio Valeroso, the Resident Mine Manager of TMC. 

Established through Executive Order No. 399, the PMIEA is conferred annually by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) to promote the responsible and sustainable use of the country's minerals in all stages of mining operation.

For the current fiscal year, TMC spent Php 90.81 million for health, education, livelihood, public utilities and services, sociocultural preservation, information campaign, and mining technology, and another Php 154.2 million for environmental programs involving land, water, and air quality management; rehabilitation and reforestation; and various ecotourism projects. 

Another Php 18.9 million was spent for the relief and recovery operations following the onslaught of Super typhoon Odette. 

Some 753,781 seedlings were also planted in 111.87 hectares of mining and non-mining areas within the period. 

Moreover, TMC also spent Php 51.38 million for holistic programs aimed at ensuring the safety, health, and well-being of employees from 2021 to the third quarter of 2022. 

A total of 7.8 million safe man-hours without lost time accident was also achieved by TMC during the period.

March 02, 2023

ESCO® mining buckets and tooth systems together with ShovelMetrics can increase mine site productivity. ShovelMetrics Gen 3, the most advanced shovel monitoring service on the market, uses artificial intelligence (AI) and computer vision to provide industry-leading bucket G.E.T., rock and shovel monitoring. Providing 3D imaging technology and support for all excavators, backhoes and shovels. Our flagship shovel monitoring solution is a fully managed service that includes accurate and reliable missing tooth and lip shroud detection. These features mitigate the risk of crusher obstructions in order to safeguard your employees and prevent hundreds of thousands of dollars in lost production. ShovelMetrics pays for itself by increasing productivity and reducing operational downtime.

In order to detect missing teeth, the ShovelMetrics™ Gen 3 bucket camera needs a clear view of the shovel or excavator bucket. This can be difficult at mines in extreme latitudes where mines receive very little sunlight during the winter, or at mines where sticky material can obscure the bucket teeth. To overcome these challenges, our engineers have developed a rugged stereoscopic 3D camera system with powerful LED lighting, capable of capturing high-resolution image data in all operating conditions.

Mining shovel teeth wear down unevenly over time, causing reduced digging efficiency, increased cutting forces and fill times as well as potential bucket damage and tooth breakage. Conventional tooth wear monitoring requires personnel to manually measure each bucket tooth, which is time-consuming and requires shovel downtime. Sensor-based systems are prone to failure as the sensors are damaged, lost, or improperly installed. ShovelMetrics continuous monitoring using a rugged shovel-mounted camera and AI based image processing optimizes the change-out procedure and reduces crusher jam incidents while achieving or exceeding conventional levels of accuracy.

Through bucket camera video frame processing and AI algorithms, clear images of the bucket are sent to secure cloud servers where tooth length, wear rate, wear patterns, and change-out predictions are computed – eliminating the need for periodic visits or visual inspection of the shovel teeth. The status of each tooth is logged regularly, and change-outs can be predicted and planned ahead of time. When downtime is scheduled, maintenance tasks can be performed simultaneously to reduce overall downtime.

To monitor the wear rate of each tooth, we use an image-based technique to calculate tooth length at regular intervals; these measurements are expressed in pixels and must be converted via reference to a known measurable object, (such as bucket width), in the image to find the physical length of the tooth. We define the length of a tooth from the tooth tip to a landmark on the tooth or bucket that does not wear out; this landmark can be a tooth lip (lip shroud), lifting eyes, cast lip, or bucket line.

Like all Motion Metrics products, ShovelMetrics interfaces with our centralized data analysis platform, MetricsManager Pro. Users with authorized credentials can receive automated SMS and email event notifications, in-depth performance reports, equipment activity logs, and particle size data from anywhere.

March 01, 2023

Photo credit: Celsius Resources

Highlights

  • Assay results from three additional drill holes have all confirmed further extensions to the shallow, high-grade copper mineralisation at MCB.
     
  • Assay result highlights include:
    • 51.3m @ 0.93% copper and 0.06g/t gold from 7.7m in drill hole MCB-042
       
    • 101.5m @ 0.90% copper and 0.18g/t gold from 9m in drill hole MCB-043
       
    • 131.1m @ 0.93% copper and 0.23g/t gold from 11m in drill hole MCB-044
       
  • The favourable results from the drilling campaign enhances confidence in the updated 2022 Mineral Resource estimate for MCB.

Celsius Resources is pleased to announce it has received further shallow and high-grade copper assay results from the company’s drilling program at its flagship MCB Copper-Gold Project, held under its Philippine subsidiary Makilala Mining Company, Inc. (“MMCI”). 

The results continue to identify new positions of shallow mineralisation in line with previous drilling results from holes completed at MCB over the last two years, and historical drilling information completed earlier by Freeport McMoRan.

Celsius Executive Director and MMCI Country Operations Director, Peter Hume said:

“We continue to see higher-grade sections defined over a broad area now at shallow levels. The earlier success we had in 2022 defining new shallow higher grade copper mineralisation is continuing into 2023.

We still have further tests to carry out on the possible extensions to these higher-grade copper zones which we believe will continue to improve the proposed production schedule, specifically during the early years, as part of our Feasibility Studies.

MCB is a unique copper-gold mine opportunity in the Philippines, with a Memorandum of Agreement forged with the Balatoc Community and is now in the process of securing a mining agreement with the Philippine Government, paving the way to successfully developing the MCB Project and mutually benefitting our shareholders and local stakeholders alike.”  

 

To read the full announcement, please click here.

March 01, 2023

Photo credit: Bilyonaryo

Integrated energy company Semirara Mining and Power Corporation (SMPC) ended 2022 with a consolidated net income of P39.9 billion, more than double (146%) its previous-year all-time high of P16.2 billion.

Robust domestic coal shipments and higher spot electricity sales, along with elevated market prices account for the record-breaking results.

Domestic coal sales jumped by 33 percent from 5.8 million metric tons (MT) to a historic high of 7.7 million MT while exports slumped by 24 percent from 9.4 million MT to 7.1 million MT.

“Last year, we focused on the Philippine, South Korean and other ASEAN markets to lessen our dependency on China, which had been importing heavily discounted Russian coal,” explained SMPC president and COO Maria Cristina C. Gotianun.

“Diversifying our market focus allowed us to get the best price for our inventory,” she added.

Average selling price (ASP) of Semirara coal spiked by 91 percent from P2,695 to a record level of P5,136 on the back of soaring index prices and higher-grade coal sold.

Meanwhile, combined spot electricity sales from SMPC subsidiaries SEM-Calaca Power Corporation (SCPC) and Southwest Luzon Power Generation Corporation surged by 83 percent from 1,028 gigawatt hours (GWh) to 1,881 GWh.

Spot electricity ASP expanded by 35 percent from P5.51 per kilowatt hour (KWh) to P7.46/KWh because of thin supply-demand margins and higher fuel costs.

For the fourth quarter alone, SMPC recorded a 34-percent drop in consolidated net income from P5.9 billion to P3.9 billion mainly due to higher stripping costs, lower average foreign exchange rate and an income tax and related expense of P1 billion in relation to the deferral of the Molave mine income tax holiday for the year 2020. This move will effectively extend the company’s tax break until 2023.

Coal sales from October to December rose by 20 percent from 2.5 million MT to 3 million MT, largely driven by a 73-percent rebound in domestic shipments from 1.1 million MT to 1.9 million MT.

During the same period, average selling price of Semirara coal grew by 9 percent from P4,452 to P4,861 due to the combined effect of elevated market prices and 242-percent increase in lowergrade coal sales from 212,431 MT to 736,674 MT.

The power segment reported a 38-percent decline in spot sales from 538 GWh to 335 GWh because of the 86-day maintenance outage of SCPC Unit 1 and 42-day unplanned outage of SCPC Unit 2.

Spot electricity ASP expanded by 42 percent from P5.69/KWh to P8.06/KWh owing to supplydemand imbalances and elevated fuel costs.

 

Article courtesy of the Philippine Stock Exchange