The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) - Unified Project Management Office (UPMO) Operations, which is implementing the Davao City Bypass Construction Project, now conducts simultaneous tunneling activities at northbound and southbound directions on north portal of the project’s road mountain tunnel component. In his report to Secretary Rog...

Photo credit: Philex Mining The province of Surigao del Norte and other local government units welcomed the start of development of the Silangan copper-gold mine project (“Silangan”) of Philex Mining Corp., which at a cost of $224 million (about PHP11.2 billion), is one of the biggest investments in Mindanao. Philex’s wholly-owned unit, Silangan Min...

The Philippine Federation of Professional Associations (PFPA) – Council for Built and Natural Environments and the Geological Society of the Philippines have recognized Noe L. Caagusan with the Distinction & Excellence Award for Geology 2021. Caagusan, currently Apex Mining Co., Inc’s chief geologist, shares this accolade with his Apex colleagues a...

Things are getting better for OceanaGold Philippines, Inc. after their application for FTAA renewal was finally approved last year for the Didipio gold and copper mine. Last 14 July 2022, the Philippine Government finally granted OGPI another 25 years to operate. The company's operations had been halted for nearly two years due to a dispute between the mi...

If businesses have anything to learn from the Covid-19 pandemic, it should be making their operations agile. Business agility means the ability to adjust swiftly to market changes both internally and externally, address customer demands quickly and flexibly, and adapt and lead continuously the improvement initiatives in a productive and cost-efficient man...

A healthier work environment, radically reduced energy consumption, a lower carbon footprint and more efficient operations: the sustainability gains from innovations in battery-based mining equipment are simply electrifying. “Will electrification spark the next wave of mining innovation?” is the title of a recent report from consultancy firm EY. Brian ...

Photo credit: Ritchie Bros. Driven by long term infrastructure growth, the expansion of mining activity and post COVID-19 recovery plans, the demand for construction and mining equipment in the Philippines for the medium to long term is strong. Coupled with global supply chain constraints and long lead times for buying new equipment from OEMs and their...

Photo credit: Good News Pilipinas As this column is being written, there are less than 100 days to go before the May 9 elections.  Many voters have made their minds up from the outset, some purely based on their visceral reactions to, and past experiences with, the candidates.  However, we owe it to ourselves and future generations to scrutinize the ca...

Last year saw miners experiencing record profitability and revenue. While the industry continues to benefit from relative high metal prices and opportunities from the clean energy transition and digital transformation, there are identified risks arising from COVID-19's resurgence and disruptions, potential for weaker-than-expected global economic growth, ...

Photo credit: Redjie Melvic Cawis Philex Mining Corporation, one of the oldest and largest gold and copper producers in Southeast Asia added Php668 million of Core Net Income in 4Q2021 to its Php1.865 billion Core Net Income for the first nine months ended September 30, 2021. Thus, full year Core Net Income rose 118% to Php2.533 billion compared with P...

Photo credit: Department of Transportation  Some 30.55 percent of the Metro Manila Subway Project (MMSP) is already complete, Department of Transportation (DOTr) Undersecretary for Railways Timothy John Batan said on Tuesday. “Despite the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, again, back-to-back to back major milestones were still realized despite all o...

Photo: The existing grates within the SAG Mill were pegging. Critical size grinding media were blocking apertures, reducing throughput A gold and copper mine in South East Asia was experiencing a range of challenges with its SAG mill that were hitting productivity. Facing a significant increase in ore hardness that would have exacerbated the problems, ...

Photo credit: Epiroc Philippines Epiroc, a leading productivity and sustainability partner for the mining and infrastructure industries, has received validation by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) for the company’s ambitious targets to reduce CO2 emissions.  Epiroc launched ambitious sustainability goals that include halving its CO2 emiss...

​ Philippine minerals have a wide range of ores from nickel laterite, copper ore, iron ore, chromite ore, limestone and more. Thus, when daily operations require elemental analysis of a wide range of inorganic/geological samples, it is often cumbersome, or not possible to setup and maintain a large number of dedicated calibrations to handle such range....

Photo credit: Bilyonaryo Atlas Consolidated Mining and Development Corporation ("Atlas Mining") reported a record net income of Php3.83 billion for the year 2021 compared to the net income of Php118 million for the same period in 2020. Stable production, resilient operation and higher metal prices sustained the turnaround performance of Atlas Mining. ...

Photo credit: Manila Times - Bataan Nuclear Power Plant President Rodrigo Duterte has signed Executive Order (EO) 164 that now includes the potential of nuclear power in the country’s energy mix. Released on Thursday, EO 164 was signed by the Chief Executive last February 28. “This policy is the start of the national nuclear power program,” said ...

Photo credit: Shuttershock The Department of Energy (DOE) has welcomed the signing of Executive Order 164, or the inclusion of nuclear power in the country’s energy mix, as this will address the high electricity rate and secure energy for the future. “We thank the President for seeing merit in the DOE’s recommendation to consider integrating nuclear...

Photo: Bataan Nuclear Power Plant The chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee on Thursday said President Rodrigo Roa Duterte's policy of pursuing safe and reliable nuclear energy would promote the country's national and economic security and also make it more energy-independent. Albay Rep. Joey Salceda made the statement as he expressed stron...

The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) expressed confidence that the opening of Binondo - Intramuros Bridge Project will provide immediate impact of easing traffic especially with many people begin working on-site as Metro Manila shifted back to alert level 1. Secretary Roger G. Mercado said that Undersecretary and Build Build Build Chief I...

Photo credit: The Department of Public Works and Highways The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) led by Secretary Roger G. Mercado met with interested stakeholders in the first interagency steering committee for the Detailed Engineering Design (D.E.D.) of the Bataan-Cavite Interlink Bridge Project. The first convening of the interagency ...

 The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) had an overview of the activity plans and methodologies for the proposed construction of a new expressway that will connect the southern province of Laguna to Metro Manila via Laguna Lake. In his report to DPWH Secretary Roger G. Mercado, Undersecretary and Build Build Build Chief Implementer Emil K. ...

Photo: The Trio® TC84XR cone crusher Pebbles contain valuable ore but without a crusher capable of processing them, pebbles can end up discarded or stockpiled. Weir Minerals has developed the Trio® TC84XR cone crusher – specifically engineered to perform in the most challenging applications, including pebble crushing. Pebble crushing is one of the t...

The German-Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GPCCI) said it is exploring the potential of the Philippine market for green hydrogen as a future source of energy. “The German-Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection (BMUV),...

Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Roger G. Mercado emphasized that overall preparedness of DPWH implementing offices will enable maximum utilization of funds allocated for the Department in Fiscal Year 2022. While budget to complete our several high-impact projects under the multi-year program is insufficient, the least we could ...