Kicking off International Women’s Month, the International Women in Mining Alliance (IWIM) Alliance held its first ever-virtual Global WIM Summit on March 1-2.  Through the wonder of technology, I had the pleasure of connecting with other IWIM leaders throughout the world without having to hop on a plane and despite our differences in time zones. The...

  COVID-19 and its impact on the world provided a harsh lesson and wake-up call for all of us. People lost their jobs, businesses and entire fortunes on account of a virus whose origins remain a mystery. We worked from home, home schooled our kids, stayed away from senior members of our families, canceled special celebrations and well-planned vacations...

Fully customisable, high-performance anti-abrasion solutionsWorking closely with customers in the mining and minerals processing sectors, Weir Minerals’ expert engineers have developed high-performance wear panels for use in all medium- to high-wear applications. The new modular anti-abrasion panels are ideally suited for localised impact and wear points,...

A rare piece of volcanic agate rock was discovered in the Rio Grande do Sul region near Soledade in Brazil last November 2020. It is an oval-shaped rock with a hard, white pitted outer shell. On the outside, it looks like a perfect egg. When you split the rock at the center, you will see in each of the two halves a strange resemblance of Cookie Monster, a...

At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines – that brought the nation’s economy to a virtual standstill and left thousands confined to hospitals, stricken with the deadly virus – communities in Mindanao have benefitted from an unexpected partner that immediately and actively responded to the government’s call to unity: and that is the countr...

As part of its commitment to support the education sector, Nickel Asia Corporation subsidiary, Taganito Mining Corporation, donated 7,172 workbooks to the provincial government of Surigao del Norte, in time for the opening of classes. The Php 2 million worth set of English and Mathematics workbooks is part of the company's Social Development and Managemen...

The threat of the COVID-19 pandemic has pushed schools all over the country to implement measures to reduce the risk of contracting the virus among students, teachers, parents and the community as a whole. In solidarity with this effort, Taganito Mining Corporation (TMC) volunteered to provide hand washing facilities to 29 schools within Claver, Gigaquit ...

MGP’s Administration Manager Jean Gonzales and Community Relations Superintendent Rey Carlo Belgica turn-over of check to Mayor Felipe Cabatana and Vice Mayor Thelma Ang and Sangguniang Bayan Members of the Municipality of Cataingan.Filminera Resources Corporation (Filminera) and Phil Gold Processing & Refining Corp. (PGPRC) turned over a total of Php...

By Marcelle P. Villegas Last year (2020), eleven Filipino scientists were included in the Asian Scientist Magazine 100 list for most outstanding researchers and scientists. The list pays tribute to the best and brightest in Asia in the field of science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Asian Scientist Magazine is an award-winning, Singapore-...

By Marcelle P. Villegas President Rodrigo Roa Duterte delivers his remarks during the virtual plenary session of the 37th ASEAN Summit and Related Summits hosted by the Socialist Republic of Vietnam at the Malacañang Golf (Malago) Clubhouse, Malacañang Park. (Photo credit: King Rodriquez / Presidential photo, Presidential Communications Operations Offi...

By Marcelle P. Villegas A moratorium on the endorsements of greenfield coal power plants was issued by the Department of Energy (DoE). This announcement was made while allowing foreign investors to now have full ownership of geothermal plant projects in the Philippines. DoE’s decision to stop the endorsements of coal power plants is the result of an as...

21 Dec. 2020 – Landslide at Carmen pit -- A screenshot from the video sent to SunStar Cebu Amid the holiday festivities in Toledo City in Cebu, a sudden tragedy happened last Monday afternoon in a mining pit in Barangay Biga. 21 Dec. 2020, Monday -- Carmen Copper Corporation (CCC) said that the landslide happened at around 4:15 pm at the Carmen Pit....

By Marcelle P. Villegas Department of Energy (DoE) announced that the Philippines now allows foreign companies to fully own large-scale geothermal projects in the Philippines. This decision was made to further promote renewable energy and to shift away from coal as an energy source. [1] DoE signed the circular on the guidelines for the third Open an...

By Marcelle P. Villegas The newly overhauled MRT-3 train was tested by running it at a maximum speed of 50 kph. Here is a view from the driver’s compartment on MRT-3 during test run last 29 October 2020. (Screenshot from Department of Transportation video) MRT-3 or the Metro Rail Transit Line 3 conducted test runs on its first newly overhauled train...

By: Dr Carrianne Ewe, Medical Director, International SOS PhilippinesThe Philippines is approaching its eight-month into the COVID-19 lockdown that began in March. While it feels that we have made it through the more restrictive Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) to General Community Quarantine (GCQ), it is important to note that this ‘unseen enemy’ is l...

Nickel Asia Corp. - Hinatuan Mining Corp. (NAC-HMC) provides rice to the Municipality of Tagana-an and its three host communities: Barangay Talavera, Sitio Bagong Silang and Sitio Campandan.The provision of 150 sacks of rice to Tagana-an is done to provide assistance to residents affected by the Modified Enhanced Community Quarantine (MECQ) in the municip...

By Marcelle P. Villegas Last 21 October 2020, Makati City government passed and approved an ordinance authorizing the acquisition of right of way covering the underground portions of nine roads that are affected by Makati City government’s subway project. As per Ordinance No. 2020-204, the roads that will be affected by the project are: Sen. Gil ...

By Marcelle P. Villegas President Rodrigo R. Duterte signed Proclamation 1030 last 21 October 2020 declaring September 8 of every year as the “National Green Building Day”. This is a step to strengthen the promotion and establishment of energy-efficient and green buildings in the Philippines. Malacañang Palace released a copy of the proclamation last O...

Gold BCR (GBCR): Building an empire of enduring wealth based on innovative blockchain technologies with junior mining companies. In this new era, modern science and innovation technologies are changing rapidly every day. Innovative new disruptive technologies ideas in mining are now meeting together with blockchain. These new disruptive technologies such ...

NAC-CMC donated PHP1 million for the construction of a Molecular Testing Laboratory (MTL) in Surigao del Norte to boost the province’s detection capability.By: Sarah Mae M. PalacioAs the world is facing a historic crisis brought by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), the economic impacts of the pandemic is felt around the world—especially among far-flung ...

Without a question of doubt, the mining industry nowadays is becoming even more complex. It deals with natural resources that are harder and more complicated to access, stricter regulations for both safety and environment, and a redefinition of what “profitable” means with a growing focus on sustainability and quality of life. last October, the country’s ...

By Marcelle P. Villegas Rare plants that naturally accumulate large quantities of nickel are believed to be hiding in Indonesia’s forests. (Photo credit: Dr. Antony van der Ent, University of Queensland) Previously, on Part One of our featured story, we shared the findings of a group in Indonesia that studied rare plants that absorb high concentrati...

By: Patricia A. O. Bunye I have always wondered how the founder of Zoom, Eric Yuan, feels about making over USD12 billion since March 2020, when the pandemic began and practically everyone on the planet has been ‘Zoom-ing’ for work or play. With its simple features, Zoom has left competitors like Skype in the dust. Yuan is now ranked No. 85 on Bloom...

By: Fernando Penarroyo The Philippine economy grew on average by 6.3 percent annually over the last decade due to the country’s sound macroeconomic policies and structural economic reforms under President Rodrigo Duterte and his predecessor Benigno Aquino III. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the Philippine economy ranked among the best performers in Asia...