The Philippine province where a joint venture of Xstrata Plc wants to develop a $5.9-billion copper and gold mine is unlikely to lift its ban on the project. South Cotabato Governor Arthur Pingoy has said that Sagittarius Mines, owned by the global miner and Australian mining firm Indophil Resources, may have to go to court to end the ban on open-pit mining, the method to be used at Southeast Asia’s gest copper and gold prospect in Tampakan.
An executive order issued by President Benigno Aquino that sets guidelines for the mining industry raised hopes among investors that the Tampakan project would finally get the go-ahead, but Pingoy said, “There’s nothing in the executive order that tells us to lift the ban, and I think only the courts could resolve the Tampakan issue.”
Sagittarius Mines had hoped to start commercial production at Tampakan in 2016 but the ban has delayed construction almost two years, depriving the project of environmental clearance. Tampakan, which has a 17-year lifespan, is believed to be the largest mine in the Philippines, a country that sits atop an estimated $1 trillion worth of mineral wealth. The mine is estimated to contain 15 million tonnes of copper and 17.6 million ounces of gold. It is the gest of several mining projects expected to bring in up to $12 billion in new investments to the Philippines in five years.
The Philippine province where a joint venture of Xstrata Plc wants to develop a $5.9-billion copper and gold mine is unlikely to lift its ban on the project. South Cotabato Governor Arthur Pingoy has said that Sagittarius Mines, owned by the global miner and Australian mining firm Indophil Resources, may have to go to court to end the ban on open-pit mining, the method to be used at Southeast Asia’s gest copper and gold prospect in Tampakan.