Firm to ship nickel ore to Australia starting Q3

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY, Philippines — Platinum Group Metals Corp. will start shipping nickel ores to Australia this quarter and increase production by yearend to take advantage of rising metal prices in the world market. "Our Surigao and Isabela mine sites will ship at least 450,000 metric tons of nickel ore to Australia before the end of the third quarter this year," the company said in a statement. China has a huge demand for nickel ore and ferronickel. Its nickel ore imports from the Philippines went up by more than tenth to 3.34 million metric tons in 2006 from a year earlier, representing 88.5% of the country’s total nickel ore imports. Much of these minerals come from the Caraga Region where Chinese investors have tied up with small- and medium-sized nickel producers. Early this year, the Board of Investments gave Platinum Group a six-year income tax holiday and zero duty on capital importation for its mining operations. Company officials said they were also beefing up three smelters, two of which are in Mindanao, specifically Iligan City in Lanao del Norte and Manticao in Misamis Oriental. BusinessWorld visited the company’s Danao operations in May, in which Platinum Group officials presented the rehabilitation plan for their three smelting kilns. Danao City Mayor Ramon D. Durano III said the rehabilitation of the local plants would help improve the economy and generate more jobs in his area. "Our concern would be the company’s compliance with the protection of the environment," Mr. Durano said. Still, he said he was satisfied with the process following a visit to the company’s smelting facilities in Manticao and Iligan. John J.H. Cabarrus, Platinum vice-president, said the company does not use chemicals in ferro-nickel production, adding that it has a continuous emission monitoring system. Platinum also uses bag filters in the production line, cyclones in key equipment, water scrubbers in all stacks, and other processes to prevent waste from getting to the ocean. He said Platinum operations would benefit about 1,400 people. Officials said the Manticao smelter plant was given a mineral processing permit last month. It can produce 11,000 metric tons of ferronickel annually in five years. The Iligan smelting plant was also given a permit for an annual production of 35,802 metric tons of ferro-nickel and 288,000 metric tons of calcined ore in the next five years. Platinum Chairman Ramon R. Atayde earlier said one of the reasons they set up shop in Mindanao is cheap electricity. — Geefe P. Alba, BusinessWorld