T’boli mining project lacks gov’t permits

KORONADAL — A foreign-backed mining firm is set to start gold and silver production in T’boli, South Cotabato this month, with Chinese-made equipment beefing up its processing plant. However, the regional Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) office here said the T’boli project pursued by Tribal Mining Corp. and Canadian firm Cadan Resources Corp. has yet to obtain the clearance needed to start the production phase. “They have not even submitted their feasibility study for the approval of our agency, which would allow them to go into production stage," said Constancio A. Paye, Jr., MGB Central Mindanao director. The proponents also need to attach the environmental compliance certificate (ECC) given by the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) to its feasibility study before they are given the go-signal to start production, the official added. Datu Tungko M. Saikol, regional EMB director, said in a separate interview that his office has not issued an ECC for the T’boli silver and gold project. In a disclosure to the Toronto Stock Exchange dated Dec. 29, Cadan Resources said it was progressing from an explorer into an emerging gold-silver producer through the T’boli mine. “On current schedule, [the T’boli mine site] is targeted [to commence production] for late January 2010," Brett A. Taylor, Cadan Resources president and chief executive officer, said. The disclosure came with the announcement of the appointment of Robert Gordon Butchart as director of Cadan Resources. Butchart has been involved in the mining industry for more than 25 years. He has owned and operated exploration companies and drilling rigs in Australia and other countries and has been heavily involved in heap leaching operations and narrow-vein underground gold mines. He will be responsible for operations to ensure that the company achieves its performance targets. The company board welcomed Butchart’s entry as a director of the company as it proceeds to become the latest Philippine-based gold-silver producer, the disclosure stated. As early as last month, the processing plant for the T’boli mine was more than halfway complete, with equipment such as new jaw and cone crushers, a ball mill, a gravity circuit, spares, and ancillary bought from Zhengzhou Zhongding Heavy Duty Machine Manufacturing Co. Ltd. Edgar G. Martinez, president of Tribal Mining, could not be reached for comment regarding the apparent lack of clearances from government regulatory bodies. But earlier, he told BusinessWorld the group would soon upgrade an old plant that has an existing ECC for the test production phase. The T’boli project has deposits of 2.4 million tons, containing 420,000 ounces of gold and 1.6 million ounces of silver, Cadan Resources said earlier. Excavation of deposits will involve the underground or tunneling method. Based on current development costs, the company estimates a production cost range between $250.00-$350.00 per ounce of gold. In 1997, Tribal Mining acquired from the government a mineral production sharing agreement covering 85 hectares. The agreement has a life-span of 25 years. — Romer S. Sarmiento, BusinessWorld