Benguet Corp. secures loan to expand Acupan mine

Benguet Corp. has secured a five-year, P150-million loan to expand its Acupan mine in Itogon, Benguet. The mining firm said it has secured a loan package from the Philippine Export-Import Credit Agency that will ramp up the capacity of its Acupan gold mine from 110 metric tons (MT) a day to 300 MT. Berect Land Resources Inc. — which, under a management agreement, manages and operates the mine for Benguet Corp. — will provide technical and financial assistance to expand the production capacity of Acupan. With the price of gold at about $1,350 an ounce (oz), the company expects to upgrade its gold production to 10,800 oz per year within a two-year time frame. Acupan was where the then Benguet Consolidated Inc., started modern gold mining in the Philippines over a century ago. — With Paterno Esmaquel II/VS, GMANews.TV