Century Peak allots P10 billion for smelting plant

MANILA, Philippines - Mining firm Century Peak Metals Holdings Corp. (CPMH) may spend up to P10 billion to build and operate a nickel-chromite smelting plant in Dinagat Island, located in northeastern Mindanao.

On the sidelines of the company’s listing by way of introduction at the Philippine Stock Exchange yesterday, CPMH president Wilfredo Keng said around P2 billion will initially be needed to jumpstart the project but estimates the total cost would run up to around P10 billion when fully operational.

The plant, whose development will be spearheaded by joint venture partner Zheijiang Hua Gang, is expected to produce an annual capacity of 100,000 metric tons.

Keng said funding for the project will come from internally generated funds and contributions from Zhejiang, a privately-held Chinese corporation and one of the largest nickel producers in China.

He said the company has no immediate plans to conduct an initial public offering of its shares following the listing of its shares on the exchange. The company’s share price opened and closed at P1.50 each after breaching the ceiling limit.

“We believe our listing on the PSE will increase the visibility of our company and accessibility to and for investors.

It is a big step towards fulfilling our aim of being a vertically-integrated mining operation,” Keng said.

CPMH owns 100 percent of Century Peak Corp., which holds mineral production sharing agreements in Loreto in the Dinagat Islands. It is undertaking numerous projects to expand the versatility of other mineral extracts such as chromite and irons either through joint ventures or operating agreements with other tenement holders.

Aggregately, Century Peak’s total area for proposed mining operation is 10,182 hectares and growing.

This consists of 4,386 hectares for extraction, development and further exploration, 660 hectares for drilling and exploration and 5,136 hectares awaiting exploration permits, respectively.