Philex eyes 50-year life for Silangan mine

MANILA, Philippines - Philex Mining Corp. hopes to be able to operate its Silangan mine in Surigao del Norte up to 50 years depending on conversion into reserves of the mine’s 400 million tons of resources.

The possibility of operating the Silangan mine for up to 50 years was raised by Jose Villaluna during the signing of Philex’s collective bargaining agreement (CBA) yesterday at the Lighthouse Restaurant at Meralco in Ortigas.

According to Villaluna, Phillex had previously disclosed that the Silangan’s resource has been estimated at 400 million tons.

If that resource is eventually converted into reserves, Villaluna said, the mine life could be extended, as based on a targeted production of just 10,000 tons a year, for 25 years—the mine would have produced just 250 million tons.

Villaluna said, extending the mine life would depend on a few other factors such as the ore grade and the price of metal.

A higher ore grade, Villaluna explained, would limit production. Mining the lower grade oil, he explained, would depend on the prevailing price of metals and the cost of production.

Philex is still in the drilling/exploration stage for the Silangan mine. It is targeting commercial operation by 2015.