FNI affiliate appeals ECC cancellation

MANILA, Philippines – Ipilan Nickel Corp., an affiliate of listed Global Ferronickel Holdings Inc. (FNI), is seeking the reversal of an order canceling its environmental compliance certificate (ECC) for its nickel project in Palawan.

In a disclosure to the local bourse, FNI emphasized Ipilan continues to implement significant activities such as lodging of community development programs with various beneficiaries, confirmatory drilling, preparation and submission of definitive project feasibility study, local government endorsements and application for Mineral Production Sharing Agreement operation.

FNI assured that it undertakes land acquisition for road lots and foreshore lease application, commissioning and completion of environmental assessment update studies and numerous meetings with the mine rehabilitation and fund committee.

“Based on records, we maintain that the lone basis for the cancellation of our ECC (such as that ‘the project was never implemented’) has no factual basis,” the company said.

FNI’s Ipilan mine was supposed to start operations and trial shipments early this year after the DENR approved its Declaration of Mining Project Feasibility (DMPF).

The DMPF is the final document that must be issued by the DENR-Mines and Geosciences Bureau before a mining project can start operations.

The approval covers 343.3 hectares while the remaining area of more than 2,000 hectares will still be subject to further exploration. Approved annual production rate is 1.5 million wet metric tons (WMT).

Based on the study of the Philippine Mineral Reporting Code, the explored portion of the property has proven and probable ore reserves of 28.6 million WMT and recommended to extend the mine life beyond 12 years.

Also included is the recommendation to increase mine production capacity to three million WMT within two years as part of the 2015 pre-feasibility study.

Last August 2015, FNI acquired for $50 million the Southern Palawan Nickel Ventures Inc. (SPNVI), which owns at least 90 percent of Ipilan Nickel Corp.

The Ipilan mine is seen to augment the company’s operations in Surigao and double FNI’s yearly production capacity as it is projected to produce up to three million WMT annually on full capacity.

FNI earlier said putting the Ipilan mine into operation would help ensure the supply of medium and high-grade saprolitic ore to the steel market.

The additional production capacity would make FNI the second largest producer of nickel direct shipping ore in the country, next to Nickel Asia Corp.

In a separate disclosure, FNI said its operating subsidiary  Platinum Group Metals Corp. signed a contract for the delivery two million WMT of nickel ore to Guangdong Century Tsingshan Nickel Industry Co. Ltd. at spot price for the 2017 mining season.