Manila Mining yields positive drilling results in gold-copper mine  

MANILA, Philippines — Listed Manila Mining Corp. is upbeat on its gold-copper prospects after it yielded positive results from its exploration drilling in its Surigao del Norte mine site.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, Manila Mining chairman and CEO Felipe Yap announced “exciting and economically significant gold and copper exploration drilling results” from four holes drilled in the Ntina open pit gold mine in Placer, Surigao del Norte.

The new holes have identified a large, highly copper-gold mineralized porphyry system that has been named Ntina Deeps.

“The completed four drill holes have an aggregate depth of 6,061.7 meters and identified a large, highly gold-copper mineralized porphyry system that has been named Ntina Deeps,” he said.

Yap said the Philippines is perfectly positioned to become a major world copper producer with the inevitable widening of global copper demand-supply gap in the coming decades.

This as the country has several large deposits that can be brought online within five years and a very long pipeline for new mines within the next 20 years.

“Deposits such as the Ntina Deeps have high gold credits and there exists the potential for low capex and selective underground mining methods. The timing for MMC to explore and develop gold-copper porphyries within its Placer tenements could not be better,” the company official said.

The company is currently drilling the fifth and sixth holes in the mine site.

The drilling program was designed to refine the shape and dimensions of the previously intercepted copper-gold mineralized zones, improve the understanding of mineralization controls, and allow the formulation of an efficiently targeted, definitive resource definition drilling program.

Manila Mining started mining operations in Placer, Surigao del Norte in 1981.

From 1982 to 2001 when it suspended mining operations, the company produced a total of 761,835 ounces gold and 261,720 ounces silver.

During its four years of copper operations from 1997-2001, it produced a total of 19.81 million lbs. copper.

Manila Mining suspended its mining activities in 2001.

As of end-September, the company recorded a net loss of P12.24 million.

Since the company has no mining operations, revenue was nil. However, its depreciation and administrative expenses increased to P12.24 million from only P1.35 million last year, again on account of costs related to its stock rights offering.

The company raised capital through a 1:5 stock rights offering at P0.01 per share last May to fund its exploration program and administration costs, and to settle trade payables and accruals.