Deeper and deeper
This is the second in a two-part series on the recent “Digging Deeper: A Mining Philippines Policy Forum” held at Westin Manila by the Chamber of Mines of the Philippines (COMP).
I had previously mentioned that notwithstanding the support the administration of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. has given to the mining industry, we know that this not unqualified.
The support is not just for the extraction of minerals per se because of its socio-economic benefits. Our government also wants to ensure that the implications of mining on the integrity of the ecosystem and on the livelihood and well-being of communities are addressed in a responsible, sustainable manner.
After COMP adopted the Towards Sustainable Mining (TSM) initiative of the Mining Association of Canada (MAC) in December 2017, as a response to the call of the then-President for the industry to adhere to the highest international standards, we embarked on a six-year preparation period that saw, among others, our members participating in the Filipinization of eight TSM Protocols, the formation of our multi-sector Community of Interest Advisory Panel, the accreditation of our External Verifiers, and the designing, development, and cascading of the TSM Mine Site Sustainability Audit online app or MSSA.
This year, we are fully implementing TSM, following our commitment to our stakeholders. As scheduled, all our 19 operating member-mines submitted their TSM self-ratings from March to May via the MSSA for their 2023 TSM performance and eight of these mines were externally verified from June to July.
The consolidated self-assessment and individual-verified results were the hot topic of the day in Session 3 dubbed “TSM IN PH: First Implementation Year Report and Analysis,” which delved into the self-assessment ratings and externally validated results of Chamber member-firms, aimed at highlighting areas of strong ESG performance and pinpoint opportunities for improvement.
By analyzing these findings, the session sought to drive further progress in sustainable practices while contributing to the enhancement of the country’s broader ESG policy framework, ensuring the mining sector’s alignment with global standards and evolving expectations.
Following the TSM transparency principle, the verified results will be made public shortly.
Our speaker for this session was Katrina Francisco, a partner at SGV & Co. and one of TSM’s verification service providers. Reactors to the presentation were DENR Undersecretary for Finance Information Systems and Climate Change Analiza Rebuelta-Teh, DENR Assistant Secretary for Mining Concerns and concurrent Mines and Geosciences Bureau OIC Director Michael Cabalda, and engineer Ramon Santos, chairman of the Board of Mining Engineering, Professional Regulation Commission (PRC), also a TSM external verifier.
Handling the yeoman’s job of moderating the session was none other than our COMP vice president for communication and TSM national coordinator Rocky Dimaculangan.
We are proud to say that four operating members of the Chamber of Mines of the Philippines (COMP) performed at par with global best mining practices in five protocol or key areas that minerals development firms should focus on under the Towards Sustainable Mining (TSM) standard.
These were Philex Mining Corp.’s Padcal mine in Tailings Management, Filminera Resources Corp.’s Masbate Gold Project in Biodiversity Conservation Management, TVI Resource Development Philippines, Inc. in Water Stewardship, and Taganito Mining Corp. in Safety and Health, as well as IP, Community Outreach and Social Development Management.
The four companies were among the eight COMP operating members that were randomly selected this year to undergo external verification of their self-ratings for their 2023 TSM performance. The other four companies that were subjected to verification are Platinum Group Metals Corporation’s Surigao Project, Carmen Copper Corporation, FCF Minerals’s Runruno Project, and Cagdianao Mining Corporation. The external verification reports for the eight mines can be found in the COMP website.
The fourth session of the policy forum dealt with an analysis of the impact of a progressive mining fiscal regime. It focused on the key features of the proposed mining fiscal regime bill of the Department of Finance and its potential impact on the competitiveness of the mining sector. The discussion also explored the broader economic implications of these regulatory enhancements, providing valuable insights into the benefits and challenges they presented.
Speaker for this session was Finance Assistant Secretary Karlo Fermin Adriano of the Department of Finance Fiscal Policy and Monitoring Group. Reactors were Maria Carmela Peralta, principal, KPMG, and Michael Regino, trustee of COMP and director of TVIRD Philippines Inc.
These carefully selected session topics all have a bearing on how our industry will move forward in the coming years. Apart from finding ways to contribute to our ESG policy regime through TSM, we also dug deeper into how we can enhance competitiveness and compliance through strategic innovations in mining policy. We talked about best practices in improving operational efficiencies and, finally, analyzed the impacts of a progressive mining fiscal regime that we all pine for.
To sum it all up, we “Dug Deeper” with our hopes up. While we’ve seen nickel prices decline for the most part of the year on account of Indonesia’s stranglehold on supply, we remain upbeat, given the rapid adoption of electric vehicles and renewable energy technologies that will undoubtedly drive demand.
Copper’s recent price surge only demonstrates its increasing role as a vital indicator of global economic health and, like nickel, a catalyst of decarbonization efforts. Gold is projected by experts to reach $3,000 per ounce by mid-2025 and, given the geopolitical uncertainties posed by the US-China-Russia tensions and the Middle East conflicts, could even reach over $5,000.
These, coupled with the promise of a better policy environment, augur well for Philippine mining.
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