Century Peak makes 1st nickel ore shipment

MANILA, Philippines - Century Peak Corp., a unit of newly-listed mining firm Century Peak Metals Holdings Corp.(CPMHC), has made its first shipment of nickel ore from its mine site in Dinagat Island in the northeastern portion of Mindanao, to China.

The shipment, completed on Oct. 5, involved 52.78 million tons of ore which contained a guaranteed nickel content of between 0.90 percent and 1.1 percent, and iron content of 48 percent.

CPMHC owns 100 percent of CPC, which holds a mineral production sharing agreement with the government in Loreto in the Dinagat Islands, and an holds an existing exploration permit over a 3,188-hectare property in Albor, Dinagat. 

The company earlier said it may spend up to P10 billion to build and operate a nickel-chromite smelting plant in its mineral property. Funding will come from internally-generated funds and contributions from joint venture partner Zheijiang Hua Gang, a privately-held Chinese corporation and one of the largest nickel producers in China.

CPC is undertaking numerous projects to expand the versatility of other mineral extracts such as chromite and iron either through joint ventures or operating agreements with other tenement holders.

Aggregately, CPC’s total area for proposed mining operation is 10,182 hectares, consisting of 4,386 hectares for extraction, development and further exploration, 660 hectares for drilling and exploration and 5,136 hectares awaiting exploration permits.

CPMHC is aiming to become a major player in the local mining industry through a vertically integrated mining operation with its smelting operations and a diversified mineral resource base through the acquisition of additional mining tenements with potential for other mineral deposits aside from nickel.

It owns 55 percent of Century Hua Guang Smelting Inc., which plans to build and operate a nickel pig iron smelting plant with an annual capacity of 100,000 metric tons in Leyte Industrial Development Estate (LIDE) in Isabel, Leyte under the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA).       — Zinnia Dela Peña