Alsons, Indophil raise over $100 million for Tampakan project

MANILA, Philippines - The Alsons Group, together with Australian miner Indophil Resources, is responding to a recent capital call by Sagittarius Mines Inc. (SMI) in order to avoid a dilution of its stake in the potentially gold-rich Tampakan project in South Cotabato.

In an interview, Tomas Alcantara, chairman and president of Alsons Consolidated Resources, Inc. the Alson’s Group, together with Indophil, have raised more than $100 million to respond to a recent capital call by SMI.

Indophil continues to hold a 37.5-percent stake in SMI, majority of which is controlled by Swiss miner Xstrata.The Alsons Group, Alcantara said, is maintaining its seven-percent stake in Indophil.

The fund-raising for SMI is in preparation for the development of the Tampakan copper-gold project which, according to Alcantara, may bring in as much as $8 billion in investments.

Alcantara expressed optimism that the project would be allowed to proceed in spite of the current open pit mining ban imposed by the local government of South Cotabato where the Tampakan mine site is located.

The Tampakan project would be good for Mindanao, Alcantara said, adding that “there are friendly ways of mining.”

SMI just recently completed a preliminary draft of its environmental impact study (EIS) which will be presented for further consultation with the affected local government units, indigenous peoples and local communities of the provinces of South Cotabato, Davao del Sur, Sultan Kudarat and Sarangani.

Feedback from the series of consultations would be taken into consideration in the final revisions.

SMI hopes to complete the EIS by the fourth quarter of this year for submission to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources’ Environmental Management Bureau (DENR-EMB).

Submission of the EIS will be the last step before the DENR issues the final approval of an environmental clearance certificate (ECC) for the $5.9-billion Tampakan copper-gold project.