Marcventures set to increase nickel ore production

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has allowed the mining unit of listed Marcventures Holdings Inc. (MHI) to increase its annual nickel ore production.

 MHI disclosed yesterday its unit Marcventures Mining and Development Corp. (MMDC) was allowed by the DENR-Environmental Management Bureau to boost its allowable annual nickel ore production to five million metric tons from three million MT.

“MMDC hopes to be able to still take partial advantage of the new tonnage for 2015 banking on possible dryer condition predicted for the last two months of the year,” MHI said in relation to the prevailing dry spell.

The full benefit of the increase in the allowable nickel ore production of MMDC would be realized in 2016 onwards, the company said.

MHI said its mining subsidiary is still expected to be profitable despite the decline in metal prices because of “tightly controlled mining costs.”

Most mining firms are still reporting lower earnings because of prevailing weak metal prices resulting due to increase in supply and weak global demand.

The weak demand overseas is caused by the slowdown in demand from China, which accounts for 50 percent of the global nickel consumption.

Philippine nickel miners are striving to cut production costs while ramping up production during the upcoming dry months as the prevailing dry spell is expected to intensify this quarter and linger until the second quarter of 2016.

The company has yet to report its third quarter performance.

MHI, through MMDC, holds a mineral production sharing agreement covering 4,799 hectares in Surigao del Sur.