Metal output drops 12% in Q1

MANILA, Philippines – Metal production fell 12 percent to P22 billion in the first quarter due to the persistent soft metal prices in the world market, the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) said.

The aggregate value of metal production for January to March this year was lower than the P25 billion recorded in the same period last year.

Direct shipping nickel ore and mixed nickel-cobalt sulfides, which used to account for half of total metal production value, suffered a 38 percent dip from P11 billion to P6.8 billion.

“The slow start of mine production of direct shipping nickel ore for the year was attributed to the unfavorable weather condition that generally prevailed in the areas of Dinagat and Surigao provinces,” the MGB said.

Revenues from copper production, which comprise 20 percent of total metal production value, also went down 11 percent to P4.34 billion from P4.89 billion in 2015.

Nickel price dropped to $3.85 per pound from $6.52 per pound, while copper price was also down from $2.64 per pound to $2.12 per pound.

On the other hand, gold production accounted for 48 percent of the total production value with aggregate earnings of P10.7 billion, up 22 percent from P8.7 billion in 2015.

Higher gold production in the first quarter was due to increased production in the following projects: the Didipio Copper-Gold Project of Oceana Gold Philippines Inc. in Nueva Vizcaya and the Masbate Gold Project of Filminera Mining Corp.

But metal prices were less favorable for producers in the first quarter as gold fell 3.5 percent to $1,178.92 per troy ounce from $1,221.87 per troy ounce on the comparative period.

The production value of silver, likewise, grew 27 percent to P186 million from P146 million in 2015 despite the decline in prices from $16.76 per troy ounce to $14.84 per troy ounce in 2016.

The remaining 0.87 percent of total metallic production, or P190 million, came from the combined value of silver, iron ore and chromite.