OceanaGold Philippines intends to allocate almost $7 million for its exploration program, to expand the Didipio gold-copper mine as well as unearth untapped reserves.
In a report by Inquirer, OceanaGold Philippines Corporation CEO and President Gerard Bond said that out of the USD 7 million, $2 million was already earmarked for Napartan exploration, located 9 kilometers near Didipio mine in Nueva Vizcaya.
Bond also said that sensing the gold might be present in the area, the firm would start drilling in a month. Earlier, the company’s parent firm in Canada aimed to generate at least Php 7.9 billion in its initial public offering (IPO).
The chief executive also added that the remaining USD 3 to USD 5 million of the allocated fund would be used to explore the Didipio mine further.
The firm had secured the Didipio project in 2006 and had begun its operations in 2013. However, operations ceased in 2019 as the Didipio Financial or Technical Assistance Agreement (FTAA), which ran for 25 years, had finally expired.
This agreement, which granted the firm sole privileges to explore, process, mine, export, and transport minerals produced in the area, had been extended for another 25 years in July 2021.
After Coal Asia, OceanaGold was the first mining firm to be listed on the Philippine Stock Exchange since 2012. It is also the second company to put in an application for an IPO after Citicore Renewable Energy Corporation (CREC).
