Mining companies both here and abroad heaved a collective sigh of relief when the Commission on Appointments (CA) rejected last May the nomination as Environment Secretary of Regina Lopez, who rocked the industry during her 10 months in office.
Lopez had ordered the closure of 23 mines and suspension of five others as well as the cancellation of 75 mineral production sharing agreements.
This appeared to have signaled a recovery in global nickel prices as her closure orders affected about half of the Philippines’ output of the base metal, which is used in the production of stainless steel.
Two months later and mining firms are rushing to at least regain lost ground while some are talking about ramping up their businesses.
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Barely two weeks after the CA turned down Lopez, DMCI Mining announced that subsidiaries Berong Nickel Corp. and Zambales Diversified Metals Corp.—both targets of Lopez’s orders, which are the subject of pending appeals at the Office of the President—are tracking down their displaced workers for rehiring. DMCI Mining said it let go of four out of five workers as of the first quarter, when Lopez’s orders were still fresh.
By mid-June, DMCI Mining was expecting to send out four cargos of ore to China after shipping out only three loads in the entire first quarter.
