Philex shares fall as mine shutdown looms

Shares of Philex Mining Corp. fell sharply on Monday in the stock market as investors braced for the revenue impact of a prospective shutdown in its flagship Padcal mine in Benguet for the rest of the year. The share price of Philex slipped another 8.14 percent to P15.80.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, Philex also said that it was on track to start production at its Silangan project in Surigao del Norte by 2017.

In a statement, Philex expressed confidence that the Silangan project would begin production by 2017, noting that the pre-feasibility study and mine development were “being pursued aggressively.” The company refuted reports that there would be a delay in production schedule due to Executive Order 79, the new mining framework issued by Malacañang.

“We’ve increased the number of foreign consultants involved in the pre-feasibility study of the project,” the company added.

It stressed that the mine and production feasibility study would be completed as scheduled by February 2013.

Philex added that the exploration drilling at its Kalayaan project—also in Surigao del Norte, which adjoins the Bayugo deposit of the Silangan project—was proceeding on schedule and the additional resources of Kalayaan would increase the total resources of the Silangan project. The mining firm said it would make a disclosure of the Kalayaan resources at the appropriate time.—Doris C. Dumlao