Philex to pay 30% stock dividend, eyes P1.25B for 2008 capex
By Rocel Felix
Thomson Financial
First Posted 17:21:00 02/21/2008
MANILA, Philippines -- Philex Mining Corp., the country’s biggest producer of gold and copper, obtained Thursday shareholder approval for its board's declaration of a 30 percent stock dividend and said up to P1.25 billion has been budgeted for its capital expenditure this year.
Shareholders on record as of March 7 are entitled to the dividend, which will involve the issuance of almost 914 million shares from its authorized capital stock.
Philex will try to boost its gold and copper production to take advantage of the rise in metal prices, chief executive Walter Brown said after a special stockholders' meeting on Thursday.
"We expect gold and copper prices to be very good at least for the next two to three years. It looks like prices will continue its uptrend despite some volatility. This year our production will remain stable," Brown told reporters.
Strong metal prices should help Philex sustain growth this year, after net profit in 2007 jumped nearly 63 percent to P5 billion.
Demand for precious and base metals will continue to be strong in major economies like China and India, and this will offset the expected softness in demand in the US, where economic activity is slowing down, Brown said.
Philex, which has a market capitalization of P27 billion, is also looking at growth opportunities in the oil exploration sector. It will spend $5 million for oil exploration projects this year, Brown said.
"The energy business is a good venture to invest in. We have small interests in companies involved in oil exploration in Palawan (southwest of the Philippines)," he said.
"But we don't intend to be a major player in the energy business. Our current investments in energy ventures are just about 10 percent of our resources."
Philex disclosed last December its acquisition of an additional six million shares in Pitkin Petroleum Ltd. for $3 million, raising its stake in the Texas-based exploration company to 10.7 percent from 4 percent.
Pitkin has drilling projects in Vietnam involving two wells costing about $53 million as well as in Peru.
Shares in Philex advanced 10 centavos or 1.1 percent to close at P9.10 on Thursday, mirroring the allure of miners amid rising oil and metal prices.
Gold for April delivery jumped as high as $949.20 an ounce in electronic trading Wednesday on the New York Mercantile Exchange -- the highest ever and within striking distance of the psychologically important $1,000-barrier.
($1 = P40.63)
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