DMCI buys into Berong project

DMCI Mining Corp., a subsidiary of DMCI Holdings, has acquired a 31-percent stake in Nickeline Resources Holdings Inc. for $6.552 million.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, DMCI Holdings said its subsidiary had entered into a memorandum of understanding with Toledo Mining to acquire the minority interest.

The acquisition means that DMCI’s mining subsidiary will join the Berong nickel project in Palawan, and will be a partner of Toledo Mining and Filipino company Atlas Consolidated Mining and Development Corp.

Nickeline owns 60 percent of Berong Nickel Corp. (BNC), a joint venture of Toledo Mining, Atlas Consolidated and ENK (where DMCI Holdings and a British investment firm D&A Income Ltd. recently raised their combined stake to 60.7 percent). ENK also owns the Acoje nickel and Zambales chromite projects.

The $6.552 million from DMCI will be used to fund Toledo Mining’s acquisition of ENK plc’s direct 18.7 percent stake in BNC, a move that was announced on June 29, 2012.

“Toledo will be delighted to welcome DMCI as a partner to the Berong Venture Agreement, alongside Atlas and we both look forward to DMCI’s input into the shared vision for the future of Berong,” Toledo Mining CEO Victor Kolesnikov said. “Having two renowned Philippine companies as our partners will be a significant advantage for the next stage of development for BNC.”

The completion of the BNC sale by December 15 this year is subject to board approvals at DMCI and Toledo Mining, the signing of definitive legally binding agreements, Toledo Mining’s acquisition of ENK’s direct stake in BNC, and “any third party, regulatory, and taxation consents and approvals required for the transaction,” Toledo Mining said.

Toledo Mining said that while its overall interest in BNC “will not materially change” as a result of these transactions, it is an important step for the company to have greater representation on the BNC board through its increased direct holding.

DMCI has interests in construction services, power generation, water utility, infrastructure development, real estate, mining and coal exploration.

BNC successfully restarted mining operations in May 2011. The company is into the exploration, development, and mining of mineral properties in the Philippines.

BNC’s projects include the Berong nickel mining project in Palawan. It also has a stake in an exploration permit for an area of about 1,069 hectares in the municipalities of Quezon and Aborlan in Palawan.