The Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) in the Davao Region has proposed a "use-it or lose-it" policy on mining permits in a bid to weed out speculators.
Noel B. Angeles, officer-in-charge of the bureau, said at least P18 billion in potential investments has been lost due to speculators holding permits to specific, promising areas eyed by interested investors.
Without revealing details, he recalled that a foreign mining company was asked P50 million outright by a domestic tenement holder in Davao Oriental early last year for the right to mine the land. That deal did not push through.
The problem, he said, is that a permit can run up to 25 years, although the exploration period lasts only two years and holders are not required to show results of their investments. Financial requirements for permit applicants also allow those without serious plans to develop the area to secure them.
The proposal targeting speculators is being finalized by the MGB, along with the National Indigenous Peoples Commission, Environment Management Bureau and the Regional Development Council (RDC).
It will be submitted to the central office for approval early this year.
"We will also shorten the processing time to less than two months," he said, adding that there should be economic activity by the tenement holder or at least a feasibility study months after the approval of the application.
Promising region
The bureau had recorded P3 billion in investments in the Davao Region as of the third quarter last year, collecting at least P30 million in extraction fees and excise taxes.
To date, it is processing 191 applications and has endorsed nine for mineral production sharing agreement.
The Davao Region Industry Cluster Plan for 2005-2010 showed that estimated metallic mineral reserves of the region include 44.8 million metric tons of gold ore, 363.6 million metric tons of copper ore, mostly concentrated in Compostela Valley, and 457.7 million metric tons of nickel ore in Davao Oriental.
The region has the following mining operations: one cement plant and three quarries; the Diwalwal medium-scale direct state utilization project; 15 industrial sand and gravel quarries; 167 sand and gravel quarries; 25 earth-fill quarries; five small-scale magnesite quarries; three small-scale silica quarries; two small-scale limestone quarries; and two small-scale chromite quarries, regional MGB data show.
Estimates by the RDC showed that Compostela Valley alone has gold deposits valued at $18 billion.
Source: Business World Online
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