King-king mine operator seeks foreign investors

ST. AUGUSTINE Gold and Copper Ltd. is updating the preliminary feasibility study (PFS) for its King-king copper-gold project in Davao de Oro as it seeks foreign investors, a company official said.

“We are having our 2013 PFS updates. Hopefully, it will be ready by early next year,” St. Augustine Chief Operating Officer Michael G. Regino told reporters on the sidelines of a mining forum of the Chamber of Mines of the Philippines.

“They might be ready by January,” he said about the updates.

Mr. Regino said the updated study would allow the company to see revisions on current prices, revenues, and cost of the project.

“We believe that the financials will definitely be a lot better than the 2013 PFS,” he said. “You need to update the study and the cost to determine the viability.”

He said the project, which requires an initial $2 billion, would need investments from foreign investors.

“Projects of this size, definitely would need big money, so you would need a partner, big investors,” he said.

He added that the company Is in talks with multiple foreign investors, but “[they] are just waiting for the PFS to be completed.”

He said that based on the company’s original plan, it would take an estimated four years to put up the plant and open pit.

“Copper is really becoming a need because of [the electric vehicle] revolution and the increase in use of copper in each car is threefold,” he said.

Mr. Regino said the project’s 23-year mine life is estimated to bring 3.1 billion pounds of copper, 5 million ounces of gold, and nearly 10 million ounces of silver.

In the first five years, the company expects to extract 150,000 tons of copper per year.

The King-king copper-gold project is part of a mineral production sharing agreement between the Philippine government and Nationwide Development Corp.

St. Augustine is responsible for the overall development and operation of the project. — Adrian H. Halili