Top gold producer Philex Mining Corp. reported an almost 10 percent improvement in the estimated value of shipments for the first half of 2012 to P6.46 billion from P5.89 billion in the same period last year.
Based on the firm’s report to the Philippine Stock Exchange, Philex shipped 29,905 dry metric tons of concentrates in the first semester this year compared to 25,176 DMT in the first six months of 2011.
For June alone, Philex senior vice president for finance Renato Migriño said the firm shipped 4,995 DMT of concentrates to Pan Copper Co. Ltd. containing about 8,577 ounces of gold, 2.7 million pounds of copper and 8,332 ounces of silver.
The estimated value of the shipment is P980 million, consisting of P584 million from gold, P385 million from copper and P10 million from silver based on the average provisional metal prices of $1,608 per ounce of gold, $3.36 per pound of copper, and $28.72 per ounce of silver.
Meanwhile, the output from Philex’s Padcal mine amounted to an estimated P7.15 billion in the first half of 2012 from P8.12 billion with the tonnage of ore steady at 4.66 million DMT.
In June, the Padcal mine delivered 791,721 DMT of ore resulting in 5,949 DMT of concentrates containing 54.14 grams per DMT of gold, 24.39 percent copper, and 50.04 grams per DMT of silver.
Gold production thus amounted to 10,473 ounces, while copper output was at 3.2 million pounds, and 9,576 ounces of silver.
The estimated value of the month’s production is equivalent to P1.17 billion of which P699 million is from gold, P465 million from copper and P11 million from silver. Philex noted that these are just provisional prices and actual selling price may vary.
This is based on provisional metal prices of $1,584 per ounce of gold, $3.45 per pound of copper, and $27 per ounce of silver at the exchange rate of P42.12 to the US dollar.
Philex is aiming to boost its output by acquiring more gold mines in the Philippines while production is also seen to get a boost once its Silangan mine starts commercial production by 2016.