MacroAsia allots P50 million for exploration in Palawan

MANILA, Philippines - Lucio Tan-led MacroAsia Corp. will spend P50 million to continue exploration of its nickel laterite project in Brooke's Point in Palawan that is expected to be finished in the first quarter of 2010, its chairman for compensation and mining committee Johnip G. Cua said. Cua said the interim exploration update of the project disclosed Friday is "very encouraging." "It is an update of our exploration activity. it is not meant to be a resource estimate but we find it very encouraging. The next step is continue to explore. We have not finished with that. It will take up to the first quarter next year to finish the exploration of the areas that we are looking at right now," he told reporters after the annual stockholders' meeting. The listed firm commmissioned Ramon A. L. Flores of TMM Management Inc. as competent person under the Philippine Mineral Reporting Code to prepare the report on the seven phases of the exploration work done within the mineral production sharing agreement (MPSA). TMM provides technical and administrative support to the project for its exploration work program. "We are very happy to disclose exploration results are highly encouraging, reliable, accurate and precise. It is of extremely high quality. We have sufficient confidence this will provide the basis for very good and reliable estimate of the resources of the area," Flores said in the briefing. The MPSA was granted Dec. 1, 2005 covering an area of 1,113 hectares. In the executive summary disclosed to the exchange, Flores said the "occurrence" of nickel laterite, which are most important source of nickel metal, has been "mapped extensively." "These faults and joints, when encountered in the test pits and drill hole logs show some garnierite, a green colored nickel mineral ore, along the partings," he wrote. MacroAsia president Joseph T. Chua admitted exploration is "quite extensive." "Our goal is long-term. we are not a fly-by-night corporation. We are here for the long run. The exploration is taking quite long. I wish it could be done in one day but there is no short cuts to finding out what you have. Hopefully, we will have an idea in the first quarter," he said. The company is on a lookout for investors to put up a nickel processing facility. "MacroAsia alone cannot do it alone; it needs a very big investment to put up a processing plant. That is the best way to maximize the value of our mining tenement. The most expensive can reach a billion dollars," Cua said. MacroAsia, which is also engaged in aviation-related businesses, wants to be a "globally competitive" aviation support and logistics provider and "natural resource development partner" in the country. Chua said the company has not made the $50 million to $100 million investment in Clark Special Economic Zone after a memorandum of understanding with Clark International Airport Corp. for the development of aviation services facilities last year. "It depends on our clients. If they say, 'Go Clark,' we will go Clark. We are a service provider not an airline company. We are not there (in Clark) yet but we continue to explore the feasibility," he added. Through its subsidiaries and associates, MacroAsia is engaged in aviation support businesses at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA), Manila Domestic Airport and general aviation areas. It provides in-flight catering services, ground handling services for passenger and cargo aircraft, and helicopter charter flight services. Through associate Lufthansa Technik Philippines Inc., MacroAsia provides heavy maintenance and engineering services for specific models of Airbus and Boeing aircraft since it has a maintenance, repair and overhaul facility in the country. -Ruby Anne M. Rubio, GMANews.TV