Villar Group Revives P307.8 Billion Kingking Copper-Gold Project

MANILA, Philippines — After encountering regulatory hurdles and delays for years, the Villar-led Kingking Mining Corp. (KMC) is finally proceeding with the P307.8-billion copper-gold project in Davao de Oro, touted as one of the country’s big-ticket mining projects. KMC is planning to invest $5.13 billion, or P307.8 billion, into the expansion of the Kingking project in Pantukan town, leveraging the area’s direct shipping access to major copper markets in Southeast Asia. The planned investment is over 248 percent higher than the initial investment cost of P88.47 billion, according to KMC’s regulatory filing. The company secured the environmental compliance certificate (ECC) for the Kingking project in 2015, followed by the mineral processing permit in 2016. However, KMC said a combination of regulatory restrictions, namely the open-pit mining ban in 2017, coupled with the operational disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic from 2020 to 2022, constrained the project’s operational and economic viability and significantly delayed its start. The company decided to revisit the project in light of regulatory and market developments, including the lifting of the open-pit mining moratorium in December 2021 and the sustained increase in gold and copper prices. KMC is now seeking to amend its ECC for the proposed expansion, which covers mine development, permits acquisition, land acquisition, equipment, engineering works and working capital. Under the planned expansion, the coverage area will be expanded to 6,933 hectares (ha) from the current 1,521 ha. Construction is expected to take 42 months. The Kingking project will use the open-pit mining method, with mineral resources estimated at 962.3 million metric tons (MT). Annual ore production is estimated to reach up to 89 million MT, while the annual ore processing rate is projected at 72.5 million MT. KMC is a joint venture of St. Augustine Gold and Copper Ltd. (SAGCL), Nationwide Development Corp. (Nadecor) and Queensberry Mining and Development Corp. SAGCL is a Singapore-based junior natural resource and mining company led by the Villar family, which holds a 40 percent stake in the Kingking project. State-run Nadecor owns 40 percent, while local mineral exploration company Queensberry, a major shareholder in SAGCL, holds the remaining 20 percent. “The benefit of the project to the Philippine economy as well as the local communities cannot be overstated. The location in Southeast Asia is enviable with direct ship access to the largest copper market,” KMC said. KMC also said the project will benefit surrounding communities, including indigenous peoples, if minerals were extracted and managed properly in an environmentally sustainable manner. INQ