Apex Appeals Ruling On Mining Claim

Apex appeals ruling on mining claim

Manila Times - http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2006/oct/06/yehey/business/20061006bus7.html

6th October 2006

LISTED Apex Mining Co. has appealed the Mines and Geosciences Bureau’s ruling that declares the company’s mining claim in Davao “void and illegal.”

In a statement, Apex said that MGB’s decision which favored North Davao Mining Corp. (NDMC) was a “mistake.”

Apex, in its motion for reconsideration, said NDMC’s application for a financial and technical assistance agreement should be dismissed because it is “not based on valid and existing mining claims” in Monte de Oro in Compostella Valley.

“This judicial mistake will only prolong the already tedious and long-delayed process to return NDMC to the private sector because we will definitely exhaust all legal remedies to protect our interest,” Apex said.

Apex and NDMC have overlapping claims and the dispute has been with the regional panel of arbitrators since 1996. Apex has the option to question the ruling through the Mines Adjudication Board, the Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court.

“We have a strong case and are determined to take this all the way to Supreme Court, no matter how long this might drag,” Apex added.

Crew Gold Corp., which owns 40 percent of the shares sold by the Puyat family in Apex, earlier offered to buy NDMC from the government before but was advised to participate in a bidding process to be handled by the state-owned Natural Resources Mining and Development Corp.

Despite the previous pronouncements of the state-owned company that it was preparing to bid out the property, there had been no signs that this would happen anytime soon, Apex said.

Apex said it is willing to invest more and take the risk even in the absence of a definitive survey on whether or not NDMC still has viable reserves left.

Apex also claimed in its motion that NDMC violated the law for failing to have tie points, or permanent markers, to clearly delineate its boundaries and prevent overlaps and conflicts.

Besides, Apex also alleged that NDMC’s mining claim is much larger than its previous area.

Apex earlier said that it has received capital infusion from its affiliates for the rehabilitation of the plant at its mine site.

In a report to the Securities and Exchange Commission, Apex said that for the first three months of the year it received a total of P52.87 million from a number of its affiliates. The company, however, failed to mention what specific mine site it would start rehabilitating.

Of the amount, Apex said Mapula Creek Gold Corp. contributed P10.49 million; Teresa Crew Gold Phils. Inc., P23.44 million; and Crew Minerals Phils. Inc., P18.98 million.

For the first quarter of the year, Apex’s net losses almost doubled to P9.93 million from the P5.09 million in the same period a year ago.

In September last year, UK-based Crew Gold and its affiliate, Mapula Creek Gold Corp. offered to purchase all of Apex’s class “A” and “B” shares, and intended to buy all the shares for P0.6724 each.

With gold as its principal product, Apex Mining is primarily engaged in mining gold, silver, copper, lead and other precious metals. It traces its roots to Samar Mining Co. Inc., which was mining and milling large, though low grade, ore zones containing copper, gold and silver and magnetite.