Century-old biz group wants mining law amended

MANILA -- The country’s oldest business organization, the Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines Islands (CCPI), has sought sponsorship in Congress to amend mining laws.

CCPI President Jose Luis Yulo Jr. told reporters on the sidelines of the Nordic Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines Wednesday that the current mining laws now need change, promoting mineral processing locally rather than exporting raw materials to neighboring countries like China and Japan.

Yulo said the Chamber wanted a stop in the export of minerals like ore as raw materials.

“We should only give the mine to people who will produce a factory and use the minerals that produced finished products,” he said.

“What we are doing now is we get the mines, we get the copper ore, we give to China and Japan, and then we import back the finished product,” he added.

The CCPI chief targets to get Congress’ sponsorship for bill amending mining laws by the first half of the year.

 “We have to change the mining law,” Yulo said.

But he said the country could still ship minerals to countries where these resources are not available.

In 2014, the Philippines accounted for 50 percent of the global source of nickel ore after Indonesia implemented a ban on mining exports.

The CCPI has been pushing to amend the domestic mining laws since it launched its “History Builds Future 2030 - Five Pillars” in 2016 in time for its 130th founding anniversary.

It cited five pillars that would help the country regain its top economic position in Southeast Asia during the 1960s by 2030.

Moreover, Yulo said the government should look into giving fiscal incentives to companies that would set up complete value chain for mineral processing here. (PNA)