The Board of Investments (BOI) and the local nickel industry have agreed to advance more local mineral processing to support clean energy technologies and electric vehicle (EV) battery manufacturing in the country.
The BOI recently held Trade and Industry Development (TID) Talks on the Green Metals Sector with industry players to discuss the challenges and huge opportunities in the processing of the country’s green metals, particularly nickel, copper, and cobalt. During the discussion, participants agreed on working together to advance more mineral processing in the country especially for clean energy technologies and EV battery manufacturing. The discussion also aims to establish a value-added production of green metals in the country.
BOI Executive Director Ma. Corazon Halili-Dichosa of the BOI-Industry Development Services (IDS) led the discussion together with OIC-Asst. Director Juancho Pablo Calvez of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Mines and Geosciences Bureau; Atty. Dante Bravo, President of the Philippine Nickel Industry Association (PNIA); and Eulalio Austin Jr., president & CEO of Philex Mining Corporation; Edmund Araga, President of the Electric Vehicle Association of the Philippines (EVAP); and Director Raquel Echague of the BOI-Resource-Based Industries Service.
Already, the BOI is positioning the Philippines as supplier of critical metals to economic powerhouse amid strong global demand, disruptions in global value chain, and ongoing transition into a green economy.
Trade and Industry Undersecretary Ceferino S. Rodolfo, who is also BOI managing head, said this development cited opportunities for the Philippines to be a major player in the electric vehicle and battery supply chains by leveraging the country’s abundant resources of nickel, cobalt, and copper.
“Philippines is transitioning towards an innovative and greener economy by taking advantage of the increasing global demand for critical metals and catching up with other countries in the production and processing of such metals,” said Rodolfo earlier this year.
For nickel and chromium minerals production, the years ahead are looking good for the Philippines because of the potential shortfalls of other importing countries.
On the chromium imports, South Africa, the world’s top producer of chromium, floated an idea of placing tariffs on its export chromium ore coupled with its lack of power and high-power costs. With a possible risk of supply disruption, the Philippines could enter the scene and be a major supplier and processor of chromium ore to the economic powerhouse.
Part of the preparation includes the launching the Leyte Ecological Industrial Zone (LEIZ) Master Development Plan Project to develop and complete the Philippines copper industry supply chain in Leyte by 2030 and establish the country’s role in modern industries.
The LEIZ Master Plan project was led by the DTI, BOI, the political leaders of Eastern Leyte, National Development Co., and the Palafox & Associates, which is undertaking the masterplan.
LEIZ is a proposed development of an estimated 1,000-hectare land in Leyte. It is anchored on the existing copper smelting operation of PASAR (Philippine Associated Smelting and Refining) Corp. located in the Leyte Industrial Development Zone in Isabel, Leyte.
The National Development Co. will provide equity support in terms of land acquisition, joint venture projects and logistics for the LEIZ.
The plan has three development clusters, namely: (1) LEIZ CORE, the manufacturing hub and the primary focus of the Master Plan; (2) LEIZ NORTH as a commercial and agro-industrial hub; and (3) LEIZ SOUTH for agro-industrial development and training facilities. These three sites will complement each other and provide the needed raw materials, products, services, and manpower that the other development cluster needs.
The masterplan is anchored on the development of an eco-industrial park, which will house a community of manufacturing and businesses with initiatives that will reduce waste and pollution. LEIZ, which factored in all the lessons and best practices in manufacturing zone developments overseas, will be a model industrial in the country.
DTI Secretary Ramon M. Lopez, who is also chairman of the BOI, said that LEIZ, the first ecological zone in the country, will embrace the virtue of circular economy and green economy development.
He said that the completion of the Copper Industry Roadmap in 2012, a triumvirate partnership of the government, private sector, and academe has paved the way to realize a downstream copper industry in the Philippines.
With the country’s vast copper deposits amounting to an estimated 1.14 billion metric tons, Lopez said “We envision a fully integrated Philippine copper industry by the year 2030 through the development of a wire rod casting facility and higher value copper products.”
Rodolfo said LEIZ will put an end to the country’s importation of copper products. The Philippines has rich nickel ore resources but these are only turned into copper cathodes at the PASAR facility for export to other countries, particularly Japan, for further processing into copper wires and rods that Philippine electronics and wiring harness firms import for their local assembly needs.
With LEIZ, Rodolfo said a complete supply value chain all the way to the local production of electric vehicles, home appliances, solar energy, and digitalization, among others.
“We will complete it here, all the way to electric appliances,” said Rodolfo.
He said that the technical plan of LEIZ will be relevant to new normal by taking into consideration the value chain of the copper industry.
“We expect these technologies to accelerate a New Age of Copper in the Philippines as the industries that will produce electric vehicles, 5G networks, and solar power energy will all require large amounts of copper,” added Lopez.
Presently, the electric vehicles industry makes up just one percent of copper demand. By 2030, many analysts expect that figure to reach 10 percent. Likewise, clean energy and digitalization programs are expected to push average annual growth demand for copper up by 2.5 percent this decade. This would likely drive consumption toward 30 million tons by 2030.