Zambales Diversified Metals Corporation (ZDMC), a subsidiary of DMCI Mining, has been awarded the Presidential Mineral Industry Environmental Award (PMIEA).

In a statement, the firm said this is in recognition of its commitment to environmental protection, safety measures, community development, and social responsibility.

Established in 1997 through Executive Order No. 399, the PMIEA is an annual award given by the President of the Philippines through the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Mines and Geosciences Bureau. 

It is accorded to mining and exploration firms with outstanding initiatives and implemented programs on environmental protection and enhancement of mining areas, development of the host and neighboring communities, land use improvement, exploration, and mining site rehabilitation and final decommissioning.

This award marks a first for ZDMC and represents a third win for the DMCI Mining group. Its subsidiary, Berong Nickel Corporation, was the recipient of the PMIEA in 2020 and 2021.

"This recognition carries a lot of meaning for ZDMC. We received it at a time when our production has been ramping up," said DMCI Mining President Tulsi Das Reyes. 

He added that, “receiving this award demonstrates our ability to balance operational growth with environmental sustainability. It's a clear indication that progress and ecological care can go hand in hand, setting a benchmark for the Philippine nickel industry.”

From January to September, ZDMC nickel ore production surged by 83 percent from 716,000 wet metric tons (WMT) to an all-time high of 1,312,000 WMT on increased mining capacity. 

This, after ZDMC received the necessary Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC) to boost its nickel ore production from 1 million metric tons to 2 million metric tons starting January 2023. For the third quarter alone, ZDMC production rose by 28 percent from 149,000 WMT to 190,000 WMT.

Meanwhile, Reyes said in an interview that DMCI Mining’s rehabilitation of its Berong mine is going ahead of schedule as it is now about 75 percent complete.

“What we are doing now is we are still planting and then we have to continue benching for the soil stabilization. Out of the P110 million budget we already spent almost P80 million but that's supposed to be over a six year period,” he noted.

Reyes said “we have four years left to complete it. I'm telling everybody just do it properly even if we eat up the four years. The MGB said they want to showcase it as a commendable final mine rehab plan. So I want to make sure that it’s as close to perfect as possible. There's no incentive for us to finish early so let's do right.”