DMCI Mining Corp., a unit of Consunji-led DMCI Holdings Inc., expects to deliver a record-high three million wet metric tons (WMT) in nickel ore as it intends to operate three mine sites this year.

DMCI Mining President Tulsi Das Reyes said the company is targeting to extract at least three million WMT of nickel this year from its three mines in Zambales and Palawan.

“I think we will have a historical year. If everything is done right, we should ship out three million [WMT] this year,” Reyes told reporters.

DMCI Mining primarily ships nickel ore to markets in China, the world’s largest consumer of the metal, and other countries.

Last year, the mining firm reported a 33 percent increase in nickel ore production to two million WMT, while shipments climbed by 31 percent to 1.9 million WMT.

Reyes said the growth was largely driven by higher output from its two mines in Zambales, which are on track to hit two million WMT this year.

While still pending the government’s full clearance, he said the Long Point mine in Palawan is expected to begin operations within the quarter, with an output of about one million WMT.

“It might be a bit short depending on the release of the [final] permit. But if it does happen within the right timing, I think we have a nice alignment [to reach three million WMT],” said Reyes.

DMCI Mining subsidiary Berong Nickel Corp. secured in August last year the exclusive right to explore, develop, and utilize mineral resources at the mine site for an initial term of 25 years.

Across the company’s three sites, the government has capped the maximum annual operating capacity at one million WMT each, based on their respective environmental compliance certificates (ECCs).

Reyes said the company is looking at potential amendments to these ECCs to further expand capacity at each mine, especially at a time when global nickel prices are on an upward trajectory.

For one, the average benchmark price of nickel ore with a 1.5 percent grade rose to $45.7 last year from $36.3 in the previous year, based on data from DMCI Mining.

Reyes said nickel prices are poised to increase this year after Indonesia, the world’s largest nickel producer, signaled plans to limit the maximum operating capacity of its mine sites.

“That's why this year compared to last year, there's a big variance in terms of price. We're selling a lot of lower grade material today for a very attractive price, which we could not sell last year and previous years,” he noted.

DMCI Mining is now able to sell 1.15 percent-graded nickel at around $26 per WMT, up from essentially zero before, further pushing up the value of higher-grade ores.

To keep up with the positive price trajectory, the company is aiming to eventually operate two more mine sites in Palawan, including the Dangla mine in Quezon town, which has an estimated extraction rate of two million WMT.

DMCI Mining plans to earmark significantly less in capital expenditures this year from around ₱400 million last year, as the necessary spending to build mine infrastructure has already been completed.

From January to September 2025, DMCI Mining contributed ₱726 million to the net income of DMCI Holdings Inc., reversing a ₱17-million net loss from the year earlier due to robust nickel prices.