Nickel
D1
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2018 advertise@manilastandard.net
SPECIAL REPORT
Nickel:
New king of PH minerals By Jimbo Gulle
Before it reaches its purest form (far right), nickel is found in nickelsulphide ores such as this. It is then shaped into some of the world’s most useful items — including the Philippine one-peso coin, which contains 25 percent of the versatile element (inset).
T
he Philippines used to be known for its gold, silver, and copper, but a new element has taken the throne as the country’s top mineral product: nickel.
All About Nickel By Carmela Martinez NICKEL, abbreviated Ni in the table of elements, is one of the most widelyused elements in the long list of elements in the periodic table. A silverywhite metallic element, nickel can be found in almost everything metallic and is an important element in our daily lives. Here’s why: 1. Nickel came from the German word “kupfernickel” which means “devil’s copper.” It was found by German miners who thought that it was copper, but when they failed to extract copper, they blamed it on being a work of the devil, hence the name. 2. Nickel is the fifth-most common element on earth that can be found almost everywhere, with its use in over 300,000 products for consumer, industrial, military, transport, aerospace, marine and architectural applications. When mixed with other metals, it produces stainless and heat-resistant steels such as cooking utensils, medical equipment, and others. 3. The Philippines is one of the top producers of Nickel in Asia, with Rio Tuba Mine in Bataraza, Palawan yielding an estimated reserve of 60.2 million tons of nickel ore or 764, 000 tons of nickel metal. 4. Nickel is one of the most recycled materials globally. Being 100 percent recyclable, nickel or nickel alloys are collected and re-used for future use. It helps the environment and industries worldwide with its recyclable properties, thus is featured in ecofriendly pans, pots, kitchen sinks, batteries, as well as medical and food processing equipment. 5. Nickel can be found in food, especially in chocolate. Dark chocolate has a nickel concentration of 2.6 micrograms per gram; milk chocolate has 1.2 ug/g and pure powdered cocoa 9.8 ug/g. Cashews also have concentrated nickel at 5.1 ug/g. Kidney beans contains 0.45 ug/g, while spinach has 0.39 ug/g. Other vegetables that contain nickel are peas, leeks, beans, soya (and soy protein powder), lentils, cabbage, kale, spin-
ach, lettuce, and bean sprouts. Shellfish also contain a considerable amount of nickel.
Nickel is the fifth-most common element on earth. 6. Nickel, along with copper, zinc, steel and aluminum, is commonly used in coins. It is mostly used in American coins (the five-cent coin which has taken its name), but in the Philippines, old coins still in circulation contain several percentages of nickel. The 10-peso coin, 5-peso coin and 1-peso coin contains 27%, 5.5%, and 25% of nickel, respectively.
As the w o r l d ’s secondbiggest supplier of nickel ore, the countr y exported 577,000 metric tons of it in 2016 and 2017 combined. Last year’s nickel ore exports came in at 230,000 metric tons — a third less than the 2016 figure — but still raked in $455.21 million (P24.533 billion) for the country in 2017, according to the United Nations Comtrade database on international trade. That dollar figure shows the bright potential of the versatile element for the Philippine economy, perhaps even more than the precious metals mined elsewhere in the country. In fact, the Philippines was the world’s top nickel producer in decades past, but the shifting local political landscape combined with environmental concerns forced it to lose ground to Indonesia. Our Southeast Asian neighbor has capitalized on our country’s current situation and kicked its production into high gear to feed the mineral-hungry economy of China. It doesn’t mean that local nickel miners aren’t standing their ground, though. Thirty of the country’s 50 mining firms dig for nickel, and seven of them have formed a group — the Philippine Nickel Industry Association (PNIA) — to help champion the sector as well as the broader concept of responsible and sustainable mining that gives back to its partner communities. Established in 2012, PNIA was organized to promote and develop the nickel mining industry in the country. Given that the mining industry sector is a major backbone of the Philippine economy, the association believes that both the government and the private sector play significant roles as partners in developing this segment of the economy. PNIA believes the joint efforts of government and the private sector should be continuous and always aimed at revitalizing and developing mining in a manner that balances economic, environmental, and social objectives. The group also firmly advocates for self-regulation and sharing of best practices between and among key stakeholders of the mining industry. PNIA is committed to inspire, uplift, and promote the best mining practices within the local industry while building recognition of its contribution to local communities and society at large. Its current members include CTP Construction and Mining Corporation, Platinum Group Metals Corporation, DMCI Mining Corporation, Marcventures Mining Development Corporation, Carrascal Nickel Corporation, Citinickel Mines and De-
velopment Corporation, and Agata Mining Ventures, Inc. The vision of PNIA is to position the nickel development industry as a globally competitive and responsible driver of inclusive and sustainable economic growth in the Philippines. With these ideals in place, the PNIA is committed to inspire, uplift and promote the best mining practices within the local industry, while giving back to the community that entrusted the care of their land to its miners. “We are partners of the government and other stakeholders for responsible mining. We are providers of opportunities to our fellow Filipinos who want to attain a more prosperous way of life,” the group adds. Still, multiple challenges are on the horizon for Philippine nickel miners. First is that what was once one of the most liberal mining regimes in Southeast Asia is now subject to a government crackdown that shows no sign of relenting. As noted by Amanda Kay in an article for Investingnews.com, “For now, one thing is certain: the direction the Philippines goes with its mining policy moving forward will impact the global nickel market.” Second is producing the right type of nickel ore that end-users such as Chinese companies will use to produce anything from stainless steel to batteries for electric vehicles. A recent Standard and Poor’s analysis of the global nickel market says most nickel producTURN TO D3
Nickel can be found in food like dark chocolate. 7. Nickel is necessary for healthy plant life. Nickel, in small amounts, is found in plant enzymes that help balance the ammonia in them. Without it, the toxic levels of ammonie can accumulate in the plant’s tissues and thus the plant becomes entirely toxic.
A picture of Marcventures Mining’s nickel mine in Cantilan, Surigao del Sur.
PNIA Chairman and President of Marcventures Mr. Isidro Alcantara Jr. speaks at the recent Philippine Mining Club luncheon in Makati City.