Mining firm SMI hails appointment of its chair, Gilberto “Gibo” Teodoro Jr., as defense chief
KORONADAL CITY (MindaNews / 13 June)– Sagittarius Mines, Inc. (SMI), developer of the controversial $5.9 billion Tampakan copper-gold project, has hailed the appointment of its chairperson, lawyer Gilberto “Gibo” Teodoro Jr., as Secretary of the Department of National Defense (DND).
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. administered the oath of office to Teodoro in an official ceremony at the Malacañan Palace in Manila last June 6.
Teodoro served as Chairman of the Board of SMI from 2015 up to his appointment and led the company in achieving critical milestones for the Tampakan project, putting it in a ready position to construct and operate as soon as possible, the company said in a statement dated June 8, posted on its website www.smi.com.ph.
SMI said it has invested at least P32 billion to the Tampakan project, with P3 billion paid in national and local taxes and about P1.3 billion provided to the local communities for development programs and activities focused on education, infrastructure and access to health.
“Through his leadership, SMI successfully undertook in 2018 a comprehensive study for a phased approach to the development of the Tampakan Project, secured in 2019 the approval of its Declaration of Mine Project Feasibility and obtained in 2020 a Certification Precondition from the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples for the Free and Prior Informed Consent agreement between the company and Tampakan project’s 11 indigenous cultural communities to develop the untapped minerals within their ancestral land,” it said.
Under Teodoro’s term, SMI said the firm was able to continue its early works site development activities such as geotechnical / hydrogeological drillings for its planned facilities, repair/rehab of main access roads, operationalization of SMI basecamp, construction of its Mindanao Administration Office, and secured its port facility in General Santos City.
Teodoro had served as the DND secretary from 2007 to 2009 under the Arroyo administration and the Representative of the First District of Tarlac from 1998 to 2007.
He ran but lost in the 2010 presidential race. His cousin, the late Benigno Aquino III, won the presidency.
Teodoro completed his law degree at the University of the Philippines, graduated at the top of his class and was the Philippine Bar topnotcher in 1989. He also has a Master of Laws degree from Harvard Law School.
Teodoro was recognized as a Leadership Awardee and Seminar Academic Excellence Awardee after completing the Philippine Air Force’s Air Command and Staff Course in 2001.
In April, Roy Deveraturda, SMI president and chief executive officer, told reporters in Manila the firm is targeting to start full mining operations in 2026.
“Tampakan project is one of the best projects in the world, meaning in terms of resource, in terms of the cost of operating,” Deveraturda, a retired military general, said in a report published by BusinessWorld.
The Tampakan project was hampered by the open-pit mining ban imposed by the provincial government of South Cotabato in 2010.
In May 2022, the Sangguniang Panlalawigan or provincial board lifted the ban, sparking a public outrage in the province with thousands joining peaceful street protests spearheaded by the Diocese of Marbel.
South Cotabato Governor Reynaldo Tamayo, Jr. ultimately vetoed the measure.
SMI earlier revealed in a study that the most viable way to extract the minerals is through open-pit mining due to the shallow location of the deposits.
The Tampakan project is touted as the largest undeveloped copper-gold minefield in Southeast Asia and among the biggest of its kind in the world. It has the potential to yield an average of 375,000 tons of copper and 360,000 ounces of gold in concentrate per annum in the expected 17-year life of the mine. (Bong S. Sarmiento / MindaNews)
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