Reuters
SYDNEY - An armed gang attacked and set fire to a mine exploration rig at the giant Philippines Tampakan copper prospect held jointly by Xstrata Copper and Australia-listed Indophil Resources NL.
The attack at one of the world's largest untapped copper deposits happened late on Saturday, Indophil said on Monday, adding that no one was injured. It was the latest in a series of attacks on big businesses in the southern Philippines.
"Local media reports a regional military commander as saying that 12 hours after the incident at the drill rig, two soldiers were wounded in a clash with a group believed to be responsible for the attack on the drill rig," the company added.
The Tampakan lode, with 11.6 million tons of copper and 14.6 million ounces of gold, is held 62.5 percent by Xstrata Copper, 34.23 percent by Indophil and the rest by Philippine interests that Indophil has the option to buy out.
The attack comes amid a corporate battle for the mine, with Xstrata and a consortium of investors, including Indophil's managing director, lodging competing A$1.28 a share offers for Indophil, valuing the company at A$503 million ($488 million).
Indophil on Monday issued a report saying independent evaluators think the company is worth between $1.41-A$1.56 a share given the size of Tampakan.
The attackers at Tampakan numbered about 30 and were part of the communist-backed New People's Army (NPA) long active in the southern Philippines, a source close to the project said.
The source added that the attack may have been timed to coincide with a visit by Arroyo to nearby General Santos City on Mindanao island.
Discovered in 1991, the mine has never left the drawing board, dogged by environmental and economic problems, political instability and laws restricting foreign ownership.
The Philippines has seen only $1 billion flowing into the mining sector since 2004 -- a pittance compared to the tens of billions spent in South America, Africa, Australia and other mineral rich regions.
The Maoist NPA, which is waging one of the world's longest-running communist insurgencies, is opposed to foreign and local corporations exploiting natural resources in the country. Since the start of the year, three mining firms have been attacked by communist guerrillas in other parts of Mindanao, including a raid on Tampakan on January 1.
Separately, Catholic bishops in the Philippines in June asked provincial leaders to stop development of the Tampakan mine, saying it would cause environmental damage and hurt local farming and fishing industries.
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