By Victor Martin
BAYOMBONG, Nueva Vizcaya, Philippines – The FCF Minerals Corporation, a British-owned mining company, based in Runruno, Quezon in Nueva Vizcaya, won its fourth consecutive Presidential Mineral Industry Environmental Award (PMIEA) during the 71st Annual National Mine Safety and Environment Conference (ANMSEC) held last Friday (22Nov) Camp John Hay in Baguio City.
Lorne Harvey, FCF General Manager for Operations, and Lawyer Rowena Marcos, Legal and Compliance Manager, accepted the PMIEA award, during the awards night and testimonial dinner held at Camp-John Hay Trade and Cultural Center.
Harvey said aside from the PMIEA, the highest award conferred by the Philippine Mine Safety and Environmental Association (PMSEA), FCF Minerals was also declared 1st runner-up in Best Practices in Minerals Processing-Metallic Category during the 4th ASEAN Minerals Awards held in Vientiane, Laos last month.
In his message, Harvey expressed his heartfelt gratitude specially to the people of Barangay Runruno, personnel of MGB-R02 and all FCF employees.
“These awards are for the men and women in our Runruno mine operation. We would not have achieved this recognition for the 4th consecutive year without their tireless dedication to excellence,” Harvey said.
The PMIEA is given to mining companies that demonstrated outstanding performance in environmental management, occupational health and safety, and corporate social responsibility.
Joshua Ambojnon, FCF Safety Officer, also received his award for winning the Best Safety Inspector for Plant Category.
Harvey said the awards bestowed to FCF Minerals institutionalized the company’s zeal to go further towards outstanding levels of dedication and innovation in mining, enhancing the lives of their community while protecting and nurturing the environment.
“I would also like to make mention of the support of our community as well as our local leaders and the work that they do in conjunction with our staff to enhance the lives of our local population. Without the support of our community, we as a business would not meet the success we have today,” Harvey added.
Harvey said the FCF Minerals is also strongly committed as ever to working closely with its many stakeholder groups to continue providing significant benefits and leaving a positive and long legacy.
Meanwhile, the FCF Emergency Response Team (ERT) also clinched second place in the First Aid Competition held at the Melvin Jones Grandstand.
The ERT also demonstrated their exceptional skills across multiple challenges which includes the Fire Brigade Competition, Fire Extinguishment Event and Tug of Peace Challenge.
A local subsidiary of London based Metals Exploration, FCF Minerals has an existing financial and technical assistance agreement (FTAA) with the government to undertake the Runruno Gold-Molybdenum Project in Runruno village in Quezon town here.
The project has been endorsed by the provincial board, the host town of Quezon, as well as the barangay council in 2011 and started its commercial operation in 2017 after more than a decade of exploration and construction.
