The Philippine Mine Safety and Environment Association is optimistic of a more competitive fiscal regime as it nixes a proposed measure approved by the House of Representatives’ committee on ways and means recently.
The committee has approved on third and final reading a new fiscal regime that will, among others, impose a 3-percent tax royalty on top of the 4-percent excise tax, whether the company operates inside or outside a mineral reservation area.
A consolidation of the mining fiscal regime bills filed in the House of Representatives, the new fiscal regime approved by the ways and means committee led by Albay Rep. Joey Salceda also exempts non-metallic mines from royalty tax.
While the Salceda-sponsored bill imposes a lower royalty tax for companies that operate within a mineral reservation area, all other companies that operate outside declared mineral reservations will no longer be exempted from royalty tax under the proposed measure.
The current fiscal regime imposes a 4- percent excise tax plus a 5-percent royalty on mining companies that operate within declared mineral reservation areas.
While the non-metallic mining companies —which include stone, sand, rock or similar materials from natural deposits welcome the House committee-approved version, gold, copper, silver, and other metallic mineral companies strongly oppose the proposed measure.
The proposed measure exempts small-scale mining from royalty, whether they operate in mineral reservation areas or not, PMSEA said in a statement.
Speaking during a press conference at the kick-off ceremonies of the 66th Annual National Mine Safety and Environment Conference in Baguio City Tuesday afternoon, Walter Brown, Chairman Emiritus of Apex Mining Co., Inc. and president of the Philippine Mine Safety and Environment Association said the House committee-approved version is “unfair” and will the metallic minerals industry.
The approval of the new tax regime was announced by Mines and Geosciences Bureau Director Wilfredo Moncano during press conference during the kick-off ceremonies of the 66th Annual National Mine Safety and Environment Conference in Baguio City on Tuesday.