OceanaGold Inc. , operator of the Didipio Mine, said over the weekend it paid P421 million in local business tax to three municipalities in the provinces of Nueva Vizcaya and Quirino last year.
“The LBT we paid this year is higher compared to last year’s because of the higher 2023 revenue of our mine, brought about by our good production and higher prices of gold,” said Didipio Mine president and general manager for external affairs and social performance Joan Adaci-Cattiling. The mining company also signed a memorandum of agreement with the three municipalities, ensuring that at least P5 million of the local business tax would be allocated to environmental management and protection initiatives within their respective jurisdictions.Mayor Romeo Tayaban of Kasibu said the taxes are “a blessing,” to communities, while Mines and Geosciences Bureau Region 2 director Mario Ancheta highlighted the benefits to the host communities.
OGPI’s Didipio Mine, an underground gold-copper mine that straddles the provinces of Nueva Vizcaya and Quirino, entered into an financial or technical assistance agreement with the government in June 1994.