Philippine Mineral Development Regional Optimization Evaluation Study

The Philippines is a country rich in metal mineral resources.The copper reserves of the dominant minerals are 23 million tons,the nickel is 4.8 million tons,the gold is2,400 tons,and the annual output of nickel ore is more than 25 million tons.The Philippines is China's most important source of nickel ore imports.It has an important impact on the supply of nickel ore resources in China;the country has a good economic development momentum,a large population,and a large market potential;it is an important node country of the "Maritime Silk Road" and is located at the center of the "Sea Lifeline" connecting the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean.It is of great significance to the stability of the South China Sea and the safety of maritime transport.With the improvement of Sino-Philippines diplomatic relations,the economic and trade exchanges between the two countries have become more frequent.In November 2016,the China National Development and Reform Commission and the Philippine National Economic Development Agency signed the Memorandum of Understanding on Capacity and Investment Cooperation,which involves mineral development.In the fields of petrochemical,steel,energy,equipment manufacturing,and infrastructure,it is of practical significance to study the optimization of mining development areas in this country.Referring to the existing economic evaluation system of mineral resources,combining the methods of literature review and expert consultation,the evaluation indexes are determined,and the regional optimization evaluation index system of mineral development in Philippines is established: mining investment environment,resource endowment,market demand and geo-strategic significance,which are subdivided into 11 secondary indexes of infrastructure,natural environment,socialenvironment,mining policies and regulations,competitive environment,resource quantity,resource potential,domestic demand,demand of other countries,channel significance and stability significance of South China Sea,thus laying a foundation for the optimization evaluation of mineral development in 17 regions in Philippines.According to the rankings of each district,the 17 districts can be divided into three categories: the preferred zone for mining development,the sub-election zone and the unselected zone.The preferred districts all have good resource endowments,investment environment,and market demand.Some of the districts are located near the main navigation channel of the South China Sea and have a certain geo-strategic significance.The resources of the sub-selection areas,the investment environment is slightly poor or the market demand is not strong,and geo-strategic significance is not obvious.The resource endowments and investment environment of unselected districts are clearly inferior to those of other regions.The preferred regions for mineral development are the Mimaropa,Davao,Karaga,Northern Mindanao,Cordillera;the sub-districts are Western District of Mindanao,Cagayan,Bicol,Central Luzon,Central Visayas,West Visayas,East Visayas,Sakasargen,Calabarzon;unselected areas are Ilocos,Muslim Mindanao Autonomous Region,and the National Capital Region.According to the current distribution and cooperation intentions of Chinese and other companies investing in the Philippines,China's mining investment projects are mainly located in Mimaropa,Caraga and Northern Mindanao,which to a certain extent prove that the current regional preferences have a certain degree of rationality.