NEWS

By Leander C. Domingo | The Manila Times | March 11, 2024

Ten Didipio Mine workers complete the three-month Underground Metalliferous Mining Work Readiness Course at Site Skills Training, Clark Campus in Pampanga. With them on their graduation on March 1, 2024 are their parents and OceanaGold Corp. officials. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

TEN Filipino miners have completed their intensive work readiness training at the multi-million dollar underground (UG) metalliferous mining simulation at the Site Skills Training (SST) in Clark Field Campus in Pampanga.

The trainees who belong to Didipio Mine completed the three-month Underground Metalliferous Work Readiness Course on March 1, 2024.

The Australia-based SST, which is the only mining simulator in the country, operates a network of facilities globally, including the Philippines and Papua New Guinea, and delivers tailored training to remote and international on-site client locations.

Didipio Mine President Joan Adaci-Cattiling said the graduates would be fielded in the gold-and copper-rich upland town of Kasibu town in Nueva Vizcaya province to join the UG miners in the Didipio Mine.

Also the Didipio Mine external affairs and social performance general manager, Adaci-Cattiling said eight of the graduates were newly hired employees.

“They are now ready to become part of the UG workforce, while the two incumbent employees have been upskilled with the basics of UG work for future opportunities,” she said.

Before SST, there was no facility in the country for training students in underground mining. OceanGold Philippines Inc. (OGPI) collaborated with SST and opened the center in 2015.

OGPI, a subsidiary of the Canadian OceanaGold Corp. (OGC), owns the Didipio Mine in the gold and copper deposit-rich upland Barangay Didipio of Kasibu town.

SST is part of Site Group International Limited, a registered training organization under the Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA).

Its 240-square-meter state-of-the-art facility in Clark is considered the biggest in the world and the only underground metalliferous mining simulator in Asia.

It delivers Australian-recognized and international best practice-tailored training, assessment and competency assurance for trade-specific and industrial skills in the oil and gas, mining, construction and services industries.

The graduates were witnessed by their parents, OGC Executive Vice President (EVP) and Chief Technical and Projects Officer Bhuvanesh Malhotra; OGC EVP and Chief Operating Officer for Asia-Pacific Peter Sharpe; Didipio Mine General Manager for Operations David Bickerton; Mining Manager Andrew Middleton; and People and Technology Manager Myra Bacalzo.

One of the trainers, Syd Osborne, shared how he and other trainers prepared the graduates on what they will face during their actual deployment.

“We have shown them what will be done underground, all the safety aspects, the rules and regulations, and the skills,” Osborne said.

He said the graduates will do great in any field in the mining industry with their persistence because “they have the enthusiasm.”

Ernzkingburg Pinkihan, one of the miner graduates, said they learned so much about safety, teamwork and discipline during the training.

“Having experienced difficulties in life, I consider this opportunity as a gift. I experienced what it is like to be unemployed. So I thank OceanaGold for giving me the opportunity to participate in this training,” Pingkihan said.

The Didipio Mine deployed its first batch of underground crew in 2015. A total of 115 graduates have been produced by the training program from 2015 to 2019, with many still working in the mine.

Source: The Manila Times