Legal battle over Oceanagold mine renewal ensues

The legal battle over the renewal of Australian-Canadian mining firm OceanaGold’s Financial or Technical Assistance Agreement (FTAA) for its copper-gold mine operations in Barangay Didipio, Kasibu, Nueva Vizcaya continues as the Regional Trial Court (RTC) of Nueva VIzcaya holds its latest hearing today.

“We continue to challenge the lack of prior public consultation in the FTAA renewal process that gave 25 more years to OceanaGold’s destructive mining operations while overriding the opposition of affected communities and concerned citizens. This pattern continues to date, as OceanaGold made recent pronouncements of spending millions of dollars for mining exploration this year and we still have yet to hear about any public consultation for these developments,” said Bp. Elmer Mangalinao, Diocese of Bayombong Bishop and lead petitioner in the case.

To recall, the petitioners filed a special civil action in April 22, 2024 last year praying for a Certiorari to compel the cancellation of the copper-gold mine’s FTAA and mining operations, and a Continuing Mandamus for the immediate rehabilitation of its open pit facility. 

The Vizcaya RTC penned a split decision last April 2, 2025 ordering a pretrial for the Continuing Mandamus but denying the prayer for Certiorari, stating that the FTAA renewal constituted a mere extension of the original FTAA’s term and thus the argument over the lack of prior public consultation anchored on the renewal process had no merit.

“Our petitioners filed a Motion for Reconsideration arguing that nowhere in the FTAA renewal agreement, the Philippine Mining Act, and even the Philippine Constitution itself is there a legal basis for a mere extension of an FTAA. At best, the concept of an “extension” is legally recognized only within the confines of the exploration phases of a FTAA, but even this extension still needs to comply with the public consultation requirements set out by the Local Government Code,” explained Atty. Rolly Peoro, Direct Legal Services Coordinator of the Legal Rights and Natural Resources Center (LRC), who serves as counsel in the case.

The petitioners furthered in the Motion that “Ultimately, the failure to secure prior consultations and obtain the requisite endorsements from the appropriate Sanggunian bodies is not a mere technical lapse, but a substantive and jurisdictional defect. Such conduct, in manifest violation of both statutory and constitutional safeguards, undeniably constitutes grave abuse of discretion warranting judicial correction.”

Environmental advocates expressed their support for the continuing legal challenge of the Vizcayano petitioners. Jaybee Garganera, National Coordinator of Alyansa Tigil Mina said: “We stand in solidarity with the petitioners as they question the validity of OGPI’s new contract and assert their right to public consultations. The renewal of the mining contract has damaging implications on the environment and the communities such that requirements of the law must be strictly enforced. This did not happen in the renewal of OGPI’s contract.”