With the depleting supply of economic sulfur, LMG Chemicals Corp. eyes the manufacturing of a bacteria that will extract minerals in a manner that is more environment-friendly, helps slow global warming, and even raises metal recovery while cutting costs.

Other countries have found relief in the use of a more sustainable way to extract minerals through "bio-leaching."

Instead of the traditional heating of ore or melting of metal which contributes to global warming or believed to cause respiratory problems in human, mineral resource firms are resorting to biological means to absorb metal from ore.

The Philippines too has been into the research on bio-leaching over the last two years.

"We're trying to use microorganisms to extract heavy metals. We have done some work on that," said Dr. Teresita M. Espino, University of the Philippines Los Baños Biotechnology director.

LMG has intended to tie up with UPLB for its prospective use of biomolecules that it may supply to mining firms as a substitute to polluting sulfuric acid.

LMG traditionally sources its sulfur from crude oil refiners (Shell, Caltex, Petron as sulfur is a by-product of crude refining) and turns this into sulfuric acid for its supply to mining companies like the Coral Bay Nickel Corp. (CNBC) in Palawan.

Sulfuric acid is a material for the high pressure acid leach process in recovering nickel. CNBC itself requires 200,000 metric tons (MT) of sulfuric acid per month.

LMG presently has a sulfuric acid plant in Pasig City producing at a rate of 300 metric ton (MT) per day.

But its sulfur supplier Caltex has already closed its sulfur supply business, and both Petron and Shell are in the process of phasing out sulfur operations as part of a compliance with the Clean Air Act.

LMG is also trying to explore the possibility of sourcing sulfur from two local mines - in Pamplona and Kalinga, but there are socio-political problems confronting mining sulfur in these areas.

Besides, importing sulfur is a non-viable option.

"It's too high, $ 92 per ton, FOB. We're only selling it at less than P1,000 per ton," said LMG Sales Manager Jojo S. Javier.

LMG now hopes for local scientists' development of friendly bacteria for its sulfur substitute. But aside from being a little bit late in the adoption of bio-leaching, financial constraints are dragging the reserach work down.

"The technology is already mature in other countries (Europe, US)," said Dr. Lorrie Trinidad, UPLB university researcher. "We're still in a research phase. It's a part of a program for bio-remediation. We've been doing it for the last two years, but future development depends on budget availability."

Bio-leaching and bio-remediation both provide means to dispose of mining waste

LMG has tried asking European companies for a transfer of the technology, but these European firms are closed yet to sharing the technology, prodding local companies to turn to local research.

Bio-leaching has proven to work elsewhere. MinMet, a natural resource company listed in the London Stock Exchange, earlier acquired in 2003 the European Metals and Minerals Ltd (EMML) which developed bio-leaching and applied this in gold production in Suior near Baja Mare in northern Romania.

IN the same year, EMML entered in a royalty agreement with SC Transgold SA that licensed the production of 600,000 MT of high-grade gold-bearing pyrite concentrate in Romania through bio-leaching.

Requiring little capital (70 percent less than pressure leach methods) and non-hazardous bacterial processing, bio-leaching has enabled MinMet to enhance recovery of gold and other metals from ores.

It has since been engaged in resource identification, research testing and technology development to sustain a means of reducing costs of metal production and even in a sustainable manner.