PH scientists find possible uranium resource in Camarines Norte

• IN PHOTO: Froth flotation of the ground mineralized sample (DOST)

Filipino scientists have identified uranium-bearing minerals in Camarines Norte and successfully tested a laboratory process that increased the uranium concentration of the material, potentially opening the door for further exploration of domestic uranium resources.

Researchers from the Department of Science and Technology-Philippine Nuclear Research Institute (DOST-PNRI), University of the Philippines Diliman, and Akita University in Japan studied uranium-bearing materials from Bessemer in Larap, Jose Panganiban, Camarines Norte.

The researchers confirmed uraninite as the main uranium-bearing mineral in the surface deposits examined and demonstrated that the material could be processed to produce a higher concentration of uranium.

The original material contained 244 parts per million (ppm) of uranium, along with 0.57 percent copper, 0.49 percent molybdenum, and 13.5 percent iron.

Using a combination of flotation and magnetic separation, researchers increased the uranium concentration from 244 ppm to 305 ppm while recovering around 73 percent of the uranium in the final product.

Flotation was first used to separate copper- and molybdenum-bearing sulfides. The remaining material then underwent magnetic separation to remove magnetite, an iron-rich magnetic mineral, leaving uranium more concentrated in the non-magnetic portion.

Microscopic examination also showed that some uraninite grains had been separated from the surrounding mineral material.

Researchers said the findings demonstrate that the process can improve the concentration of uraninite and produce material that could undergo further uranium recovery.

However, the resulting material is not yet “yellowcake,” an intermediate uranium concentrate used in the nuclear fuel cycle, nor is it nuclear fuel.

Additional processing, including leaching and purification, would still be necessary to produce uranium concentrate.

More exploration needed

The study also does not establish how much uranium is available in Camarines Norte.

Researchers examined only surface manifestations of uranium mineralization, meaning the study could not determine the depth, thickness, or overall extent of the uranium-bearing zones underground.

Determining whether Larap contains uranium resources of potentially economic significance would require detailed geological, radiometric, and geophysical surveys, followed by systematic drilling and analysis of drill cores.

Such exploration would allow scientists to map the mineralization underground and estimate both the size of the deposit and its uranium content.

If drilling eventually identifies a significant resource, further studies would still be required to assess mining and processing economics, environmental and radiological impacts, regulatory requirements, and effects on surrounding communities before any potential development.

The research comes as the Philippines prepares for the possible introduction of nuclear power into its energy mix.

Under the Philippine Energy Plan, the government is targeting at least 1,200 megawatts of nuclear power capacity by 2032.

Executive Order No. 122, issued in August 2026, also established a national framework for developing the country’s critical minerals industry, with emphasis on domestic mineral processing, value addition, investment, and downstream industries.

Beyond uranium

Researchers said the Larap material also contains other potentially valuable minerals.

The laboratory process separated copper- and molybdenum-bearing minerals as well as iron-bearing magnetite, while uranium became more concentrated in the final non-magnetic material.

The findings could help researchers better understand the geological, analytical, and mineral-processing capabilities needed to evaluate complex mineral resources in the Philippines.

The government is still developing the official Philippine Critical Minerals List, and the study does not assume that the minerals identified in Larap will eventually be formally classified as critical minerals.

Researchers stressed that the findings do not mean the Philippines is ready to produce its own nuclear fuel.

Instead, the study provides scientists with more information on domestic uranium mineralization, how uranium from the material could be concentrated, and what further research is necessary to determine whether the resource warrants larger-scale exploration.

The next major step would be determining what lies beneath the surface of Larap and whether enough uranium exists to justify further exploration.

The study, “Integrated magnetic separation-flotation process for uranium preconcentration from Cu–Mo sulfidic and magnetite-bearing sample,” was published in the 2026 Special Issue on Nuclear Science and Technology of SciEnggJ.

The research was funded by the DOST Grants-in-Aid Program through the NuCycle Program-NuMER Project and implemented jointly by UP Diliman’s Department of Mining, Metallurgical and Materials Engineering and DOST-PNRI.