SUBIC BAY FREEPORT—Close to a hundred investment projects worth more than P5 billion were approved by the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) in the first half of the year, as fresh infusions in leisure, logistics and general business sectors buoyed the business outlook in this growing trade hub.
SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma said a total of 77 new investment and 21 expansion projects pushed Subic’s midyear haul in committed investments to P5.03 billion.
This year’s investment figure represented an increase of 47 percent over the P3.43-billion yield from the 45 new projects and 10 expansions approved in the same period last year.
The continuing growth, Eisma said, had resulted from the hard work of the agency to draw more investors despite stiff global competition for foreign direct investments.
In the recent Subic Labor Congress held at the Harbor Point Ayala Mall here, Eisma assured prospective workers of SBMA’s sustained investment promotion program.
“The SBMA is working very hard to ensure jobs for local workers [and] more investor companies are coming to Subic,” Eisma said. “But we have to ensure that they get the right environment so that they will continue to bring their business here,” she added.
Figures from the SBMA Business and Investment Group indicated that the Subic agency approved 41 new investment projects in the first quarter this year, with total investment commitments of P3.57 billion. On the other hand, the second quarter yielded 36 new projects worth a total of P902.1 million.
Meanwhile, the SBMA green-lighted nine expansion projects worth P515.3 million in the first quarter of 2019, followed by 12 projects worth P39.8 million in the second quarter.
SBMA records also showed that the 77 new investment projects in the first half of 2019 yielded a projected employment total of 2,003, while expansion projects turned out 1,670 new jobs for a total of 3,673.
Following the established trend, leisure projects comprised most of the new investments with 15 approvals in the first quarter and 14 in the second quarter for a total of 29 projects.
Investments under general business garnered the second-most number of approvals at 16, followed by logistics projects at 15, maritime and manufacturing at 11, and information and communications technology at six.
Among the new investment projects, the proposal from Sinoinvest Resources Inc. for a P1.2-billion leisure project was the biggest recorded from January to June this year.
Next came Smart and Plan Subic Logistics and Development Corp. with a P1-billion commitment for another leisure venture; Arjuna Sand Trading Inc., with P628.9 million for a logistics project; Worldwide Grace Inc., with P515 million for general business; and Taiyo Subic Philippines Corp., with P392.5 million for a manufacturing project.
The biggest among the approved expansion projects was that of Datian Subic Shoes Inc. with commitments at P316.6 million, followed by servomotor manufacturer Sanyo Denki Phils. Inc. at P119.6 million.
Datian’s expansion project is also expected to turn out the most number of new jobs at 1,500, followed by Sinoinvest Resources with 500 new jobs; Juan Fong Industrial Corp., 305; and Philippines Easepal Technology with 270.
Image credits: Nonie Reyes