Japanese businesses remain confident of
business prospects in the Philippines, as the Department of Trade and Industry
(DTI) secures P14.5 billion in new commitments from existing Japanese firms in
the country.
Following an investment forum in Tokyo, Trade
Secretary Ramon M. Lopez said Japanese businessmen pledged as much as P14.5
billion in expansion projects, which include a substantial investment from
shipbuilding giant Tsuneishi Heavy Industries.
“We met with Tsuneishi President Kenji
Kawanoto to discuss the expansion plans of Tsuneishi shipbuilding in the
Philippines. Our discussions now include a prospective third project on ship
recycling, using the latest internationally accredited green technologies. The
project will generate potential investments of over P5 billion and total job
generation conservatively estimated at 6,000,” Lopez said in a message to
reporters.
The ship recycling project is
envisioned to respond to the country’s requirements for interisland vessels for
transport and logistics, as well as cover the steel requirements of major
infrastructure work, Lopez said.
He clarified though that this third project
was in addition to the two expansion plans signed and witnessed by President
Duterte during his state visit to Japan last October.
That previous visit already brought in
Tsuneishi’s two expansion projects: a ship-reuse center in Negros Occidental,
with a P5.2-billion tag; and a biomass fuel project in Mindanao worth P5
billion.
Tsuneishi’s three projects is seen to employ
a total of 32,000 new jobs.
A prefabricated housing producer, Ichijo Co.
Ltd. will also be expanding its existing operations in the country with a new
factory and warehouse in Cavite amounting to P2 billion. Additional new jobs
will be around 600 workers.
Ichijo’s operations in the Philippines is its
only overseas manufacturing subsidiary, and all of its pre-fabricated housing
are exported to Japan.
The DTI chief, with key members of the
Cabinet including Transport Secretary Arthur Tugade, Public Works Secretary
Mark Villar and Bases Conversion Development Authority President Vince Dizon,
presented prospects for business and investments in the Philippines to 800
members of the Japanese business community last February 28.
Source:
business
mirror. 02 Mach 2017
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