Japanese toy firm Bandai to put up P400-million factory in Batangas

MANILA, Philippines – Japanese toy manufacturer Bandai, the company behind Power Rangers and Gundam action figures, will build a P400-million factory in Batangas.

The LiMA Technology Center (LiMA), a 485-hectare business park in Lipa-Malvar, Batangas, will host the new toy factory. LiMA is owned by the Alcantara family that is primarily engaged in power production and real estate.

“The factory will be producing action figures, vending machine capsule products and other amusement items,” the Alcantara Group said in a statement.

“The construction of the 10,000-square meter factory is expected to begin this October 2012 and operations are projected to start by next year,” the Alcantara Group said.

The factory will be operated by Bandai (Philippines), Inc., which is a new subsidiary of the Bandai Namco Group, the manufacturer of the popular Tamagotchi virtual pet electronic game.

Bandai Namco, through its toys and hobby strategic business unit, also produces the Gundam and Power Ranger series action figures.

In September 2005, Bandai Co. Ltd. and Namco Ltd. established joint holding firm Namco Bandai Holdings Inc.

To date, Namco Bandai Holdings, which plans and executes strategies of the Bandai Namco Group, is listed in the Tokyo Stock Exchange with a capital of around 10 billion yen.

The LiMA Technology Center currently hosts 38 locators employing more than 19,000 employees.

Locators in LiMA are into various manufacturing ventures like automobile components, motorcycles, printers and plastic moldings.

The industrial park is designated as a Special Economic Zone by the Philippine Economic Zone Authority.

Given its status as an ecozone, locators like Bandai enjoy certain incentives like income tax holidays and exemption from duties and taxes on imported capital equipment, the Alcantara Group said.

LiMA Technology Center is a project of LiMA Land Inc., a joint venture of the Marubeni Corp. of Japan and Alsons Land Corp. of the Alcantara Group.

Aside from real estate, the Alcantara Group is also into aquaculture, agribusiness and services primarily focusing on Mindanao.