Dominguez lauds Cerberus takeover of Hanjin shipyard

MANILA, Philippines — The acquisition of the former Hanjin shipyard at the Subic Bay Freeport by a US-based private equity firm secures the jobs of displaced workers in the area and will also create about 300 employment opportunities every year.

Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III yesterday said the acquisition by Cerberus Frontier of the  Hanjin facilities in Subic would result in the retention of jobs for workers who lost their income source after the South Korean shipbuilder filed for bankruptcy in 2019.

Further, Dominguez said the buyout would generate an average of 300 additional jobs every year from locators and subcontractors who will benefit from new activities to be made by Cerberus.

Dominguez expects the acquisition to stimulate growth not only in Central Luzon, but also for the whole economy given the scale of the Hanjin shipyard.

Likewise, Dominguez said the buyout concludes years of uncertainties for five local banks expected to book profits from wiping out loans to Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction Philippines.

On the other hand, the Finance Chief said the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority would gain from the entry of a new tenant in Cerberus, whose financial stability will raise revenues for the economic zone administrator.

As for the military, the Philippine Navy will get a naval base that is located in a harbor facing the West Philippine Sea, giving it a strategic position where it can situate its expanding fleet.

“With this development beneficial to all stakeholders, we look forward to a robust shipbuilding and ship repair facility to serve not only our military and coast guard requirements, but also the requirements of the private sector,” Dominguez said at the reception in Washington D.C, where Cerberus signed its agreement for the shipyard’s takeover.

“I congratulate Cerberus, the Department of Defense of the Philippines, the Philippine Navy, the banks, and the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority for striking a deal that will benefit each of the partners and, more importantly, will benefit the Filipino people,” he said.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Teddy Boy Locsin said the deal marks the Duterte administration’s efforts to strengthen Philippine ties on investments with the US, leaving the next presidency the task to build on this relationship in its six-year term.

“There are like two months left for the Duterte administration. There is no better finale to all the work done to strengthen the ties with the US than to see the ink on the paper of the biggest public-private partnership in the 75-year history of Philippine-US relations,” Locsin said.