PEZA-approved investments may hit P300 billion this year

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) is confident of exceeding its investment approvals target for this year, saying that this could reach as high as P300 billion.

In an interview with ANC yesterday, PEZA director-general Tereso Panga said the agency is on track with hitting its approved investments target of around P160 billion this year.

“Right now, the latest investment approvals that we have is about P97 billion already, which is 3.3 times than what we approved last year,” Panga said.

“I think with five or six months to go, we are confident that we will exceed our set targets for 2023,” he said.

Panga noted that the P160 billion approved investments is the agency’s conservative target.

“But if all leads will be realized within the year, there are strong chances that we can still hit our maximum target of about P300 billion,” Panga said.

The P300 billion maximum target is more than double the P104.7 billion investments approved by the agency in 2022.

To achieve its investment approvals target, Panga shared that the PEZA is following the President’s lead in attracting global investors, citing recent investment forums in Japan.

The PEZA said earlier that it conducted a strategic outbound mission to Japan from July 16 to 22, which was co-organized with Aboitiz InfraCapital (AIC) Economic Estates and the Philippine Trade & Investment Centers in Osaka and Tokyo.

“PEZA received interest both from Japanese big-ticket investors and small and micro enterprises (SMEs),” Panga said earlier, noting that a recent investment fora in Japan yielded new and expansion project applications.

He said  this signifies Japan’s growing interest to continue investing and expanding operations in the Philippines.

“Most noteworthy would be the commitment of Ichijo Corp. to finalize its expansion plans in 2024, along with possible expansion plans of the ShinEtsu Corp., OB Kogyo, Ltd., and NEC Networks & System Integration Corp.,” Panga said.

Panga said Ichijo plans to increase its annual housing delivery capacity from 15,000 units to 20,000 units in 2024.

The company is poised to contribute significantly to local employment to the tune of an additional 3,000 to 4,000 new jobs to its current 23,000-strong manpower complement, creating new opportunities for skilled workers.

Meanwhile, OB Kogyo, Ltd., a die and mold company, also expressed its intent to reinvest $3 million in its Philippine plant over the next three years, bolstering local manufacturing capabilities.

Similarly, ShinEtsu Corp., the global industry leader in the production and research of high-performance rare earth magnets, informed PEZA of its possible expansion plans which are dependent on the growth of the global electronic vehicle sector.

Aside from the garnered investment pledges during the recent outbound mission, PEZA also approved earlier this year, three big-ticket Japanese investments for this year, namely, Green Energy with Torrefaction Technology, Inc., Asian Transmission Corp., and Pricon Microelectronics, Inc.

The three projects bring in a total of P20.591 billion in investments with a projected 1,973 direct workers.

“These recent big-ticket investments prove that trust and confidence in investing in the Philippines, particularly from our long-standing trade partners such as Japan, are at an all-time high. Led by no less than President Marcos Jr., we will be doubling down on our aggressive and targeted approach to investment promotion,” Panga said.

The PEZA said earlier it was ramping up its investment promotion and facilitation initiatives to bring in much needed foreign direct investments to the country.