Noy back from Europe, bares new investments

MANILA, Philippines – Aside from gaining support for the country’s various advocacies, President Aquino said yesterday his visit to France and Italy has unlocked new investments as well as job opportunities for Filipinos.

On his return to Manila yesterday, Aquino said he was “really delighted to come home to our country, especially when we again carry good news with us” from his meetings with business groups and with government leaders, including Pope Francis.

In his speech at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 2 upon his arrival from Rome, Aquino said Cement Roadstone Holdings (CRH) France Asia president Ken McKnight told him about CRH’s investing P2.3 billion more in its P60-billion Lafarge-Holcim venture in the Philippines as part of plans to make the country its investment hub in Southeast Asia.

CRH supplies raw materials and finished products for construction applications and distributes supply products to professional building contractors and homeowners.

The President also reported that Jacobi Carbons Group, which opened its P517-million manufacturing facility in Cagayan de Oro last September, also plans to expand its operations in processing coconut shells as component for its activated carbon filters.

Aquino, who met the company’s chief executive officer Anders Skeini while in Paris after meeting with CRH, said the firm’s Cagayan de Oro plant is its biggest in the world. Its new investment in the country would provide 2,850 direct and indirect jobs to Filipinos, Aquino said, quoting Skeini.

“The first ones to benefit from this are our local coconut farmers, who will help supply coconut shells for the said company,” Aquino said.

Jacobi Carbons Group specializes in activated carbon derived coconut shell, various grades of coal and wood. The Sweden-based firm was founded in 1916.

The President, who flew to France to attend the Conference of Parties 21 (COP21) summit on climate change, also visited the Usine IO’s facilities and was shown a smart toothbrush, which sends information to user’s smart phone app to indicate if the brushing is done correctly.

“This hi-tech toothbrush was designed in France but made in the Philippines by Filipinos,” Aquino said.

Usine IO is a membership-based workshop in Paris that helps provide innovation in manufacturing. It also assists inventors concretize their ideas.

The President said he also met with officers of Sanofi Pasteur, a known pharmaceutical company, which would like to introduce affordable vaccine in the Philippines for four strains of dengue.

Aquino said he likewise spoke with Airbus representatives regarding growth prospects in the aerospace industry.

Airbus Group is composed of Airbus, which manufactures commercial aircraft; Airbus Helicopters and Airbus Defense and Space which produces fighter jets, among others.

Its subsidiary in the Philippines, Airbus Helicopters Philippines Inc. (AHPI), sells brand new and pre-owned helicopters and operates a service facility for helicopter maintenance and a training center for technicians.