Japanese firm to set up bio-diesel project in Bataan town

HERMOSA, Bataan – Japanese firm Shomar International Trading Corp. has chosen this town to be their base for the production of bio-diesel fuel sourced from the jathropa plant, locally known as tuba-tuba or tangan-tanga.

This was disclosed over the weekend by Mayor Efren Cruz Jr., who said that the company headed by chief executive officer Shoji Nakai has recently announced its decision to host its facility here.

The Japanese firm has reportedly chosen Hermosa because of its proximity to the seaport of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA), Cruz said.

Hermosa is part of the former American naval base, now the SBMA, together with Morong town in Bataan, Subic town in Zambales and Olongapo City.

Nakai is also married to a lady from Hermosa, Marimel Dayrit, who is president of Shomar. The Japanese firm has pledged an investment of P10 billion for the project.

Cruz said that about 5,000 hectares of idle lands in the town will be planted with tuba-tuba.The company needs about 75,000 hectares to plant tuba-tuba that will become productive after two to five years.

The company will establish warehouses and a factory in Hermosa where oil from the tuba-tuba seeds will be extracted.

"The project will surely generate employment and additional revenue not only for our town but for the whole province," Cruz said.