By Beatriz Marie D. Cruz, Senior Reporter
THE PHILIPPINE Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) approved P80.68 billion in investment pledges in September, bringing its nine-month total to P297.14 billion, just shy of its P300-billion full-year target.
In a statement on Tuesday, PEZA said its board approved 26 new and expansion projects valued at P80.68 billion in September, increasing by 65.08% from the P48.87 billion worth of projects approved in the same month last year.
The investments are expected to generate $2.34 billion worth of exports and create 6,292 new jobs.
“These figures show growing investor confidence in the Philippines, with companies from a wider range of markets choosing our ecozones (economic zones) for new and expansion projects,” PEZA Director-General Tereso O. Panga was quoted as saying.
Nine of the projects are related to export manufacturing, while four projects are in the information technology – business process management (IT-BPM) sector.
Also approved were four facility projects, three economic zone developments, three logistics projects, two domestic market enterprises, and one project involving utilities.
Twelve of the projects will be in Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, and Quezon), seven in Metro Manila, five in Central Luzon, and one each in Western and Central Visayas, PEZA said.
PEZA noted that five major projects with a combined value of P77.62 billion are in key industries like shipbuilding and repair, photovoltaic (solar) manufacturing, real estate activities, bioethanol production, and electronics manufacturing.
The approved investment pledges mostly came from investors based in Taiwan, China, Singapore, British Virgin Islands, and Romania.
In the first nine months, PEZA-approved investments nearly doubled (92.07%) year on year to P297.14 billion.
These are equivalent to 222 new and expansion projects which are expected to generate $8.95 billion in exports and create 33,331 direct jobs.
The nine-month total accounts for 99% of the agency’s P300-billion investment approvals target for 2026.
“With P300 billion within reach and with still three months to go before the yearend, the agency is sustaining its aggressive investment promotion and investor facilitation efforts to go beyond the target and breach the highest P311-billion record investments by PEZA set during the Aquino administration,” Mr. Panga said.
The agency hit the record-high P311-billion investment approvals in 2012.
Majority of the projects approved during January-to-September period were in manufacturing (89), followed by IT-BPM (34), ecozone development (34), and facilities (23).
Other projects were in logistics (18), domestic market (17), tourism (4), and utilities (3).
About 185 of the approved projects are located in Luzon, 25 in the Visayas, and 12 are in Mindanao.
The January-to-September approvals mostly came from Taiwanese, Dutch, South Korean, Singaporean, and Indonesian investors, PEZA said.
Sought for comment, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said the Philippines’ inclusion in the Washington-led Pax Silica initiative may have attracted interest from foreign investors.
“Pax Silica provided good signaling for FDIs (foreign direct investments) especially in attracting high-tech industries related to AI, electric vehicles, and rare earths, among others,” he said in a Viber message.
PEZA operates 441 economic zones nationwide, including more than 200 operating within the Luzon Economic Corridor.
Also, PEZA said the substantial agreement reached on the Philippines’ free trade deal with the European Union (EU) is expected to boost the country’s appeal as a hub for investments, manufacturing, and exports.
“Our goal is to make Philippine ecozones a preferred base for the industries shaping the global economy. Wider market access gives investors a stronger reason to manufacture and export from the Philippines,” Mr. Panga said.
The Philippines and EU are aiming to sign the free trade agreement by next year. This deal is expected to unlock around $12 billion in export potential for the Southeast Asian country, the Trade department earlier said.
