Technopark continues to draw foreign investors

The Yulo-controlled Carmelray Industrial Park (CIP) II in Laguna continues to draw in foreign investors despite the country’s deteriorating image in the international community caused mainly by concerns on peace and order and political stability.

Eduardo Abores, president of Carmelray-JTCI Corp., said 12 new companies are set to locate at the 145-hectare economic zone which he said could be distinguished as the country’s only state-of-the-art, fully integrated information technology (IT)-oriented industrial park.

"We are repositioning CIP II as the premier site for companies in the ICT (information and communication technology) sector. No other park can boast of the infrastructure that we have," he said.

Abores added that foreign companies scouting for overseas sites for their operations usually raise concerns over the country’s negative image but are later convinced to relocate in the Philippines after they are given the complete picture of the business and political climate.

CIP II marketing director Francisco Zaldarriaga added that with more facilities and services to be offered in anticipation of the future needs of the locators, the ecozone will even rise up to world-class standards characterized by a self-contained, fully-integrated industrial site with its own power plant, water system, telecoms network, and ready-built plant structures.

CIP II is a joint venture between the Yulo’s Carmelray and Ascendas Philippines, formerly known as JTCI Development Philippines Corp., the local unit of Singaporean industrial conglomerate Jurong Town Corp.

Since it opened in 1998, CIP II continues to attract export-oriented locators at an average rate of one every month – a commendable feat considering the economic slowdown and the tough competition from neighboring countries.

Bringing in about P2 billion worth of investments, the new locators will add up to 41 the number of establishments operating at the CIP II in Calamba, Laguna.

The 12 new firms are: Adamay International, HKT Philippines Inc. CCMC Land Inc., Takata Physics International Co. Ltd., Engtek Precision Philippines Inc., White Cap Asia Pacific Science Inc., Tungaloy Seimetsu Phils. Inc., SPI Technologies Inc., MTE Technology Inc., Kyushu Matsushita Electric Co. Ltd., Philippine Tohbe Corp., and Content Sciences Inc.

Global courier service giant Federal Express is also expected to follow suit with the establishment of an offsite unit at the park.

With the new entrants, investments poured in by the locators that are now estimated to reach $152 million, generating employment for 3,000 people.