2 firms eye P2-B investments at Subic freeport

The Subic Bay Freeport expects two big investments amounting to almost P2 billion to come in next year.

Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) chairman Felicito Payumo said the two prospective investors have shown interest in the Freeport for its storage facilities and accessibility through a deepwater port.

Mega Equipment Corp. (MEC), a Filipino-owned company reportedly plans to invest P1 billion on a bulk grain terminal for such commodities as corn, soybeans and sorghum.

Payumo said MEC is also planning to buy Panamax cargo vessels with a capacity of 60,000 gross tons. Average size ships have a capacity of only 15,000 to 20,000 GRT, he added.

One of the main attributes that attracted MEC to Subic, Payumo said, is the deepwater access to the storage facilities. Normally, if the storage facility is not accessible through a deepwater port, the vessel will have to unload the grains by barge for transport and access to the storage facility.

This results in extra cost, contamination and loss or spillage.

Subic’s central location, Payumo said, is also a plus factor for MEC.

Another potential investor at the Subic Bay Freeport is Tacomo Industry which is into bulk fertilizer, mainly urea. Its investment is placed at around P560 million.

The choice of Subic as a storage facility, Payumo explained, is also due to the savings Tacomo can realize.

According to Payumo, Tacomo does not have to pay taxes immediately unlike in other ports where it has to pay taxes as soon as it unloads its cargo. The savings that Tacomo would incur would be about $5 a ton.