Lopezes eye Iloilo shipyard

Iloilo City — The Lopez group is looking at building a shipyard here as more investors choose to locate in the province.

“We are conducting a feasibility study,” Oscar Lopez, chairman of the family-controlled investment holding firm Benpres Holdings, told businessmen in a keynote speech during the first Iloilo Investment Forum held at the Sarabia Manor Hotel and Convention Center.

Lopez said they will need a big port for shipwreck construction. The shipwreck concept involves the reconstruction of old ships, with salvaged parts  made into steel products.

He said the location of the potential shipyard must be well protected from typhoons.

He added that their decision to invest in the province  would help jumpstart the economy here, the hometown of the Lopez clan.

“We want to give back something of ourselves and our companies to our native province where my father started his business career and where we, his children, spent our happy childhood years,” Lopez explained.

Iloilo has been experiencing an influx of investments lately. Upscare property developer Megaworld Corp. has announced it will invest P1.5 billion in the province for the development of the 54-hectare old Iloilo airport.

The property developer plans to put up residential units;  hotel and convention center; commercial and retail stores; recreation centers and skills development facilities.

Meanwhile, the Consunji led DMCI Holdings, Inc. will build a 100-megawatt (mw) coal-fired power plant. It plans to buy a second-hand power plant from China or India to save on costs because a new plant would cost around $120 million to $150 million, but assembling an old one would cost about 20 percent less. DMCI subsidiary Semirara Mining Corp. is the country’s largest coal producer and last year accounted for 90 percent of total domestic supply. However, as the company’s coal production surpasses local demand, it exports its excess coal.

Likewise, Global Business Power Corp. owned by the Ty family of the Metrobank group has partnered with Taiwanese firm

Formosa Heavy Industries for the construction of a $500-million power plant using clean coal technology.  The joint venture agreement completes the plans of Global Power to expand its power plants in Cebu and Panay in answer to the urgent need for more electricity in the Cebu-Negros-Panay grid. The new plant in Iloilo City will have a capacity of 164 mw.