SBMA to sign deal with Taiwan firm

The Subic Bay Development Authority (SBMA) announced it will be signing a deal with a Taiwanese firm that will bring in up to $35 billion in initial investments within the Freeport zone.

“I will be going to Taiwan this Friday and I am confident we will sign something by that time,” Armand Arreza, SBMA administrator and CEO said yesterday.

According to Arreza, he is finalizing the agreement with Century Development Corp. to build a software park in Subic.

Arreza said the initial $35 million is only for land development.

“The big investments will come when firms start locating within the software park,” Arreza explained.

The software park is expected to be constructed in a 10-hectare lot within the Freeport zone.

The construction of the software park is expected to spur the information technology industry in the country. The software park will house companies that provide research and development and programming services.

Initially, he said the park will host call centers but eventually, Arreza said business process outsourcing (BPO) companies will also locate in the area.

“We will get the high tech industries from Taiwan to use our IT (information technology) talents,” Arreza said.

“This development is similar to Eastwood in Quezon City,” Arreza explained. The administrator said the development in Subic will be an integrated development wherein commercial spaces and education and training facilities will be built.

This forms part of the phase two of Subic Bay’s industrial park.

“The focus has shifted from low cost manufacturing to the production of high technology supplies with high value added,” Arreza said.