MANILA, Philippines - Korean shipbuilder Hanjin Heavy Industries & Construction – Philippines, Inc. (HHIC-Phil, Inc.) is set to employ thousands of additional workers in its shipyard located at the Subic Bay Freeport in Olongapo this year.
HHIC-Phil, Inc. currently employs nearly 20,000 local employees and continues to generate more indirect job and business opportunities in the surrounding communities.
Jin Kyu Ahn, president of the Korean shipbuilder giant, said that once targets for ship orders are reached this year, Hanjin could add over 10,000 workers which “would clearly benefit the Philippine economy, and bring opportunities to Filipino entrepreneurs and skilled workers, and much needed revenue to the Philippine government”.
Ahn added that as operations in the Subic shipyard expand “we will require more employees to join the Hanjin workforce, creating employment opportunities for residents in the surrounding area of the freeport zone, including the provinces of Bataan, Zambales, and the city of Olongapo”.
Since the start of the commercial operation of Hanjin’s shipyard at the Subic Bay Freeport in 2008, it has already generated worth P125 billion in exports, making it the consistent top exporter in the Subic’s freeport.
Ahn said that the recent vessel deliveries by Hanjin highlighted the competitiveness of HHIC-Phil’s Subic shipyard, which produces state-of-the-art commercial vessels.
The vessels include M/T Brightway, a DWT 160,000 crude oil tanker ordered by Liberian company Modmal Shipping Limited, and M/V FMG Matilda, a DWT 205,000 bulk carrier owned by Bocimar Hong Kong Ltd. based in Belgium.
Both Modmal Shipping and Bocimar HK are engaged in international shipping and maritime solutions.
Maximizing its assets and capabilities, Ahn said that the presence of the Subic shipyard in the freeport has been positively contributing to the growth of the Philippine economy since 2006 and would continue to make significant contributions in the Philippine maritime industry in the years ahead.
Based on records of the Maritime Industry Authority, an agency under the Department of Transportation and Communications, the Philippines currently ranks as the world’s fourth largest shipbuilding country.