India visit nets $2-B investments

NEW DELHI (via PLDT) - President Arroyo wrapped up her state visit to India by securing over $2 billion in investments.

The President highlighted the $1.6-billion investment of the Ispat Industries Ltd., the owner of Global Steel Works Philippines, for the development of an integrated steel plant in Southern Philippines.

Mrs. Arroyo was informed about the investment during her meeting with Ispat Industries managing director Vinod Mittal two days ago in Mumbai.

“Global Steel of Mittal joined our billion-dollar club by informing us of their plans to set up an integrated steel plant in southern Philippines involving investments of $1.6 billion,” the President said.

Global Steel Works used to be the National Steel Corp., which was acquired by the Philippine National Bank and which in turn sold it to Ispat Industries for $225 million in 2004.

A memorandum of agreement between the Philippine International Trading Corp. (PITC) and the Indian State Trading Corp. was also signed last Friday in New Delhi for the purchase of $35 million worth of quality but affordable medicines from India.

“Our massive spending on health care includes importing pharmaceuticals from India as part of our program to cut in half the price of medicines commonly bought by the poor,” the President said.

Indian filmmaker Aditya Raj Kapoor, considered as part of the royal family of “Bollywood,” has also committed to make a film in the Philippines next year worth $10 million.

President Arroyo noted that the reason the Indian filmmaker decided to shoot a film in the Philippines was because he got to meet with the President.

A memorandum of agreement was also signed between the Philippines IPVG Corp. and Credence Analytics Pvt. Ltd. for a special purpose joint-venture vehicle that will provide business process outsourcing services to the banking and financial sector in various countries around the world.

The deal is expected to generate around $50 million worth of investments in one year.

A distributorship agreement between Macropharma Corp. and Emcure Pharmaceuticals Limited was also signed that is worth $75 million over five years.

Under the deal, Emcure would provide Macropharma with the exclusive marketing and sale in the Philippines of drugs in renal diseases including anti-rejection drugs for renal transplant and anti-cancer care.

The third memorandum of agreement signed was between Panacea Biotech Ltd. of India and Family Vaccine and Specialty Clinics Inc. of the Philippines for the importation and distribution of medicines and vaccines leading to the setup of 100 additional clinics providing quality and affordable health care to at least 500,000 Filipinos.

The transaction value was pegged at $10 million for a period of two years.

Mrs. Arroyo also announced that the Philippine government was able to secure a $50-million credit line from the Export and Import Bank of India.

“We hope this can finance transactions that will correct the lopsided nature of our trade in favor of India,” the President said.

“With India now one of the world’s top economies with a new middle class of half a billion people, your internal market demand and domestic consumption can have a direct and positive impact on us in terms of job creation, balance of trade and investment,” she added.

The President announced that she would be bringing to India a business delegation comprising the members of the Philippine construction industry to look at the possibility of Filipino firms working on  infrastructure projects in India.

“They’re going into a massive infrastructure program. We should get into their construction contracts,” the President said.

Apart from the investments, the President also witnessed the signing of a number of bilateral agreements with India.

Among these are the Framework of Philippines-India Bilateral Relations; Agreement to Establish the Joint Commission on Bilateral Cooperation; Philippines-India Joint Declaration for Cooperation to Combat International Terrorism and the Memorandum of Agreement in the Field of Health and Medicine.

Also signed were the Memorandum of Agreement on Enhanced Cooperation in the Field of Renewable Energy; Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation between the Foreign Service Institutes of the Philippines and India and; Memorandum of Agreement on the Waiver of Visa Requirements for Holders of Diplomatic and Official Passports.