Subic delivers first pleasure boat

SUBIC BAY FREEPORT, Philippines - The first pleasure boat to be built in the Subic Bay Freeport passed its sea trial with a very impressive performance.

Built by Australasia Marine Alliance Corp. (AMAC), an all-Filipino boat manufacturer registered in the Subic Freeport, the 28-footer Mustang Marine 2800 Sports Cruiser is the first of its model constructed in the Philippines.

AMAC is considered an alternative manufacturer of recreational boats in the Philippines by Mustang Marine Australia Services Pty Ltd., the flagship company of Australasia Alliance Corp., the oldest and second largest boat builder in Australia.

Henry Co, AMAC managing director, said the A$120,000-cruiser is one of the smallest boats built under the Mustang brand name.

“Yet it is practically a livable boat with superb craftsmanship and elegant designs found in its kitchen, toilet, bedroom and lounge,” Co enthused during an inspection of the prototype by Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) chairman Feliciano Salonga.

The Mustang Marine 2800 Sports Cruiser is powered by a MerCruiser 5.0L MPI Bravo 3 260-horsepower, 300-liter gasoline engine. It went as fast as 30.4 knots or 35 miles an hour during sea trials in Subic Bay.

“Mustang Marine general manager Chris Heaton came here to witness the sea trial and checked everything. And he was very impressed with the quality of the boat we made,” said Co.

Co also noted that with technical assistance from Mustang Australia, it took five months to finish the first boat, which is now ready to be shipped to its owner in Thailand.

“We have to train people step by step, so production of the first boat took quite long. But by the end of the year, we will gear up to about two to three units a month of this size,” he added.

Meanwhile, Salonga said that the successful sea trial of the Mustang is a milestone for the Subic Bay Freeport in its bid to become a maritime hub in the Southeast Asian region.

“There’s no doubt that other boat makers in Australia would want to see how the first boat that AMAC constructed in Subic with Filipino workers works. With proven high quality craftsmanship and competitive labor resource, I am confident that more orders will start coming,” said Salonga.

He said the decision by Mustang Marine, which is a popular name in Australia’s boat circles, to build the 2800 Sports Cruiser model in Subic would encourage other investors looking for cost-competitiveness, Filipino talent and craftsmanship, as well as business incentives offered by the free port.

Ronnie Yambao, head of the SBMA Manufacturing and Maritime Business Department, confirmed that the maritime industry in Subic is now a progressive sector, with a growing number of investors in the fields of shipbuilding and repair, as well as marine logistics.

“With this sector growing, I think we are completing the picture of Subic as a truly maritime hub,” Yambao said, pointing out that several investors have also made Subic a venue for schooling seafarers and conducting classes on ship management.