Philippines Update: New Power Plants Announced

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• July 28: 2015 Infrastructure Technology Seminar in Philippines
   
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New Power Plants Announced

In response to greater demand and growth, Philippine Energy Secretary Carlos Jericho Petilla has announced the opening of 23 new coal-fired power plants by 2020.  These include power plant expansions through the archipelago, with companies such as Meralco Power Gen. introducing two new projects in Quezon in 2018: a 1,200-MW Atimonan power plant, and a 500-MW San Buenaventura coal-fired power plant.  A number of different firms, such as Team Energy, Redondo Peninsula Energy, San Miguel Corp., and Alcantara Group, have announced the introduction of new projects through the next five years.  In order to balance the introduction of these coal projects, the Department of Energy (DOE) is setting a feed-in tariff (FIT) quota to better integrate renewable energy (RE) in the Philippines.  While Secretary Petilla has pushed for a higher share of renewable energy in the country’s fuel mix, the ratio of 30% renewable energy to 30% liquefied natural gas (LNG) to the remaining 40% of existing fuel sources, this balance cannot be enforced due to the market-driven structure of the power generator sector.  Despite the lack of enforcement in the sector, the new feed-in tariffs (FIT) guarantee all renewable energy developers a constant generation rate per kilowatt-hour for the next twenty years.  Currently, renewable energy accounts for 23% of the Philippines power supply, with a target of 30% in the next few years.  Due to the introduction of a huge number of new coal-fired power plants, about 2,700 MW of renewable energy will need to be built in order to maintain power mix balances.  Secretary Petilla has highlighted four major goals for the Department of Energy: pricing, self-sufficiency, health, and the environment.

Revised Customs Guidelines

The Philippine Bureau of Customs (BoC) has issued a new memorandum containing revised implementation guidelines for ASEAN’s second Self-Certification Pilot Project (SCPP 2), which allows eligible exporters from participating nations to self-declare their goods without presenting an ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA) Form.  An exporter seeking to gain this status must apply to the BoC’s Assessment and Operations Coordinating Group, and provide “all guarantees necessary to verify the originating status of the goods for which an invoice declaration was made out.”  The BoC has said it will conduct orientation seminars for exporters and importers on the implementation of the program.  The successful implementation of ASEAN’s self-certification system will provide the business community an added advantage in managing costs and help them take advantage of ATIGA.  However, the broad utility of SCPP 2 is limited due to eligibility restrictions affecting certain types of companies.  In this regard, the Council would like to highlight ASEAN’s other pilot self-certification scheme, SCPP 1, which is more aligned with the needs of modern supply chains.  The full text of the BoC memorandum can be found here. 

Call for Improved Industrial Policy

The Philippines must overhaul its industrial policy to effectively compete with neighboring countries, argues Action for Economic Reforms (AER).  In a recently released report, the Manila-based economic think tank argues that Philippine government policy over the last three decades has comprehensively ignored the importance of industrialization.  The reports asserts that the Philippines has the technical capabilities, potential institutional structure and human capital to undertake selected and well-thought out industrial expansion.  It suggests that these inherent advantages can be further harnessed through by building government capacity in industrial planning and technological policy.  According to AER, the biggest constraints to implementing this vision is in the “political will and mindset of [both] the government and the private sector.”  To overcome this institutional inertia, the think tank suggests a broad coalition for industrial policy, involving labor representatives, businesses, academics, and select elements of the bureaucracy.  The AER’s report can be read here.

Philippines, Japan defy China with second spy plane flight GMA News 24th Jun 2015
The Philippines and Japan flew patrol planes near the disputed South China Sea waters for the second straight day on Wednesday, defying Chinese warnings. A Japanese P-3C Orion and a Philippine Navy islander flew on a search and rescue drill 50 nautical miles (92.6 kilometers) northwest of Palawan island, officials said. While the flight was in the general direction of the resource-rich Recto (Reed) Bank claimed by both the Philippines and China, officials refused to say if the planes flew directly over the area.

China told to restrain self Manila Standard Today 21st Jun 2015
The Philippines has raised the alarm anew over China’s massive reclamation activities in disputed territories in the South China Sea, calling on Beijing to “exercise self-restraint.” “The Philippines reiterates its serious concern on China’s massive reclamation activities and planned construction of facilities in those features. These activities cause irreparable damage to the marine environment and marine biodiversity of the region,” the Department of Foreign Affairs said. The DFA said China’s reclamation and construction activities “grossly violate” the 2002 Asean-China Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC) and may serve to escalate the disputes and undermine efforts to promote peace, security, and stability.

Palace rejects calls for Aquino Cabinet bets to resign early Business Mirror 24th Jun 2015
Malacanang cast aside calls for Aquino Cabinet officials poised to run in the 2016 elections to resign early to avert allegations of misusing public funds in their political campaign. Secretary Edwin Lacierda, President Aquino’s chief spokesman, on Tuesday shot down pleas for Cabinet secretaries known to be eyeing coveted posts at stake in the 2016 national elections for president, vice president, senators and congressmen, including Interior Secretary Manuel Roxas II, Technical Education and Skills Development Authority Director General Joel Villanueva and Energy Secretary Carlos Jericho L. Petilla, among others.

Binay resigns from Aquino's Cabinet The Philippine Star 22nd Jun 2015
Vice President Jejomar Binay resigned from his post in President Benigno Aquino III's Cabinet on Monday. The vice president's resignation as chairman of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council and as presidential adviser on overseas Filipino workers is effective immediately. "Vice President Jejomar C. Binay today tendered his irrevocable resignation from the Cabinet effective immediately," Office of the Vice President Media Affairs head Joey Salgado said in a statement.

Aquino still eyeing talks with Communist rebels Manila Standard Today 22nd Jun 2015
President Benigno Aquino III is not yet giving up on the peace talks with the communists that have been stalled since February 2011, Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said Sunday. He said the government continued to study the possibility of reviving the negotiations with the rebels. “The government continues to be open and interested to negotiate. We are open to the resumption of the formal talks,” Coloma said in a radio interview. He noted how presidential peace adviser Teresita Deles went to Loreto in Agusan del Sur recently to welcome 100 rebel-returnees who turned over their firearms. “Our government will continue to push through with the peace process,” Coloma said.

BOC releases rules for exporters’ self-certification PortCalls Asia 24th Jun 2015
The Bureau of Customs (BOC) has issued revised implementation guidelines on the self-certification project for exporters, a pilot program that aims to fast track the free flow of goods within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Customs Commissioner Alberto Lina on June 17 signed Customs Memorandum Order (CMO) No. 18-2015, putting into effect Customs Administrative Order (CAO) No. 06-2013. The CAO in turn activates the memorandum of understanding (MOU) among ASEAN-member states participating in the second pilot of self-certification. The MOU was signed on August 29, 2012 by the Philippines, Indonesia and Laos in preparation for the developmt of an ASEAN-wide Self-Certification System by 2015.

PPA: Cargo volume up 6% in 4 months Manila Standard Today 23rd Jun 2015
The Philippine Ports Authority said cargo volume grew 6 percent in the first four months of the year on strong international trade. Data from PPA showed total cargo volume reached 66.60 million metric tons in the January-to-April period from 62.63 million MT year-on-year. Domestic cargoes increased 6.9 percent to 27.75 million MT from only 25.97 million MT year ago. Foreign cargo volume rose 6 percent to 38.85 million MT from 36.66 million MT a year ago.

Third APEC Senior Officials’ meeting to be held in Cebu Business World 19th Jun 2015
The Philippines, which hosts this year’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, will hold the Third APEC Senior Officials’ Meeting and Related Meetings (SOM3) from August 22 to September 6 in Cebu, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said in a statement. APEC Committees and Working Groups will have meetings and discuss “issues on trade and investment, services, counter-terrorism, automotive and chemical regulation, mining, illegal logging, intellectual property, customs procedures, standards and conformance, anti-corruption, electronic commerce, health and life sciences, disability issues, business mobility, and market access,” the statement said.

Customs fails to meet Jan-April revenue goal The Philippine Star 19th Jun 2015
The Bureau of Customs (BOC) failed to meet its revenue target for the first four months of the year with collections 14.43 percent short of the target. Data from the Bureau of Customs showed that while total collections from January to April rose 2.7 percent to P120.4 billion, the amount was still below the agency’s goal of P140.7 billion for the period. In April alone, the BOC collected P28 billion, lower than the P30.76 billion revenues in the same month last year, thereby missing its target by 24 percent. Meanwhile, collections from non-oil increased by five percent year-on-year to P22.7 billion, driven by the increase in both its volume and value of imports by 12 percent and 2.6 percent, respectively.

New P3-B port rising in Bataan The Philippine Star 18th Jun 2015
The tandem of Filipino-owned Seasia Logistic Philippines Inc. and London-based Nectar Group Ltd. expects to complete the first phase of a P3-billion development port project in Bataan. Seasia president Rafael Cosme said in an interview with The STAR that phase 1 of the port development project of Seasia Nectar Port Services Inc. (SNPSI) worth P1.2 billion, covering 5.9 hectares would be completed within the year. Cosme said the port facility could accommodate two supramax vessels about 120 meters long and would be equipped with a 247-meter quay that could handle a capacity of at least three million tons per year. Phase 1 would have an operational area of 3.2 hectares as well as truck holding area of 2.7 hectares.

Korea test flight first FA-50 fighter jet for PHL Business Mirror 24th Jun 2015
The first lead-in fighter jet for the country had its maiden flight last week in South Korea, hastening the much-needed rearming and equipping of the otherwise moribund Armed Forces, amid the dispute with China in the West Philippine Sea (WPS). The test flight of the newly manufactured FA-50 fighter aircraft was conducted on June 19 by the Korean Aerospace Industries (KAI), the company that bagged the delivery of a squadron of FA-50 for the Air Force. The test flight followed an earlier statement by the Department of National Defense (DND) that it expected delivery at the end of this year the first two aircraft from the 12 fighter jets ordered from KAI.

Philippines Buys 100 New Patrol Boats for War on Poaching The Diplomat 24th Jun 2015
The Philippines is purchasing nearly 100 new patrol boats to better protect its fisheries from poaching by foreign vessels, an official said Monday. According to Asis Perez, chief of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, the Philippines has ordered 98 new vessels – 71 short-range boats for coastal patrols and 27 that are able to go out farther into the sea. Most of them will be delivered this year. The agency is also reportedly seeking funding to acquire 10 larger boats that can patrol the high seas. The vessels, Perez said, would be used to protect Philippine fisheries. He said that the agency’s current 20 patrol boats were woefully inadequate to cover 36,000 kilometers (22,370 miles) of coastline and over 7,100 islands.

Philippines could become major arms production hub The Rakyat Post 23rd Jun 2015
Weapons and munitions manufacturers from Canada, the US, South Korea and South Africa are considering setting up operations in the Philippines once its first defence economic zone is launched, a senior government official said today. Rheinmetall Denel Munition of South Africa and a unit of South Korea’s S&T Holdings Co top the list of defence companies looking to lease land in the Southeast Asian country, said Roger Gamban, chief of the state agency overseeing the country’s weapons and munitions output. US-based Colt’s Manufacturing Co and Canada’s Waterbury Farrel are also considering manufacturing in the Philippines, he said.

Philippines begins naval drills with US, Japan amid China sea row The Economic Times 22nd Jun 2015
The Philippines Monday began separate but simultaneous naval exercises with the United States and Japan, amid shared and growing concern at Chinese island-building in the disputed South China Sea. Manila has been holding the naval drills with its longtime ally Washington since 1995. But the exercise with Tokyo, a World War II foe, is only its second ever after one earlier this year.

PIDS supports easing of foreign ownership limits The Philippine Star 25th Jun 2015
The Philippines needs to relax its restrictions on foreign ownership and unify its incentive-giving bodies to make it competitive in the region in attracting job-generating foreign direct investments (FDIs), state think tank Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) said. FDI inflows to Southeast Asia registered a five percent increase to $132.87 billion in 2014, according to the World Investment Report 2015 released by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) yesterday. But among the member economies in the region, the Philippines ranked in the lower half of the subgroup, receiving $6.2 billion in FDI inflows last year.

Philippines remains among top 10 recipients of foreign investments in East, Southeast Asia InterAksyon 24th Jun 2015
The Philippines is one of the top 10 foreign direct investment (FDI) recipients in East and Southeast Asia, the World Investment Report (WIR) 2015 of United Nations Conference on Development and Trade (UNCTAD) said on Wednesday. The WIR 2015 showed that the Philippines has attracted some US$6 billion worth of FDI in 2014, up from US$4 billion in 2013. This lifted the country’s ranking in East and Southeast Asia from 10th in 2013 to ninth last year. The UNCTAD report said China remained the highest recipient of FDIs in 2014, with inflows of US$129 billion, followed by Hong Kong with US$103 billion.

Fitch Ratings maintains Philippines growth forecast InterAksyon 24th Jun 2015
Fitch Ratings has forecast expansion of 6.3 percent and 6.2 percent for the Philippine economy for 2015 and 2016 but warned of weak public spending. In its sovereign overview for Asia Pacific economies for the second quarter of 2015, the debt watcher noted the slowdown of domestic growth to 5.2 percent in the first quarter of 2015 from a year ago’s 5.6 percent. ”Fitch does not expect a significant pick-up in public investment as bottlenecks remain with respect to disbursement of public funds,” it said. It stressed that “a narrow revenue base is likely to prevent a material increase in public spending.”

PH's balance of payments in May swings to deficit Rappler 20th Jun 2015
The Philippines’ balance of payments (BOP) – transactions with the rest of the world for a period – swung to a deficit in May, decreasing slightly its year-to-date surplus. The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reported on Friday, June 19, that BOP posted a $58-million deficit last month. This is a turnaround from the $373-million surplus recorded last year and the $380-million surplus seen in April. A deficit in BOP means that more funds left the country than went in. This in turn reduces the money supply that the Philippines can use as a cushion against external volatility.

How the Philippines is emerging as a key Asian economy International Business Times 19th Jun 2015
The Philippines is experiencing growth that is rivalling the likes of China and India, but its economic story is often overshadowed by its larger Asian neighbours. The county's GDP grew 6.1% last year and it is expected to grow at a similar rate this year. Trade Secretary Gregory Domingo, who is visiting Britain to drum up investment, spoke to IBTimes UK about how it could potentially hit 9% GDP. The Philippines has seen a spate of inward investment in recent years, with the likes of Tesco, Marks & Spencer and Debenhams all popping up in Manila. In addition, a number of multinationals, such HSBC and Shell, have outsourced their back office and IT operations to the Philippines.

DOE approves re-assignment of interest in Palawan oil well from Pitkin Petroleum InterAksyon 24th Jun 2015
The Department of Energy (DOE) has approved the 70 percent re-assignment of interest for Service Contract 6-Octon Block from Pitkin Petroleum Plc. back to the original farmors. ”We received advice from the SC 6 Block A Operator that the Department of Energy has approved the re-assignment of participating interests to the farmors resulting from the withdrawal of erstwhile farminee, Pitkin Petroleum Plc,” Trans-Asia Petroleum Corporation said in a disclosure from the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) Wednesday. Trans-Asia Petroleum noted its participating interest in SC 6 Block A has reverted to 7.78 percent following the DOE’s approval.

Philippines' biggest waste-to-fuel facility opens ABS-CBN News 24th Jun 2015
The country's largest refuse derived fuel (RDF) facility dedicated to producing fuel from waste was launched Wednesday in Pasig City. Private construction firm IPM Construction and Development Corp. led the launch together with the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) and Pasig City government. "We're excited to launch this project and officially start its operation as we celebrate World Environment Day and as the Philippines observes Environment Month this June," Pasig City Mayor Maribel Eusebio said.

More power plants schedule maintenance shutdowns The Philippine Star 22nd Jun 2015
The Luzon Grid may have survived summer with none of the feared power outages but the biggest grid in the country is not out of the woods yet because a number of power plants are set to undertake maintenance shutdowns starting June. For the month of June, for instance, the total capacity on outage is 1,125 MW, according to industry data. The power plants that are scheduled to go on shutdown or are still on shutdown for the month are 375 MW Pagbilao 1 (May 30 to June 28), 250-MW San Lorenzo Module 50 (June 13 to 14), the 250-MW San Lorenzo Module 60 (June 20 to 21) and the 250-MW Sta. Rita Module 40 natural gas plant (June 24 to 28).

Why investing in renewable energy is a must for Philippines CBN News 20th Jun 2015
Dubbed as the most important knowledge-sharing event on clean energy in the region, the 2015 Asia Clean Energy Forum brought together top global energy experts, government officials, investors and project developers at the Asian Development Bank (ADB) headquarters in Manila this week. Now on its 10th year, the forum highlighted the need for more investments in clean and renewable energy, especially in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region. Fossil fuels are still leading the pack in the total energy generation mix in Southeast East Asia, said Sanjayan Velautham, executive director of the ASEAN Centre for Energy. He estimated that coal takes up about 31 percent and gas also around the same percentage, while wind and solar only generate 1 to 2 percent of the region’s energy supply.

BSP requiring banks to enhance BCM plans The Philippine Star 25th Jun 2015
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas has issued draft guidelines requiring banks to strengthen further their business continuity management (BCM) plans designed to help them deal with risks and hazards following catastrophic events such as an earthquake. “To further boost disaster resilience of the banking sector, the BSP recently exposed draft guidelines on BCM to the industry which aim to enhance BCM processes of BSP-supervised financial institutions,” the central bank said. The BSP said the new guidelines would include strategies and actions meant to help banks deal with risks and hazards following “catastrophic events” such as an earthquake.

Wild market swings seen easing up The Philippine Star 22nd Jun 2015
There should be fewer wild swings in the foreign exchange and equities market as investors are expected to have already priced in an eventual increase in US interest rates, a top Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas official said. BSP Deputy Governor Diwa C. Guinigundo made the comment as global financial markets remain volatile amid the Greece debt issue and pending the US Federal Reserve’s interest rate hike. He said that as early as 2013, when the US Fed hinted adjustments in its rates that have been kept near-zero since the global financial crisis of 2008, emerging markets suffered massive capital outflows as investors rebalanced their portfolios.

PSE launches new trading system today The Philippine Star 22nd Jun 2015
The Philippine Stock Exchange Inc. (PSE) is proceeding with the debut of its new trading system today after deferring its supposed launch last June 1 following further testing and approval required from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). In a statement over the weekend, the PSE said it would officially say goodbye to its old trading system which has been in use since 2010 as the PSEtradeXTS officially goes live today. “We are eager to shift to the XTS platform which runs on Nasdaq’s X-stream Trading technology. We are confident that this platform will aid us in our commitment to provide more services responsive to the needs of investors and other stakeholders,” PSE president and chief executive officer Hans B. Sicat said.

Phl insurance market still smallest in Asean The Philippine Star 21st Jun 2015
The Philippine insurance market remains the smallest among the five largest economies in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean-5) in terms of assets and premiums, based on a recent study of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). USAID’s Advancing Philippine Competitiveness (COMPETE) project found the insurance markets in the Asean-5 appear to be the least developed. But among the Asean-5, composed of Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand, the Philippines had the smallest insurance market. The Philippine life insurance market is worth $16.6 billion in assets and $3.8 billion in premium earnings.

Fortified insurer RBC framework begins to bite in 12 months Business Mirror 19th Jun 2015
The Insurance Commission (IC) aims to implement in full by June next year a fortified version of the risk-based capital framework, or RBC 2, for the nation’s insurers that will determine the amount of capital they must keep depending on the risks they take. Insurance Commissioner Emmanuel F. Dooc issued Circular Letter 2015-31 that set the implementation date of the fortified framework beginning June 30, 2016, and requiring all insurance companies to participate at trial runs scheduled over the next six months. For now, the IC is reviewing the existing RBC framework, which requires insurance companies to put up additional capital depending on the risks they have undertaken, aside from the mandatory capital they should have as provided for in the amended Insurance Code.

Credit access in Philippines most restrictive in Asean – USAID The Philippine Star 19th Jun 2015
Access to credit in the Philippines is the most restrictive compared with other Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) member states, a United States Agency for International Development (USAID) study said. In order to raise credit available in the country, USAID’s Advancing Philippine Competitiveness (COMPETE) project urged the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to scrap the special deposit account (SDA) and lower the reserve requirement ratio. The COMPETE project, conducted by Dr. Mario Lamberte and Ammielou Q. Gaduena of the University of the Philippines School of Economics, was launched in 2012 to improve the country’s competitiveness and attain higher levels of trade and investment.

BSP allows stand-alone trust firms Manila Standard Today 18th Jun 2015
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has approved the establishment of stand-alone trust corporations, earlier only allowed to operate as departments within banks. BSP Governor Amando M. Tetangco Jr. told reporters the move was welcomed by banks given the benefits they would enjoy by putting up a trust institution instead of having it within their firms. These stand-alone trust corporations will have lower supervision fees, no reserve requirements, no single borrower’s limit (SBL) and no cap on the directors, officers, stockholders, and their related interests’ loan (DOSRI), Tetangco said.

DA expands corn program to boost harvest in Mindanao Business Mirror 23rd Jun 2015
The Department of Agriculture (DA) said it has expanded a program for assisting farmers who plant in sloping areas in the Visayas and Mindanao to increase the harvest of corn in areas devastated by the El Niño weather phenomenon. Dubbed as the Sustainable Corn Production in Sloping Areas (Scopsa), Agriculture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala said the program aims to address the problem of soil erosion. “There are critical sloping areas in [Visayas and Mindanao] where many farmers plant corn,” Alcala said in a statement. The DA said among the critical areas are Sara and San Dionisio, both in Iloilo.

Group seeks health promotion law vs smoking Philippine Star 23rd Jun 2015
An anti-tobacco advocate is seeking a health promotion law to institutionalize campaigns on the harmful effects of smoking. Health promotion must be institutionalized to ensure the continuity of the campaign despite a change in leadership in government, according to Emer Rojas, New Vois Association of the Philippines (NVAP) president. “As we are heading towards unitary sin tax by next year, we have to take advantage of the full benefits of the tobacco levy by increasing capacity to raise the people’s awareness on healthy lifestyles,” he said.

Bidders given more time to prepare for Davao’s Sasa Port PPP project The Philippine Star 25th Jun 2015
The deadline for the submission of qualification documents for the first seaport Public-Private Partnership (PPP) project has been moved to July 29 instead of June 30 to give bidders more time to prepare their qualification documents. “In order to give prospective bidders ample time to prepare their qualification documents, please be informed the deadline for the submission of qualification documents has been moved from June 30 to July 29,” DOTC Undersecretary Jose Perpetuo Lotilla said in a bid bulletin. Lotilla added the opening of the qualification documents would be held immediately after the deadline. Earlier, DOTC spokesperson Michael Arthur Sagcal said the PPP project has lured five companies including San Miguel Corp. (SMC), Davao International Container Terminal, Madrid-based OHL Group through Obrascon Huarte Lain (OHL) SA, French-owned Bollore SA, and Portek Systems and Equipment Pte Ltd of Singapore.

Infra spending in Q1 below target Philippine Daily Inquirer 22nd Jun 2015
The amount of money spent by the government to build vital infrastructure during the first quarter was not only below target, but also lower than the previous year’s expenditures, the latest Department of Budget and Management (DBM) data showed. According to the DBM, the government used up only P68.5 billion on infrastructure and other capital outlays during the first three months, down 11 percent from P77 billion in the first quarter of last year. The first-quarter infrastructure expenditures were also 27.3-percent lower than the P94.3 billion that the government had programmed to spend between from January to March. In all, capital outlays in the first quarter slid 6.3 percent year-on-year to P88.3 billion, also 23.2-percent below the program of P115.1 billion for the period. Besides expenditures on infrastructure, capital outlays also include equity as well as capital transfers to local government units.

DOTC set to open bids for LRT consultancy contract The Philippine Star 22nd Jun 2015
The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) is set to open tomorrow the eligibility documents and technical proposals for the negotiated procurement of an independent consultant for the P65-billion Light Rail Transit line 1 (LRT1) Cavite Extension project. DOTC negotiating team head Marguerite Therese Lucila-Tesoro issued a bulletin moving the submission of the financial and technical proposals as well as the opening of the eligibility documents and technical proposals to June 23 instead of June 19. The DOTC has earmarked P831.35 million to undertake the negotiated procurement of the independent consultant for the LRT Line 1 extension as well as operations and maintenance project.

New bid rules out for P108-B airports projects The Philippine Star 19th Jun 2015
The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) has released bid guidelines for the development as well as operation and maintenance (O&M) of five regional airports worth P108.2 billion under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) program. DOTC Undersecretary Rene Limcaoco issued General Bid Bulletin 07-2015 announcing the release of the revised Instruction to Prospective Bidders (ITPB) that was uploaded in the agency’s website last Wednesday. In the revised guidelines, Limcaoco said the first bundle includes the P20.26 billion Bacolod-Silay Airport and the P14.62 billion Laguindingan Airport, while the second bundle covers the P40.57 billion Davao Airport, the P30.4 billion Iloilo Airport, and the P2.34 billion New Bohol (Panglao) Airport.

BOI fine-tunes CARS with industry players The Philippine Star 25th Jun 2015
The Board of Investments (BOI) has wrapped up consultations with industry players for the crafting of rules to implement the Comprehensive Automotive Resurgence Strategy (CARS) program. In a statement, the BOI said it recently met with carmakers and parts manufacturers to brief them on the features and mechanics of the CARS. The meeting was held to get inputs of stakeholders for the program’s implementing rules and regulations (IRR) targeted for completion next month. Among those consulted were members of the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc., Philippine Automotive Competitiveness Council Inc., Federation of Automobile Industry Philippines, Truck Manufacturers Association Inc. and Motor Vehicle Parts Manufacturers Association of the Philippines.

Industrial policy overhaul urged The Philippine Star 24th Jun 2015
To catch up with progress in neighboring countries, the Philippines needs to overhaul its industrial policy to focus on progressive industries, according to civil society coalition Action for Economic Reforms (AER). A framework paper done by the AER-Industrial Policy Team (IPT) pointed out the Philippines has failed to push for industrialization in the past three decades. Dr. Rene Ofreneo, UP School of Labor and Industrial Relations professor and member of the AER-IPT, said the Philippines has a very narrow model of export-oriented industrial (EOI) policy which has failed the country massively. “If you are strategizing, you will concentrate on those items that are highly value added where this requires higher skills,” he said.