Handi Group, one of the largest and advanced private specialty oil producers in China, expressed interest to invest in petroleum refining and a petrochemical manufacturing facility in the Philippines.
Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez, in a recent meeting with Handi Group president Hanling Wu, discussed the possibility of such investments from China.
“We welcome business intentions to strengthen our petrochemical industry, which the government actively supports. They expressed strong confidence on the business environment stability during the Duterte administration,” Lopez said.
The Philippines continues to receive business intentions and expansion projects from large companies based in China.
Handi Group is a conglomerate based in Hainan Province and engages in multiple industries, including oil refinery, chemical industry, trading, investment and financing.
The group, through subsidiaries Hainan Handi Sunshine Petrochemical Co. Ltd., Hainan Handi Petrochemical Co. Ltd., Handi Lubricant Technology (China) Co. Ltd., Handi Sunshine Trading Co. Ltd. and Handi Investment, has established a full scale and long-term strategic cooperation with large international energy companies such as ExxonMobil, Total, Chevron and BASF.
The group eyes Mindanao as a potential site for the petrochemical facility. The location is estimated to be suitable for the company’s power, land and accessibility requirements.
It also conveyed the need of Handi Group for a pool of technical staff, specifically engineers, from Philippines and the availability of talents in Mindanao.
“There are a lot of universities in Mindanao that produce quality graduates and professionals in the field of engineering. We have good universities present in all parts of Philippines, ” Lopez told the investors.