Taiwan International Ports Corp. has expressed interest to invest in Subic Bay Freeport and transform it into a major port destination in Asia.
TIPC chairman Chih-Ching Chang said in a meeting with Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority chairman Roberto Garcia that Taiwanese investors were now looking at Subic because of its location and facilities.
“Subic is the finest commercial and tourism destination that we have seen, and the future cargo shipping destination,” Chang said.
Chang said with the ports in Taiwan nearing full capacity, many shippers in the island-state planned to invest overseas. He said among the preferred locations for them is Subic, specifically the Taiwanese-managed Subic Bay Gateway Park.
“Subic must prepare for the future as more cargoes are expected to come here from Taiwan because the port in Taiwan is already full. They are coming to Subic and we [TIPC] can help make that happen,” Chang said.
Chang led an 18-man delegation from TIPC for an ocular inspection of the Subic Port. Other members of the delegation are Kuo-Ying Huang, TIPC executive vice-president and chief executive of the Kaohsiung Port; Min-Chuan Yen, director of Kaohsiung District Economic Development Association; and Carol Peng, president of the United Development Corp.
Chang said TIPC would host a meeting with shipping companies and port users in Taiwan. He said TIPC would convince them to send bulk or containerized cargoes to Subic.
Garcia said more Taiwanese companies and other foreign investors had expressed desire to locate in Subic. He said he proposed to develop idle lands between Subic and the nearby Clark Freeport and convert these for industrial use.
“Subic has no more space to offer and there, along the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway, we can still develop at least 1,000 hectares for industrial parks that can be offered to investors,” Garcia said.
He told the Taiwanese visitors that Subic had been making headway in terms of transshipment and maritime logistics services.
Subic Port revenues rose 25 percent in 2015 to P1.16 billion from P908.6 million in 2014.
Garcia said the growth in port revenues was led by an increase in the volume of containerized cargoes from 77,618 twenty-foot equivalent units in 2014 to 123,558 TEUs in 2015. Port yard utilization is now 30 percent.
“We are confident that the increase in container volume handled by the Port of Subic will continue because many shippers have already experienced the convenience of using the Port of Subic,” he said.