By HENRY EMPEÑO

SUBIC BAY FREEPORT — With a total of P32.98 billion in foreign direct investments (FDIs), the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) dominated the list of investment promotion agencies in the Philippines in the second quarter and erased a nagging uncertainty about the future of shipbuilding here, a cornerstone in Subic’s claim to fame as the country’s first and most progressive free port.

Racking in more than 71 percent of the P46.23-billion national total in the second quarter of this year, Subic’s second quarter foreign investment haul fortified the country’s latest three-month batch of approved foreign investments, which was more than double the P22.5 billion posted in the second quarter of 2021.

According to the SBMA Business and Investment Group (SBMA-BIG), four Dutch-controlled companies topped the Subic investment charts with a total of P18.45 billion for the redevelopment and operation of the former Hanjin shipyard here, which is now called Agila Subic.

The biggest of these Dutch investors is Agila South, Inc., which pledged P10.74 billion for the development, operation and subleasing of the Subic shipyard. The others are Agila NY Naval, Inc., which pledged P6.28 billion for development, operation and subleasing activity; Agila Subic Compass, Inc., with P1.11 billion for maintenance and management of real property; and Agila Subic TC Inc. with P313.13 million for the acquisition and management of housing units, among others.

The Agila ventures are 99.99 percent controlled by Dutch principals, with minimal shares from American and Filipino partners, according to SBMA-BIG records.

SBMA-BIG sources said the Agila firms will serve as affiliates under Cerberus Capital Management as holding company.

Cerberus, which is a US-based private equity firm, completed the takeover of the debt-laden Hanjin shipyard last April, Philippine officials announced then. It reportedly paid $300 million to settle the debts that Hanjin owned several banks.

Meanwhile, a Singaporean firm named Vectrus Subic Corp. has pledged P14.52 billion to provide general logistics and warehousing services in consonance with the Agila project.

Vectrus, which operates as a global government services company, will provide “storage, care, repair, and maintenance of materials, stocks, vehicles, and equipment belonging to the United States government,” according to its company profile filed with the SBMA.

The SBMA said that Vectrus will occupy most of the shipbuilding facilities, including the quays, and will be one of the first tenants of Agila Subic, along with the Philippine Navy, which now occupies the former Hanjin administrative office, mess hall, and barracks.

The Philippine Navy’s activation and subsequent operationalization of a base of operations in Subic are reportedly in line with its scaled-up maritime operations to support its deep-draft vessels like the Jose Rizal-class missile-frigates, Del Pilar-class offshore patrol ships, and Tarlac-class landing docks.

SBMA Senior Deputy Administrator for Business Renato W. Lee III also said the Agila investments brought Subic’s 2022 first half investment tally to P35.35 billion, with shipyard-related pledges reaching P32.97 billion, or 93.26 percent of the total.

Lee said that the SBMA successfully processed 24 investment applications in the first quarter of 2022, and followed this up with a total of 37 new approvals in the second quarter, which included the four Agila ventures.

The other substantial investment pledges in the second quarter were made by Unco United Oil and Gas Philippines Inc., with P1.94 billion; Filgasco Trading, with P109.77 million; Northern Express Transport Inc., with P62 million; Great Mobility Industrial Corp., with P61.04 million; Metro Built Enterprises Corp., with P61.04 million; and Erra Trucks and Equipment Corp, with P55 million. All are Filipino-owned companies. ~