Mindanao to have P250-M shipyard

Written by Manuel T. Cayon / Reporter

Thursday, 26 March 2009 23:49

DAVAO CITY—Despite the global economic slump, investor confidence shows no sign of slowing down as a Filipino-owned shipbuilding company in Sarangani province is putting up the biggest shipyard in Mindanao, also seen to be a key transportation and logistics provider of shipping needs of the Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East Asean Growth Area (BIMP-Eaga). In an Internet posting yesterday, the Mindanao Economic Development Council (Medco) said the Sarangani-based Gensan Shipyard and Machine Works Inc., announced Wednesday that it was starting the groundwork of the P250-million shipbuilding facility. The company held groundbreaking rites also on Wednesday where it announced the project that was expected to be the biggest in Mindanao. Medco said that the move manifested “investor confidence [that] shows no sign of slowing down here despite the global economic slump.” The Filipino-owned company is a member of the RD Group of Companies. The project would “build the multi-million huge twin slipways with a combined capacity of 10,000 gross registered tonnage and is proposed to be operational within the year,” the Medco said. In the Medco statement, Rodrigo Rivera Sr., chairman and chief executive officer of the RD Group of Companies said, “The Philippines and most of the Asean countries need ships and vessels to transport their products.” “By expanding our business reach within the region, Gensan Shipyard and all member-companies in the RD Group are paving the way for other investors, both local and foreign, to invest in the province of Sarangani and partner for economic development,” he said. Rivera challenged other investors “to look more into responding in a time of crises by pumping more investments in the countryside and creating job opportunities.” He said the shipyard would hire as many as 700 workers. Rivera said the project would like to link up with the roll-on, roll-off sea transport program of the government and increase the contribution of the project to the growth of the Maasim-Kiamba-Maitum (Makima) area. The Makima is one of several other small economic cooperations inspired by the BIMP-Eaga. “The new shipbuilding project would initially bring in foreign exchange at a conservative level of $1.5 million, gradually increasing by 20 percent annually,” said a press statement released by the company. Currently, the Gensan Shipyard has two floating dry docks with a combined lifting capacity of 4,000 tons and occupies an approximately 185,000- square-meter area, with vertical and horizontal developments now in their varying stages of completion. Rivera said the shipyard would build medium-sized vessels for export to Asean countries, and added that it would complement the current thrust of the BIMP-Eaga Business Council (BEBC) at increasing investment and activity in shipping and sea linkage and transportation. (With B. Garcia Jr.)