30 major Spanish firms keen on doing business in the Philippines– PEZA

Some 30 major Spanish firms from various industries expressed keen interest in the Philippines as the Spanish government listed its former colony as the only Asian country in its masterplan for priority cooperation.

Tereso O. Panga, director-general of the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA), reported this after embarking on its first-ever investment mission to Madrid, Spain which was organized by the San Carlos Development Board Inc. (SCDBI), San Carlos City, Negros Occidental LGU, Confederación Española de Organizaciones Empresariales (CEOE), and the Philippine Embassy last March 18 to 23, 2024.

The event drew some 30 participants from the Spanish business chamber and investment companies, mostly from the shipbuilding, agro-industrial, pharmaceutical, IT-BPM, renewable energy, transport, steel and construction, water development, and tourism sectors.

“With the Spanish government listing the Philippines as the only Asian country in its priority in the masterplan for Spanish cooperation, PEZA is taking this cue to attract Spanish investors into higher-value products and technologies (i.e., electronics, automotive, ship building, pharmaceutical, renewable and alternative energy, construction materials) to expand the current trade of mostly agro-based products between our two countries,” Panga said.

The highlight of the mission was the Philippine Investment Forum at the Centro de Filipinas en Madrid, where the PEZA chief made a presentation on the advantages and benefits of investing in Philippine special economic zones.

“The mission has huge potentials for offshoring in the Philippines to cater to the domestic as well as regional markets particularly in the fields of shipbuilding and agro-industry,” said Panga.

PEZA is mounting major investment mission offensives to Europe following the decision of the Philippines and EU to resume free trade negotiations.

With the resumption of the FTA talks, PEZA is bullish that more investors from EU countries will explore trade and investment opportunities in the Philippines this year and onwards.

At present, there are a total of 202 PEZA-registered projects with equity from EU countries generating about P300-billion cumulative investments, $12-billion worth of exports, and employment of more than 50,000 direct jobs.

“The FTA would strengthen both the Philippines and the EU’s bilateral trade and economic relations, making an ecosystem fit for our agile investors given that the EU is the Philippines’ fifth largest trade partner,” added the PEZA chief.

“The EU FTA and the renewed GSP+ status will help the Philippines in its bid to attract EU FDI from diverse strategic industries, catering to both domestic and export markets. As one of the investment promotion agencies in the country, this will likewise be instrumental in PEZA’s quest towards positioning the Philippines as the ideal base for offshore operations by EU companies eyeing to penetrate the much vibrant ASEAN and AsPac markets,” said Panga. — Bernie Cahiles-Magkilat