By Beatriz Marie D. Cruz, Reporter
ABOITIZ INFRACAPITAL, Inc. (AIC) expects at least four key locators at its West Cebu Estate in Central Visayas, which is seen to support the province’s growing shipbuilding industry.
“Right now, we’re looking at about four or five [locators], with maybe a couple more coming in,” Monica L. Trajano, vice-president for Business Development of Economic Estates, said on the sidelines of the BusinessWorld Economic Forum in Taguig City on Thursday.
“We’re also seeing other industries that are not necessarily complementary to the shipbuilding industry,” she added.
Majority of the target locators at the 540-hectare West Cebu Estate in Balamban, Cebu are homegrown firms concentrated on shipbuilding.
“Balamban is a strategic location to access more of Central Visayas,” Ms. Trajano said. “So it’s still, at the core, on shipbuilding. Whether it’s new vessels or maintenance, repair and overhaul.”
The West Cebu Estate, which is registered with the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA), had 17 locator companies from medium to heavy industries, covering over 14,908 jobs, as of December.
Aboitiz Land, Inc. Chief Executive Officer Rafael Fernandez de Mesa earlier said about 20 hectares were left in their 40-hectare expansion plan for the estate.
“It’s pretty much site-graded already and is ready to receive [investors],” Ms. Trajano said. “It’s in varied stages of PEZA proclamation but for the most part, the goal is to be able to get everything PEZA proclaimed.”
For the 200-hectare TARI Estate, the company’s mixed-use estate in Tarlac City, as many as 10 companies have shown interest in expanding, she said. “There’s good interest in TARI — seven to 10 [locators] in terms of interest.”
TARI Estate is the Aboitiz Group’s fourth economic estate. The construction of its first two phases is slated for completion by mid-2026. Once operational, TARI Estate is expected to generate about 60,000 jobs.
“[This] puts us basically on target for things, because it was a 24-month development timeline,” Ms. Trajano said.
Meanwhile, business process outsourcing company Conduent, Inc. has opened its Batangas office at LIMA Tower One, a premium office building inside AIC’s LIMA Estate.
The 9,000-square-meter, three-story facility will house Conduent’s rapidly growing workforce, supporting operations in finance, healthcare services and procurement. It is expected to generate 1,500 jobs this year.