BOI-listed investments hit P150.2B in 11 mos

http://www.philstar.com/philstar/NEWS200511300705.htm

BOI-listed investments hit P150.2B in 11 mos
By Marianne V. Go
The Philippine Star 11/30/2005

Investments approved by the Board of Investments (BOI) hit P150.229
billion in the first 11 months of the year.

The BOI said there were 186 projects approved during the 11-month period
which are expected to create employment for 40,325 workers.

Of the amount, P36.588 billion has been approved under the simplified
registration procedure.

Thus, under the simplified registration process, 40 projects have been
approved which are expected to generate employment for 400 workers.

For the week of Nov. 21 to 24, a total of P2.742 billion alone was
approved under the simplified registration process.

Of the six projects approved for the week Nov. 21 to 25, the bulk of the
approval is for the two agribusiness projects of the Gokongwei-owned
Southern Negros Development Corp. amounting to P2.542 billion.

One project amounting to P1.322 billion is merely an expansion, while the
other project amounting to P1.220 billion is a new venture.

Also approved was the P123.778 million tourism project of Playa Asya
Resort, Inc. in Boracay.

Another project approved under the simplified registration procedure is
the energy project of Mt. Holly Coco Industrial Co. Ltd. amounting to
P62.389 million and the P10.453 million information and communications
technology (ICT) project of MedScript Corp.

The sixth project approved was that of Clickstream Marketing, Inc., also
an IT export service firm that will locate in Cebu City with a project
cost of P2.278 million.

With the increase in investment applications resulting from the
implementation of the simplified registration process, also know as the
one-day approval scheme, the BOI is on track to match or perhaps even
exceed its 2004 approvals which amounted to almost 165 billion.

Earlier, BOI managing head Elmer C. Hernandez was pleasantly surprised by
the positive response to the one-day approval process which Trade and
Industry Secretary Peter B. Favila, who is also the concurrent BOI
chairman, had ordered to be implemented following clamor from foreign
investors for faster investment approvals.

The simplified registration procedure still takes anywhere from three to
10 days.

However, Secretary Favila is urging the BOI to improve its processing
even
more and live up to the one-day approval process for all applications
provided that all the necessary documents are submitted.


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