Industrial priorities to be reset this year

Title

Language

English

Source

Business Day Special Report March 27, 1974

Year

1974

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Fulltext

Page 14 Day March 27. 1974 Industrial priorities to be reset this year This year will see an other re-shaping of industrial priorities. The fuel crisis has in fluenced much of the new decision of the Board of Investments with respect to econo mic areas to be included in the Investment Incen tives Act and the Export Incentives Act. In its current discuss ions, the Board is work ing out a program that will strive for a balance between domestic suffi ciency and the export goals. While productivity GENBANCOR The only investment house k- with 22 nationwide branches. To bring investment opportunities to people where they live, where they work, where their money is. GENBANCOR's 23 branches provide the provincial public with ready access to the services of a sound, stable investment house. Project proposals of local the economy. more accurately in their respective ports the government's efforts towards a more equitable distribution of the With its network of branches, GENBANCOR gives ybu nationwide connections. GENBANCOR offers you international connections, as well. It has established partnerships with National and Grindlays Bank, Ltd., a British bank with worldwide .operations; and two of Japan's largest commercial banks - Tokai Bank Ltd., and Kyowa Bank Ltd. Link up with GENBANCOR and we'll put you right through to any point in the country. And the world. We have the Services You Need. * Securities Dealership * Financial Planning and Consultancy * Portfolio Management * Underwriting * Lending and Intermediation 126 AMORSOLO ST., LEGASPI VILLAGE, MAKATI TEL. NOS: 86-40-80 TO 89 • 88-26-11 TO 15 (MONEY MARKET) is a must objective, the volume of output must be enough to sustain domestic demand first before any excess is shifted to foreign mar kets. In addition to existing variables (labor intensity and export contri bution), the BOI has added the fuel intensity criterion in evaluating projects and areas pro posed for inclusion in either of the two plans. The Board believes that while power is an im portant element in pro duction, it should be one of the factors when considering economic areas that consume ex traordinarily large amounts of fuel. Employment The Board currently believes that the empha sis must be in developing areas that create as much employment as possible with the mini mum use of both capital and power. Foreign investments are likewise being given a greater share of res ponsibility in developing the export sector. This year, the Board will give more consideration to the establishment of new export facilities that are in a position to sell be tween 50 and 70 per cent of the plant output abroad. Like the Investment Priorities Plan, export projects should give a minimum utilization of imported components and will undertake a greater degree of proces sing of local raw ma terials. The natural-based industries will be given priority consideration as against import depend ent industries. In the past few weeks, the Board has been con ducting detailed hearings on the areas being pro posed by the private sec tor for inclusion in both the Investment Priorities Plan and the Export Priorities Plan. (Both plans are detailed listings of economic areas guaranteed tax incent ives by the Board). Proposals Fiberboard, stripped abaca fiber, arrowroot starch, particle board and feed grains are being proposed under the IPP under the agro-industries section. Grape growing, castor bean growing and processing, bamboo shoot growing and pro cessing are proposed under the agro-industries section of the EPP. Continuous casting mill to produce copper wire rods, gas cock valve, oxygen and acety lene cylinders, auto motive parts such as mufflers, radiators, tail pipes, leaf springs, auto motive brake drums, motorcycle components (sprocket, chain cable, rim, spokes and nipples), air cdmpressors sizes (1/4 - 15 HP), graphite electrodes, electrical wiring devices and plate mill are also proposed, on the . metals side of the IPP. Under the section of the EPP, aircraft rehabil itation and modification facilities are being sug gested. Chemicals On the chemical side, soda ash, sheet and glass products are being consi dered for inclusion in the IPP. Methanol formeldehyde, nicotine, sul phate, and rubber pro phylactics are being pro posed in the EPP. There are 17 areas currently listed under chemicals of the Sixth IPP. The Board is now reviewing the situation of these industries with res pect to the BOI's new industrial guidelines. The BOI, however, as sures that projects that have been registered will continue to be support ed. As in previous years and as a means to inten sify production, the fields of forest develop ment, crop production, food processing, live stock and fishing, mine ral and non-mineral pro duct production will fur ther be encouraged by the Board. Directions In addition, thedirections spelled out for BOI is to pinpoint areas that would have significant emphasis on the develop ment of rural small and medium-scale industries particularly labor-inten sive projects which in volve substantial proces sing of indigenous raw materials. According to the Board, its sector dev elopment programs will be formulated so as to provide an inter-linkage of these industries with the large-scale enterprises through various sub-con tracting arrangements. A significant feature in this sub-contracting scheme is the transfer of techno logical, management and financial assistance from the large-scale to the small-scale projects. Guidelines In the planning pro cess, the Board will also take into serious consi deration location of in dustrial plants in relation to fuel costs. In this re gard, the Board has is sued broad guidelines on industry locations some of which are as follows: (1) Firms seeking BOI registration are required to establish new meat processing capacities near sources of hogs or near meat producing areas; (2) The Board re quires that grain proces sing centrals (rice) should be located in re gions with corresponding storage capacities; (3) Manufacture of cel lophane must be located close to the Northern Luzon copper smelter in order to make the Cost of sulphuric acid as low as possible and in an area in which it is eco nomically accessible to sites suitable to tree farming; (4) Agricultural lime production activities should be situated out side Greater Manila in suitable locations and capacities to serve farm needs economically; (5) The Investment Priorities Plan specifies the condition that the establishment of coconut oil mills be distributed among coconut produ cing regions in propor tion to copra supply; (6) Applicant export producers of electronic products or goods are re quired to locate either at the electronics park of the Greater Manila Ter minal Food Market or at the Export Processing Zone in Mariveles, Bata an; (7) Firms wishing to engage in the man ufacture of feed yeast must locate in sugar-cane producing regions. The fuel factor is now part of the rules locating industries under the Board's regional dispersal program.

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