Local experts back 100% foreign equity in RE
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THE WORLD ›› A13
BLINKEN SAYS CHINA WANTS TO SEIZE TAIWAN ON ‘MUCH FASTER TIMELINE’
LLOW ING 100 -percent foreign ownership when it comes to renewable energy (RE) projects would be beneficial in increasing the foreign direct investments (FDI) attracted by the Philippines and in addressing the country’s energy needs, according to local economists. The Foundation for Economic Freedom (FEF) said it backed the government’s plans, through the Department of Energy (DOE), to allow more foreigners to invest in
RE. “We anticipate that the DOE, under the leadership of Secretary Raphael Lotilla, will immediately issue a revised Implementing Rules and Regulations of Republic Act 9513 or the Renewable Energy Act to clarify the rules on foreign investments in RE and usher in an influx of investments in RE,” FEF said. FEF said based on the Department of Justice (DOJ) opinion, it is “correct, timely, and
judicious” to consider that RE coming from the sun, wind and oceans are not depletable “natural resources” and thus not subject to Constitutional limitations on foreign ownership. T he loca l economists said renewable energy can contribute to the country’s energy mix, which includes not only non-RE sources like coal, gas, and diesel, but also hydro, geothermal, and possibly nuclear. With the RE sector open to
foreig n investments, foreig n investors can also participate i n t he cou nt r y ’s m ic ro - g r id development program through solar and w ind projects. “If the RE sector attracts huge capital entry,” FEF quoted Lotilla as saying earlier that, “additional power from the RE plants can help offset the loss from the 1200 MW Ilijan plant’s output due to the decrease of natural gas supply from See “RE,” A2
BusinessMirror A broader look at today’s business
www.businessmirror.com.ph
Wednesday, October 19, 2022 Vol. 18 No. 7
P25.00 nationwide | 2 sections 24 pages | 7 DAYS A WEEK
GOVT BRACES FOR SLOW GROWTH, SETS STRATEGY
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By Cai U. Ordinario @caiordinario & Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla
THE business district in Ortigas is seen in this recent file photo. With an eye out on the impact of the accelerating inflation rate, the government is bracing for slower economic growth next year by boosting local businesses and ensuring support for the poor. The President’s economic team believes that, while high inflation may just be temporary, it will still be able to slow the country’s economic growth in 2023. NONILON REYES
CKNOWLEDGING the impact of the accelerating inflation rate, the government is now bracing for slower economic growth next year by boosting local businesses and ensuring support for the poor.
On Tuesday, President Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. met with his economic managers in Malacañang to discuss “soaring inflation,” and the falling value of the peso. While high inflation may just be temporary, the President’s economic team believes it will still be able to slow the country’s economic growth next year. In a briefing in Malacañang, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan said inflation could cut the country’s
PHL growth seen to slow further, trail regional peers
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growth by “0.6 percent” next year. Based on the July 2022 estimates of the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC), the target of the administration is for GDP growth to average 6.5 to 8 percent annually between 2023 and 2028. “As a small, open economy, the Philippines cannot escape the effects of these global headwinds. The Marcos administration is indeed mindful of these challenges. We are
HE Philippines’s average economic growth rate could slow further to between 4 and 5 percent in the next 10 years, according to a report released by Bain & Company and Monk’s Hill Ventures’ Angsana Council. The report said the country’s growth was higher at 6.6 percent between 2011 and 2019 but declined to 4.8 percent between 2011 and 2021. This slowing trend is expected to continue given that the country’s development constraints continue to make it difficult to do business in the Philippines. “[The Philippines has] shown steady improvement over the last two decades, but the ability to do
See “Inflation,” A2
See “Slow,” A2
‘GALAW-GALAW!’ PBBM URGES CABINET MEMBERS By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo @akosistellaBM
Special to the BusinessMirror
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OUR ISM Secretar y Christina Garcia Frasco’s frenetic pace at getting tourism stakeholders together and working to revive the industry may have unwittingly left her fellow Cabinet members behind in the dust. “When Secretary Christina first took on the Department of Tourism [DOT], she moves so quickly that I had to talk to the others in the Cabinet and I said, ‘You know, she’s making us look bad. We better quicken
our game,’” joked President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. during his keynote address at the Philippine Tourism Industry Convergence Reception at the SMX Convention Center on Monday night. “So she keeps us on our toes and she has always kept a very, very clear idea in her mind what we are trying to achieve. And she has brought a passion and an energy that certainly we are going to need. But it is a passion and an energy that gives us confidence that we will succeed,” he added. Except for a handful, most Cabinet Secretaries in the Marcos Jr. administration, including the
President, are over 60 years old. At the event, Frasco informed participants of the directions the DOT is taking to revive the industry and build on the gains of the current successes of the tourism sector. This included her sevenpoint agenda to ease connectivity and access to tourism destinations, promoting lesser-known destinations in the country here and abroad, and upscaling the skills of the tourism work force.
Much is expected, but low on funds
IN his speech, Marcos Jr. also quipped that Frasco probably had “some sinister plan on the
[Department of Public Works and Highways’] budget,” with Sec ret a r y Ma nue l B onoa n among the guests of honor at the event. The President said, “In all our Cabinet meetings,” the DOT chief had complained that her agency didn’t have enough funds to build the infrastructure needed to make tourism destinations more accessible. The DOT has an approved budget of P3.57 billion for 2023, while its marketing arm, the Tourism Promotions Board, can initially tap just P1.1 billion of its P20-billion special fund in See “Cabinet,” A2
PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 58.9930 n JAPAN 0.3960 n UK 67.0455 n HK 7.5155 n CHINA 8.1991 n SINGAPORE 41.5210 n AUSTRALIA 37.0948 n EU 58.0668 n KOREA 0.0412 n SAUDI ARABIA 15.6938 Source:
BSP (18 October 2022)