MANILA — The Board of Investments (BOI) registered PHP607.22 billion worth of projects from January to April 17 this year.
BOI Director Sandra Marie Recolizado said it is almost half of the registered projects for the full year of 2023, valued at PHP1.26 trillion.
She told the media on Friday that the approved investments during the past four months was 15 percent higher than the PHP527.24 billion posted during the same period last year.
The recent investment approvals were also equivalent to 40 percent of the higher end of BOI’s target registration for this year at PHP1.5 trillion.
Recolizado said the investment commitments in nearly four months came from 117 projects, mostly from local sources.
Eighty-one percent of the investment pledges came from Filipino sources, with total latest BOI approvals amounting to PHP494.37 billion.
“Let's not underestimate domestic investments because that's why we really encourage our domestic investors to commit their capital to projects in the Philippines rather than bringing out their money, their capital outside the Philippines,” Trade Secretary and BOI chair Alfredo Pascual said.
Meanwhile, Recolizado mentioned two big-ticket investments from year-to-date, which are all renewable energy projects.
The top approved investment for the period is the PHP297-billion Pakil Pumped Storage Hydroelectric Power Plant in Laguna province of Ahunan Power, Inc., a 100-percent Filipino enterprise.
The project is expected to produce 1,400 megawatts of clean and renewable energy for the growing electricity needs of the country.
The second highest BOI-approved investment for the period is Ivisan Windkraft Corp.’s 450-MW Frontera Bay Wind Power Project in Cavite province, a 75-25 Singaporean-Filipino investment. (PNA)
