BOI investment approvals up 11%, mostly in RE, ICT sectors

THE Board of Investments (BOI) said it has approved P729 billion worth of investments from January to December 2022, an 11-percent increase compared to the same period in 2021.

In terms of sectors, the investment promotion agency said growth drivers were Renewable Energy, with 56-percent share in the total investments recorded. This was followed by Information and Communication, particularly in data centers and telecommunications towers, with 28 percent.

According to the attached agency of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), other sectors that contributed to the investment approvals for the year were the IT and Business Process Management (IT-BPM), manufacturing, mass housing, and transportation sectors which includes storage including logistics and cold chain facilities.

Aside from the above-mentioned sectors, the investment promotion agency said the investments also include projects related to electric vehicles (EVS) particularly 1,000 charging stations and the operation of electric vehicle—the Transportation Network Vehicle Service (TNVS).

As to the source of investments, 57 percent came from Singapore, 22 percent from Japan, 7 percent from the United Kingdom, 3 percent from the United States, 2 percent from Virgin Islands, and 2 percent from South Korea.

Trade Secretary Alfredo E. Pascual noted that BOI’S investment approval levels signal continuing strong confidence by businessmen in the Philippine economy despite the global headwinds.

“The 2022 BOI Approval levels clearly indicate that despite the lingering effects of the Pandemic especially in the first half of the year, coupled with global decline in investments due to the Russiaukraine War, investors continue to have strong confidence in the Philippine economy,” Pascual told reporters at a media briefing on Wednesday.

For his part, Trade Undersecretary and BOI Managing Head Ceferino S. Rodolfo put the spotlight on the composition of the approved investment projects, which he described as “very strategic” and “fully aligned with the direction that DTI Secretary and BOI Chair Fred Pascual had set.”

Rodolfo, the BOI managing head, added, “Thus, you can see the clustering of Projects in the area of Renewable Energy, in Data Centers, in Telco Towers, and in Electric Vehicles.”

Moving forward, Rodolfo said the investment promotion agency is targeting P1 trillion investments for 2023.

“We have a healthy pipeline of strong leads, including those generated and further confirmed through investment missions by the [Trade] Secretary and through the presidential visits by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.,” Rodolfo said.

The Trade chief added, “we also have investment leads that are looking to take advantage of our full-implementation of game-changing reform legislations in the area of Public Utilities, Retail trade, and Tech Start-ups.”

In January to December 2021, the BOI said it approved P655.4 billion worth of investments.