Industrial park developers told brace for new locators

As the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) receives a growing number of investment pledges from its previous business missions abroad, industrial park developers are urged to closely monitor the profile of incoming locators and proactively cater to their requirements.

Property consultancy firm Colliers Philippines recommends that aside from knowing intently the needs and special requirements of upcoming economic zone tenants, there is also a need for developers to be active in their participation in investment promotion missions to attract more locators.

Colliers is expecting renewed interest in industrial spaces and facilities, particularly in northern and central Luzon.

With greater absorption of industrial space and facilities, Colliers is projecting a continued rise in land leasehold and warehouse lease rates in the two industrial hubs over the next 12 months.

Colliers also warned that the looming global recession and rising interest rates are likely to obstruct industrial locators’ expansion plans.

In a report, PEZA said that it is expecting a number of big-ticket investments in 2023, including the relocation of factories from China.

Other companies likely to invest in the country include auto parts maker Continental Temic and Furukawa Electric Autoparts Phils. Inc., semiconductor firms Analog Devices and Amkor, Japanese electronics company Murata, Indonesian ice cream manufacturer Aice, and Chinese steel company Panhua.

Meanwhile, firms likely to expand are Taiwan-based performance materials company CHIMEI and technology company YFC-BonEagle International, Inc., switching power supplies company AcBel Polytech Inc., and chemical manufacturer Yeng Hsing. PEZA is also expecting investments from the power generation and electric vehicle manufacturing sectors.

PEZA reported a P6.39 billion worth of investments approved during its first board meeting in 2023.

According to the agency, this is higher by 83.69 percent compared with the P3.48 billion approved in the same period in 2022.

PEZA targets to achieve investment growth of 10 percent in 2023 based on the initial locator targets.