SUBIC BAY FREEPORT—The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) is wooing one of the largest logistics companies in Japan to establish a logistics and distribution center in this free port and take advantage of Subic’s growing importance as a strategic maritime gateway.

SBMA Senior Deputy Administrator for Business and Investment Renato Lee III said the agency held “fruitful” business meetings with SBS Holdings Inc., a major player in Japan’s logistics industry, during the Osaka and Tokyo leg of the Philippine Investment Forum early this month.

The event, organized by the Department of Trade and Industry’s Philippine Trade and Investment Center (DTI-PTIC), brought together more than 200 Japanese business leaders, reflecting the growing interest in the Philippines’ priority investment zones, infrastructure initiatives, and emerging economic corridors.

“We had the opportunity to present and invite SBS Holdings and Toshiba, their joint venture partner, to establish a logistics and distribution hub in Subic,” Lee said.

“We discussed Subic’s strategic location, our expansion program for container and break-bulk terminals, our connectivity to the Luzon Economic Corridor, and the presence of Japanese locators in Subic, and the discussions went well. The meetings were fruitful,” he added.

With approximately US$3.1 billion in annual revenue, SBS Holdings is one of the largest logistics providers in Japan today, Lee said.

The company, listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, also develops, leases, and sells logistics facilities and warehouses, provides environmental and recycling services, and dabbles in solar power generation.

“Subic will surely benefit from the comprehensive logistics, freight forwarding, and transportation services that SBS offers, while SBS can take advantage of Subic’s growing industrial and commercial operations,” Lee added.

The Subic Bay Freeport currently hosts major Japanese manufacturing and engineering firms. Among them are Nidec, which manufactures brushless motors, fan motors, and industrial-robotic precision gearboxes; Sanyo Denki, which produces electric machinery, cooling fans, uninterrupted power supplies (UPS), servo amplifiers, and stepping motors; and Ichihashi Seiki, which builds precision engineering and industrial components.

Lee said that with its strategic location, world-class port and infrastructure, and business-friendly environment, Subic continues to position itself as a premier logistics, maritime, industrial, and investment hub in the country.

“In Japan, we announced that Subic is open for business, and now Japanese investors are taking notice,” he said. (Taktikom News and Features)