Commerce Flows into Subic, Philippines
By: Eden Lorren Pabalan
Subic Bay, Philippines is bordered on the east by Zambales mountains and the South China Sea on the west. A former US Naval base, Subic is now a freeport zone and a gateway for the transportation of goods. And, while it's topography is more of a jungle paradise, technology, infrastructure, and industry have changed the landscape and the standard of living in the community. Real estate and BPO companies doing business in the Philippines are rising fast in the area and investors are now looking at Subic as a top BPO destination in the country.
The newly completed SCTEx (Subic Clark Tarlac Expressway) a P36 billion peso expressway is a leading avenue through Olongapo, Tarlac and bridges the three cities of Tarlac, Subic, and Clark. Access from the Metro Manila area through the superhighway is convenient, safe and predictable.
Investments in
office space and residential infrastructure are growing in Subic. Subic Bay Gateway Park is a commercial hub home to a number of Korean and Taiwanese companies doing business in the Philippines. It offers 300 hectares of prime industrial land.
Ayala Land Inc., the Philippine's biggest real estate developer has signed a 50-year lease with the government to develop a 7.5 hectare commercial hub along Rizal Highway, within the Subic Bay Freeport and are in the steps of final completion for Anvaya Cove, a luxury resort area. An estimated P3 billion pesos are on the line for this investment venture. The proposed plan for the vicinity is to establish a shopping mall, hotel, and a
Business Process Outsourcing building.
PLDT Corporation is also eyeing Subic as a BPO hotspot in the Philippines. The company has already inked a 17 hectare development project with the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority, an ICT hub that will bring the freeport to the frontlines of ICT infrastructure development in the country. Other call center companies are already open for business in the area, such as US-based Sutherland Call Center and Teletech.
According to
Outsourcing Consultant Gregory Kittelson of
Kittelson and Carpo Consulting, a Makati-based firm, "We are now seeing more interest from foreign investors in Subic. Every year, more and more of our clients are setting up operations in Subic and getting involved in outsourcing, shipping, and the importation and exportation of goods and services in the area."
The growing BPO business in Central Luzon is continually creating job opportunities for Filipinos. Subic will soon be known not only as a beach and diving paradise, but also as a busy and prosperous economic zone in the Philippines.
