Making headway to address the gap in the Philippine textile supply chain, the Philippine Board of Investments (BOI) met with Medtecs International Corporation Limited (Medtecs) headed by its Chairman Clement Yang and discussed the company’s recent business expansion in the country and upcoming plans during a courtesy call recently (March 23, 2022).
Trade Undersecretary and BOI Managing Head Ceferino Rodolfo was joined by BOI Executive Director for Investment Promotions Evariste Cagatan, BOI Director for Domestic Investments Promotion Rosario Dominguez, and BOI Chief for Asia Division China Pring, in meeting the Medtecs team comprised of Mr. Francisco Ramon, Country Manager; Ms. Adelia Del Miguel, Treasury Manager; and Ms. Tao Hunghui, Finance Officer.
In the meeting, Chairman Yang disclosed that Medtecs is eyeing to develop an Industrial Town in the country that would include production facilities for e-mobility/ electric vehicles (EVs), personal protective equipment (PPE), and integrated textile manufacturing (using tropical fibers, particularly abaca, bamboo, and banana), among others. Medtecs is especially keen in bringing in the missing gaps in the country’s textile supply chain such as yarn production, spinning, weaving, including the production of recycled polyester textile (mix of polyester with recycled materials from post-consumer bottles).
In addition, Chairman Yang mentioned its production of nitrile gloves in Cambodia, which can likewise be done in the Philippines as part of the planned PPE hub. The envisioned industrial town is projected to generate approximately US$1.9 billion foreign direct investments (FDIs) and around 125,000 jobs in seven (7) years.
Chairman Yang also shared that Medtecs has commenced production of melt-blown non-woven fabric/material the critical filter medium used in medical-grade face masks. With a project cost of around US$600,000 and a total manpower requirement of around 15 employees, the project has a production capacity of 25 million face masks per month. The project is registered with the Authority of the Freeport Area of Bataan and is located at the Medtecs Compound in Mariveles City, Bataan.
For his part, Undersecretary Rodolfo mentioned that the planned business activities of Medtecs are all listed in the Strategic Investment Priority Plan and are eligible for incentives under the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) Act, including the processing of green metals such as nickel for EV batteries.
The Undersecretary underscored that highly desirable projects with minimum investment capital of Php50 billion or at least 10,000 job generation may avail of incentives of up to 40 years. He also offered to introduce Medtecs to relevant local players in EV assembly/production and nickel mining companies, as well as to arrange for a presentation featuring the New Clark City (NCC), including site visits in Capas and Bamban, Tarlac.
On Chairman Yang’s concern regarding available human resources, Undersecretary Rodolfo said that the BOI has an existing partnership with the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), thru a Memorandum of Understanding that can serve as a mechanism for industry-academe collaboration.
Executive Director Cagatan meanwhile shared that the BOI is also currently assisting two (2) Taiwanese electronics companies based in the Philippines in their search for human resources, through the BOI’s Academe Industry Matching (AIM) Program, offering the same for Medtecs to match its needs with the universities and colleges.
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