The Philippine Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) sees huge opportunities for the shipbuilding and ship repair (SBSR) industry due to the country’s growing demand for vessels, in particular those used for roll on-roll off shipping.
At the recent 1st Philippine International Maritime Conference and Exhibition, Marina administrator Emerson Lorenzo said there is need for more than 30 ships for deployment nationwide.
Since 2006, he noted there has also been a steady increase in the number of bigger ships such as tankers and passenger ferries locally constructed.
The Philippine government is pushing the development of the SBSR sector through various policies, including implementation of the Mandatory Vessel Retirement Program under Republic Act 9295, which will retire old, unclassed ships; enforcement of the double-hull requirement on domestic tankers; phasing out of single-hull domestic tankers; and progressive restriction of vessel imports.
But in order to attract private capital, Lorenzo pointed out that government needs to create a healthy and competitive investment and operating environment and provide incentives for continued growth of the sector.
Available incentives include exemption from import duties and taxes and contractor’s percentage tax for SBSR operations.
Financing for shipyard modernization and construction of new ships is also available, Lorenzo said.
Specifically, the Development Bank of the Philippines will provide lease financing for construction of ro-ro ships while PhilExim will guarantee financing for local construction of catamaran ferry boats.
photo: Ships Decking by Simon Howden
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