CLARK FREEPORT – Noting the entry here of the country’s “taipans” and other big investors, Clark Development Corp. (CDC) president and chief executive officer Felipe Antonio Remollo said yesterday that he envisions this freeport as another Singapore in six years.
“The taipans are here not just in plans. They’re actually here,” Remollo said in an interview.
He said the “Ayalas are already here through Manila Water. Lance Gokongwei is signing up with us for a facility for training pilots, separate from Cebu Pacific, worth $50 million.”
“Cebu Pacific group will partner with a foreign company to make Clark as the only training center for Airbus 380 pilots. Two were planned for Manila but these are now to be established at Clark,” he noted.
“Also the coming of Andrew Tan into Clark has inspired interest. Manuel V. Panglininan is also here through Meralco, Alsl PLDT, Petron through Ramon Ang of the San Miguel Group, the Air Asia group of Tony Boy Cojuangco, Mikey Romero and Ramon Fernandez of Malaysia. Of course, the first Puregold (of Lucio Co) is in Clark,” Remollo said.
Tan of Megaworld signed recently with the CDC a deal to develop here a mixed-use complex cost P7 billion. Initially to be developed in a 35- hectare occupied by the abandoned US military hospital.
Megaworld is known for the residential business projects in Metro Manila, such as Eastwood City, McKinley Hill and Newport City.
“All the taipans are already here and this will hasten the realization of Clark airport as the country’s main international gateway. We are helping the national government in lessening the opposition (to the transfer of the premiere airport to Clark),” he added.
“We can make this (freeport) a Singapore in six years,” he said.
Updated figures from the CDC indicated that this freeport now hosts P113.9 billion worth of investments, a significant jump from P39.7 billion in 2006. As of last October, firms here have exported some $1.6 billion worth of products since last January.
About 63,514 folk, mostly from surrounding communities are also now employed in various firms here.
This, even as Remollo also clarified that CDC is still “open” to privatizing the Mimosa Leisure Estate (MLE) here, but prefers to retain the profitable Holiday Inn hotel under it.
“If we have to privatize the management of Mimosa, only certain portions of it will be privatized,” CDC president and chief executive officer Felipe Remollo told Punto.
He noted that at present, the Holiday Inn earns P170 million a year. “We will not give this up unless there is assurance that someone else can top that,” he said, describing the hotel as CDC’s “gem” in the estate that was initially established by the Mondragon Leisure and Resorts Corp, (MLRC) which was booted out by former Pres. Estrada for unpaid dues to the CDC in 1998.
Remollo said, however, that the CDC is prepared to bid out unfinished villas on a 30-hectare area within the MLE. “These investments can increase the value of Mimosa,” he said.
“So we don’t have to give up Mimosa as a whole. We still have problems there with personnel, we have concessionaires (operating restaurants and spas). We can also bid that out or renegotiate them,” he said.
Remollo said he is satisfied with the operations of the Mimosa casino which is managed by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor).
“We have a 75-25 sharing, with the Pagcor getting 75 percent because it manages the casino, but our share annually still amounts to a net of P70 million a year,” he said.
