SUBIC BAY FREEPORT – Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority chairman and
administrator Rolen C. Paulino welcomed the possibility of South Korean
shipbuilder Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) investing inside this premier freeport.
This, after outgoing Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana revealed that the South
Korean shipbuilder plans to construct a maintenance depot at the former Hanjin
Heavy Industries and Construction Philippines (HHIC-Phil) shipyard in Redondo
Peninsula.
“The company plans to have a maintenance depot here since many of our military
ships are built by Hyundai. They would provide the maintenance needs of these
ships,” he said.
Paulino said that the plans for the construction of HHI’s maintenance depot here
would mean more job opportunities, and would generate income to the agency
that can be added to the national coffers. He said that the construction of the HHI
maintenance depot is more efficient rather than sending the ships back to South
Korea for repairs.
Lorenzana noted that the country ordered the Philippine Navy (PN)’s first two
missile frigates, BRP Jose Rizal (FF-150) and BRP Antonio Luna (FF-151) from the
South Korean shipbuilder. He added that HHI also secured the P28-billion contract
for the two anti-submarine corvettes last December and the P30-billion offshore
patrol vessel (OPV) deal.
The company is also the contractor for the South Korean Navy’s Pohang-class
corvettes, of which one is now in service with the PN, with another expected to
be transferred soon. The company and the DND signed a lifetime service support
contract for the maintenance and upkeep of the two guided-missile frigates.
Paulino said that it is only fitting that the company construct its maintenance
depot at the former Hanjin shipyard since Agila Subic (now owner of the Hanjin
shipyard) is housing the base operations of the Philippine Navy.
The SBMA chief also said that after HHIC left, thousands of skilled workers in the
shipbuilding sector have been unemployed and are seeking other job
opportunities, but were unlucky due to the recent pandemic.
“The investment of Agila Subic has revived the shipbuilding industry of the Subic
Bay Freeport back to life. We can expect more job opportunities for skilled
shipbuilders in the area since more and more companies are looking into
investing into Agila Subic’s shipbuilding industrial park,” he said.
The Philippine Navy occupies the northern portion of the former HHIC-Phil
shipyard that spans around 100 hectares of the site’s more than 280 hectares.
The activation and subsequent operationalization of NOB Subic are in line with
the Navy’s scaled-up maritime operations to support the needed base services of
the deep-draft vessels such as Jose Rizal-class missile-frigates, Del Pilar-class
offshore patrol ships, and Tarlac-class landing docks.
The newly activated base will house select fleet marine units, maintenance, and
replenishment facilities that will enable the fleet to sustain the operational
requirements of the current and future capital vessels.
