SUMITOMO Wiring Systems, Ltd. has broken ground for a new wiring factory in Binalonan, Pangasinan that is expected to create around 10,000 jobs.
A subsidiary of Japan-based Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd., the company’s factory for wiring harnesses will be in Northluzon Aero Industrial Park (NAIP). Wiring harnesses are used in automotive manufacturing.
The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said that the project is part of 26 business agreements signed by Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez during President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s visit to Japan in May 2019. The combined business projects are valued at
P289 billion and can produce 82,000 jobs, DTI said in a press release on Thursday.
Sumitomo Electric President and Chief Operating Officer Osamu Inoue at the time signed a letter of intent to build a new factory for wiring harnesses in Northern Luzon, from which products will be exported to Japan and North America.
The Pangasinan project is expected to create an estimated 10,000 jobs, DTI said.
“Not only will the Sumitomo factory generate more jobs and employment for communities in the area, it will boost the development of our wiring industry to become part of the global value chain,” Mr. Lopez said.
DTI Senior Trade Representative Dita Angara-Mathay said that an additional investor from Japan joins the eight foreign investors in wiring harness manufacturing in the country.
“We are working towards cementing the Philippines’ role as a competitive hub for wiring harness production in the region,” she said.
The Philippines has a 6.5% share in the $80-billion global wiring harness market, DTI said.
IHS Markit in April forecast global auto sales to fall 22% to 70.3 million units this year compared with the figure in 2019. — Jenina P. Ibañez
