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Treading the often-difficult path of making lives better

Generations of making lives better: PHINMA Chairman Emeritus Oscar J. Hilado; Chairman and CEO Ramon R. del Rosario, Jr.; and President, COO and Head of Education Dr. Chito B. Salazar.

Former US President Franklin D. Roosevelt was once quoted as saying, “Competition has been shown to be useful up to a certain point and no further, but cooperation, which is the thing we must strive for today, begins where competition leaves off.”

Indeed, in almost all things, a single person can do and achieve much less than a group working together towards a single goal. This is the foundation that patriotism is built on — countrymen supporting one another to make their nation the best it can be.

This idea is what guided Amb. Ramon V. del Rosario, Sr. (RVR), Don Filemon C. Rodriguez, and Ernesto O. Escaler in creating PHINMA Corp. A few years after the devastation of the Second World War, PHINMA was established at a critical time in Philippine history, when a nationwide rebuilding effort was in motion and foreign nationals ran most of the big businesses in the country.

“PHINMA started about a decade after the end of the second World War. And I think it was motivated by what I would call nationalistic objectives,” Ramon R. del Rosario, Jr., chairman and CEO of PHINMA Corp., said in an interview.

“My father had two things in mind: One was to help rebuild the Philippine economy, and the second was to show that Filipino managers are as good as any in the world. Those were two strong motivations for him.”

Mr. Oscar J. Hilado, the company’s current chairman emeritus, was the late Amb. del Rosario’s longtime assistant and partner in leading PHINMA. He recalled, “[RVR] and [Mr.] Rodriguez had established PHINMA as a company that was going to be a Filipino company. That’s why they got Filipinos to run the company. They had outstanding Filipino managers, but they were very much ‘Filipino’ more than just managers. They wanted to put the Filipinos first. This was passed down to me, this kind of outlook.”

PHINMA first made its name in the cement business, helping rebuild the country from where it was after the war. The company met considerable success until the 1990s with the Asian Financial Crisis, when “the roof fell on our heads,” as Mr. del Rosario put it.

The situation eventually led to PHINMA’s decision to sell off its cement business and rethink what it can do to help make the Philippines competitive with the rest of the world.

“We concluded that it is our people, and if we want our people to be competitive, one of the things we should do is help develop the human capital of our country. Therefore, we considered going into education. Education, particularly, that is accessible to the wider broader market.”

Since then, education has been one of PHINMA Corp.’s key businesses, alongside other investments into hospitality, property development, and a return to construction materials.

SERVING A CORE PURPOSE

Mr. Hilado, who had served the company during those early turbulent years, said that PHINMA had never been more dedicated to its mission of “making lives better” than it is now.

“I must confess, there was not very much time to think about what were the advocacies we were advocating. By contrast, PHINMA today is very clear-minded about what it wants to do, about making lives better. Ramon Jr. has structured the directions of PHINMA better than RVR and I did in all those years.”

Mr. Del Rosario emphasized their company’s commitment to their original purpose of becoming a force for good for the Philippines. PHINMA Education, he cited as example, served mostly an underserved market, consisting of families without any prior experience with tertiary education, those who more often than not cannot pay tuition upfront.

“That market is subject to a lot of uncertainties,” he said. “Kids who come to our schools are products of public schools; and, sad to say, almost all of them are not ready to enter college.”

“Right there we have to make a decision whether we will take them in or whether we will turn them away. But clearly in our minds, if we turn them away, these kids will never have a chance at a better life. They will be forever poor,” he continued.

“So, we made it part of our mission to work with these kids. We do not turn away anyone. We accept everyone who wants to come to our schools and even help them afford our tuition.”

PHINMA Education does this by offering a variety of programs to help students go to school, and more importantly, stay in school. Such programs include scholarships, helping students build self-confidence, demonstrating the value of education, connecting students with successful role models who came from similar backgrounds, and even offering constant guidance through house calls.

The results speak for themselves, Mr. Del Rosario pointed out. He said that their board exam results across fields like nursing to criminology, had an average of 80% pre-pandemic, even in licensure tests with a low overall passing rate.

Even in the pandemic years, when education in general took a hit, this rate stayed around 70%. They even saw an uptick in their enrolment figures during the period, boosting their student population to 124,000 last year and making PHINMA Education the largest education network in the country.

“PHINMA was set up with the intention to do good for the country. Even at the very outset, the intent of the company was to help build the country. It was out of love for the Philippines,” said Chito B. Salazar, Jr., president and COO, head of education of PHINMA Corp., and president and CEO of PHINMA Education.

THE PHINMA SPIRIT

Dr. Salazar noted that while the initial business of PHINMA has changed, the spirit remains the same. “I think this is what should drive business. Part of the difficulties in our world is because you always see businesses’ main role is to make a profit, which is important of course. But I don’t think making a profit is the first objective of business. I think any entity, any organization, any person’s first role in life is to somehow make the world a better place by their presence,” he said.

“Profit allows business to continue to do this in a sustainable way. You don’t need to ask for money from the government, you don’t need to rely on donations. It generates a profit in the process of doing good, and then it can sustain doing good. But, the first objective is always to make the world a better place.”

For Mr. Hilado, much of the success of PHINMA in doing good while doing well is thanks to the people who are dedicated to this mission of making lives better. “Every employee and stakeholder of our company is called to be good at what they do — even better than good, as we strive for excellence at all times,” he said.

“I am an advocate for a strong balance sheet and a good dividend policy. PHINMA is fair at all times — with associates, employees, customers, suppliers, and even our competitors. We are always honest, even while being fiercely competitive,” he added.

PHINMA employs this philosophy in all its businesses: in pursuing property development to provide affordable housing to Filipinos through PHINMA Properties; aiding national development by providing construction materials through PHINMA Construction Materials; and providing comfortable and safe stays for business travelers and tourists through PHINMA Hospitality.

Dr. Salazar is hopeful for the future of PHINMA, and looks forward to bringing the PHINMA spirit to other industries.

“The beauty of having a business driven with a mission of making the world a better place is that there will always be problems to solve. You won’t run out of things to do… Even though poverty and inequality still exist, there are new calls. One of the biggest is the environment. As we move forward, we’re now looking at new businesses and new ways to continue to help the world,” he said.

“I will admit that businesses — no one business in particular — have been responsible for many of the ills of the world. But this power can also be used in the opposite direction… It’s a good thing we have a very clear north star, [which is] precisely: What are the essentials for living a dignified life for Filipino families?” he continued.

The executives also expressed their confidence that PHINMA Corp. will maintain its altruistic spirit as it moves into other businesses.

“As long as you believe in what you’re doing, I think you have a good shot at it,” Mr. del Rosario said.

“I have never been more optimistic about PHINMA’s future as I am now. I sit back now and say, ‘Wow, those guys are going to run with this company. They know what they’re doing, and I like what they’re doing,’” Mr. Hilado added.

 

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Imported onion SRP set at P125/kg

PHILIPPINE STAR/WALTER BOLLOZOS

THE DEPARTMENT of Agriculture (DA) approved a suggested retail price (SRP) of P125 a kilo for imported red onions in the National Capital Region (NCR) starting on Wednesday.

DA Assistant Secretary Kristine Y. Evangelista said stakeholders had recommended the price at a meeting on Friday.

“This has been approved. We took into consideration the importers’ price… wholesalers’ price, plus the expenses of retailers,” she told reporters in mixed English and Filipino on Monday. “With that, we came up with a price of P125 that was agreed upon by retailers.”

The DA will work with “market masters” to disseminate information about the SRP. The local price coordinating council will monitor and enforce the price in markets.

Ms. Evangelista said the department had made a cost structure to guide retailers in negotiating with the suppliers and in following the SRP.

“Since we took into consideration the landed cost, as agreed upon by the importers, we believe that the retailers will not have the reason not to sell at a proper price,” she said.

The SRP will only be implemented in NCR, she added.

At least 3,500 metric tons (MT) out of 21,000 MT that were authorized for importation arrived before the Jan. 27 deadline set by the agency.

Based on DA’s latest price monitoring, imported red onions per kilo is sold in wet markets at P180-P260; local red onions at P230-P320; and local white onions at P120-P250.

Raul Q. Montemayor, national manager of the Federation of Free Farmers, said the issue on onions has revealed the inefficiency and manipulation in local agricultural food markets.

“It is also sad that they are now using the imported onions to drive down the cost of local onions,” he told BusinessWorld in a Viber message.

Mr. Montemayor lamented how the DA had refused to import onions and allowed prices to remain high in December, which benefited traders and hoarders.

“Now that farmers are trying to get the best possible prices for their products, they are driving down the retail price of imports, and this will definitely result in lower farmgate prices for farmers. Whose side is the DA on?”

Ms. Evangelista said the agency is working closely with different agencies to help farmers and address hoarding.

On the other hand, Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura (SINAG) Executive Director Jayson H. Cainglet said importation is “a death sentence” for local producers as farmgate prices of local onions continued to fall.

“The SRP on imported onions is meant to curb the exorbitant profits of importers while protecting the interest of consumers to buy cheaper onions,” he told BusinessWorld in a Viber message.

SINAG is discussing the SRP for local onions with the DA, Bureau of Plant Industry, onion farmers and other stakeholders.

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) on Monday said it would help the DA in monitoring the P125 a kilo SRP for imported onions.

“If it is really priced at P125, we all want that for consumer protection. So, we’ll find where that P125 price of onion is, to make sure that it is complied with by retailers,” Trade Undersecretary Ruth B. Castelo said at a televised briefing.

Based on the DTI’s own monitoring, she noted the retail price of onion still reaches as high as P350 per kilo, although some supermarkets are selling local onions at P180 per kilo.

“The prices of onion will start to decline once we get the local onion harvest. With the entry of the local harvest, there would be also a need to adjust the prices of imported onions,” Ms. Castelo added. 

NEW SRP BULLETIN
Meanwhile, the DTI is still looking at some figures before releasing the updated SRP bulletin for basic necessities and prime commodities (BNPCs).

“But as of now, consumers are rest assured that the prices of all the products in the SRP bulletin of the DTI are not moving. Until we make a new (SRP) publication after the August 2022 (SRP) publication, only then can our retailers increase prices in the market,” Ms. Castelo said.

In August 2022, the DTI issued an SRP bulletin, which reflected price increases for 67 out of 218 stock keeping units (SKUs) that were driven by surging production costs. Price increases at that time ranged from 3.29% to 10%.

Some of the BNPCs that posted price increases in the August 2022 SRP bulletin were canned sardines, coffee, noodles, bottled water, processed milk, detergent soap, candle, and condiments.

Previously, the DTI confirmed that there are pending price hike requests for BNPCs such as canned sardines, processed milk, coffee, instant noodles, bread, candles, bath soap, and detergent.

“We have seen justifications from the manufacturers on why they need to raise prices by so much. Because of the varying percentage and peso value of their price increases, we have seen a lot that are possible or justified,” Ms. Castelo said, adding that the DTI may still negotiate with manufacturers to implement smaller or staggered price increases. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera and Revin Mikhael D. Ochave

Faster PHL growth likely if Marcos addresses gaps in agri, good governance

The sunset is seen behind the Binondo-Intramuros Bridge in Manila, Feb. 5. — PHILIPPINE STAR/ MIGUEL DE GUZMAN

THE PHILIPPINE ECONOMY could grow by as much as 8-10% if the government can address the gaps in agriculture, investment, and good governance, according to economists.

“If President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. meets these three challenges, we will reach 8-10% growth in the next five years,” University of Asia and the Pacific (UA&P) Center for Research and Communication Director for Research Bernardo M. Villegas said at a briefing on Monday.

He said the Marcos administration should aim for at least 2-3% agricultural growth every year to achieve the 8-10% gross domestic product (GDP) expansion.

Agricultural production, which contributes about a tenth to GDP, dipped by 0.1% in 2022 for a third straight year of contraction.

Economic managers have set a 6-7% GDP growth target this year, and 6.5-8% goal for 2024-2028.

Mr. Villegas said Mr. Marcos should also increase the “very low” investment rate in the Philippines to over 30%, which is the average in East Asia.

“We have the worst savings rate in Asia, we’re only saving 10% compared with our neighbors who have 25-40%. We cannot get it from local capital. (We need to) attract foreign direct investments (FDI), which he should target at $15-20 billion per year,” he added.

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) data showed FDI net inflows declined by 8.3% to $7.635 billion in January to October. The BSP expects FDI net inflows to have reached $8.5 billion at the end of 2022 and $11 billion by the end of this year.

Mr. Villegas said the Philippines should also improve good governance.

“(Mr. Marcos) must fight corruption. If he can meet these challenges, we can reach 8-10% growth,” he added.

Based on the 2022 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), the Philippines ranked 116th out of 180 countries, up one spot from its worst-ever showing of 117th place in the previous year.

However, the country’s score was unchanged at 33 out of 100 in a scale that measures perceived levels of public sector corruption. A score of 100 means a country is “very clean,” while zero means it is “highly corrupt.” 

6% GROWTH THIS YEAR
Victor A. Abola, an economist at UA&P, said the Philippine economy is likely to grow 6% this year or at the low end of the government’s 6-7% target.

“For GDP, I expect it to be 6% with the services sector providing the lead. Hotels and restaurants are continuing to open up and we expect more tourists, not only abroad, but domestic demand has been driving the hospitality sector,” he said.

The economy grew 7.6% last year, its fastest growth in 46 years. It also exceeded the government’s 6.5-7.5% goal.

“We do have some fiscal space especially given our debt-to-GDP ratio. Our fiscal space is bound to expand by 2024. We expect the (debt-to-GDP) ratio will start declining to 60.1% this year depending on the rate of growth of the economy,” Mr. Abola said.

The country’s debt as a share to GDP was at 60.9% as of end-December, better than the 63.7% debt-to-GDP ratio as of end-September but still above the 60% threshold considered manageable by multilateral lenders for developing economies.

The government is aiming to bring down the debt-to-GDP ratio to less than 60% by 2025 and 51.5% by 2028. — Luisa Maria Jacinta C. Jocson

Filipinos crunched by rates, spike in cost of living

Shoppers head to Divisoria, Manila, Dec. 26, 2022. — PHILIPPINE STAR/WALTER BOLLOZOS

By Keisha B. Ta-asan, Reporter

GLORIA L. JAPON, a 48-year-old public school teacher from Cavite south of the Philippine capital, admits struggling to pay her housing loan in the face of spiraling prices.

Her household costs have increased as her four children in Grade 4 to second year college started attending face-to-face classes amid decreasing coronavirus infections. “Commodity prices would continue to rise, and there’s nothing I can do about it,” she said by telephone in Filipino.

Inflation might have hit as much as 8.3% last month, the Philippine central bank said, faster than the 14-year record of 8.1% in December.

Ms. Japon said her monthly loan amortization has increased by 6% to P9,600 from 2017. “I was taken aback.”

Interest rates started rising in May due to policy tightening by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), Domini S. Velasquez, chief economist at China Banking Corp., said in an e-mail.

The BSP raised borrowing costs by 350 basis points (bps) last year, bringing the key rate to a 14-year high of 5.5% as it tried to tame inflation.

“We could see the effects of higher borrowing costs on exchange rates and demand for securities,” she said. “As interest rates in the US continue to rise, investors are moving their money to US securities to take advantage of higher yields. The increased demand is then causing the dollar to strengthen further against other currencies.”

“The increase in housing loans could be driven by the country’s economic recovery and possibly some borrowers locking in interest rates in expectation of further monetary tightening by the BSP.”

Interest rates on loans, including those for housing and credit cards, are expected to continue going up given the lag in the effects of the central bank’s policy tightening.

“Rate hikes manage inflation expectations as they signal to companies and households that the BSP is taking action to directly slow economic activity, which in turn leads to slower growth,” ING Bank N.V. Manila Senior Economist Nicholas Antonio T. Mapa said in an e-mail.

“BSP policy actions do not impact inflation or prices per se, but they do impact economic growth indirectly,” he said. “By adjusting settings, the BSP is affecting liquidity, which is oftentimes referred to as the lifeblood of the economy.”

Philippine economic output grew by 7.2% in the fourth quarter, bringing 2022 growth to 7.6% — higher than expected and better than the government’s 6.5-7.5% goal. The government expects growth at 6-7% this year amid a looming global economic slowdown.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said the economy would probably grow by 5% this year, mainly due to the BSP’s monetary tightening. This is higher than its 4.3% estimate for ASEAN-5 and 2.9% for the world.

“If you drain liquidity, you drain the lifeblood of the economy — economic activity slows and fewer people are hired,” Mr. Mapa said. “Fewer jobs created mean less purchasing power and less demand-side pressure, which finally leads to lower prices.”

The effects of monetary tightening are not directly felt because it merely sets into motion a series of events that would likely lead to slower growth, he said. Only then will inflation slow.

If the BSP hiked key rates by 100 bps today, projects and investments that are already in play would likely continue, Mr. Mapa said. But in the next six to 18 months, potential investments that are no longer going to happen — deterred by higher borrowing costs — would mean fewer people will be hired. “Therefore, the lag.”

‘SELF-FULFILLING’
The unemployment rate further eased to 4.2% in November — the lowest in 17 years and equivalent to 2.177 million unemployed Filipinos.

But job quality worsened, with the underemployment rate rising by 0.2 point to 14.4% from a month earlier. Underemployed Filipinos rose by 488,000 to 7.161 million from October.

The same could be said about credit cards, Mr. Mapa said. “Rates for credit cards were capped throughout the pandemic and had not been affected by recent rate hikes, which might explain why spending has been relatively resilient despite higher inflation and rising borrowing costs for all other types of loans,” he said.

He added that as the central bank adjusts the ceiling on credit card charges, there could be a similar slowdown in purchases.

The BSP raised the monthly interest rate ceiling for credit cards to 3% effective this month to reflect its recent policy tightening, after keeping it at 2% for the past two years.

Aside from indirectly affecting consumer demand, policy tightening is crucial to manage inflation expectations, Ms. Velasquez said.

“Inflation expectations have the potential to be self-fulfilling,” she said. “Seeing the BSP’s actions to bring down inflation, the public may be convinced that prices will eventually go down. Thus, people will only factor in modest price increases in their wage and price-setting decisions.”

“If the expectation is inflation will ease in the near term, businesses will not factor in large wage increases in their plans, so they may keep prices of goods and services at the same or just a slightly higher level, keeping actual inflation low,” she added.

Consumers are unlikely to borrow more due to rising interest rates. Bank lending growth slowed to 13.4% in December from a month earlier.

Consumer and business sentiment declined in the fourth quarter due to higher prices and rising interest rates. The consumer confidence index worsened to -14.6% from -12.9% a quarter earlier, while the business confidence index fell to 23.9% from 26.1%.

The central bank expects inflation to average at 4.5% this year, higher than its 2-4% goal, before easing to 2.8% in 2024.

Central bank Governor Felipe M. Medalla has said they would manage inflation expectations, signaling more rate increases in the first quarter. The Monetary Board will hold its first policy review on Feb. 16.

“I’m struggling because I’m the only one working in our family and my husband is jobless,” said Ms. Japon, the teacher. “We need to pay our housing loan for the next 14 years, otherwise I’ll end up suffering later.”

Globe agrees to lease telco towers to Thai group

GLOBE Telecom, Inc. has signed an agreement to lease telecommunications towers in Southern Luzon to a unit of Thailand-based Sky Tower Plc. to monetize its assets.

Globe’s lease partnership signed on Feb. 6 with the Thai firm will be through the latter’s Philippine subsidiary, Skytowers Infra, Inc. No amount was disclosed for the leased towers.

According to the Ayala-led company, the collaboration is a part of its overall strategy of monetizing passive assets to maintain a healthy balance sheet.

“This partnership represents an important step in improving digital infrastructure in the Philippines, and we are excited to work with Skytowers to bring sustainable solutions to the market,” President and Chief Executive Officer Ernest L. Cu said in a press release.

Globe said that Skytowers will complement its sustainability efforts as the tower company committed to reduce its carbon footprint by using renewable energy.

The parties’ collaboration was hosted by Thailand’s Ambassador to the Philippines Tull Traisorat, as the partnership is seen to promote economic growth and development locally and in Thailand.

“We look forward to further strengthening our relationship with Thailand in this venture and other areas of collaboration,” Mr. Cu said.

Thailand is one of the country’s major trade partners and a source of its rice imports. The Philippines and Thailand will celebrate their 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations next year.

Skytowers offers telecommunications services and fiber optic solutions to Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, and Indonesia.

It is affiliated with Electric Power and Telecommunication Infrastructure, which has extensive experience in engineering design and manufacturing.

In a separate press release, Globe expanded its collaboration with software and communications services provider, Amdocs, which is expected to make the telco’s 5G services faster across all its business lines and also allow monetization of select services.

“We are pleased to expand our collaboration with Globe Telecom and provide them with our latest charging platform, offering seamless monetization opportunities for standalone 5G and beyond,” Amdocs Group President of Technology and Head of Strategy Anthony Goonetilleke said.

In the expansion, Amdocs will be deploying real-time charging solutions across Globe’s multiple data centers.

“This will add resiliency and stability to Globe’s system ensuring seamless delivery of services without any disruption while enabling them to quickly launch differentiated 5G services to consumers and businesses across all lines of business,” said Amdocs.

The new platform will also support application programming interface-based charging, which will allow Globe to monetize digital and fintech services.

“Building on our partnership with Amdocs, their 5G-native charging solution will provide us with the benefits of flexible, efficient real-time charging and monetization capabilities, empowering us to meet emerging business demands and customer needs,” Globe Chief Information Officer Raul M. Macatangay said. — Justine Irish D. Tabile

A Brown unit secures P400-M funding for E-beam facility

A UNIT of listed holding firm A Brown Co., Inc. has secured a P400-million funding for the construction of a commercial electron beam or E-beam facility and cold storage in Rizal province.

In a press release on Monday, A Brown said its subsidiary, Irradiation Solutions, Inc., will use the financing facility from China Banking Corp. for the project’s construction and procurement phase, as well as to fund the auxiliary system from Radtech Vietnam Co. Ltd.

The project in Tanay, Rizal will be primarily designed to store food products and medical devices. In its initial phase, the facility is expected to accommodate as much as 20,000 tons every year.

The E-beam facility, which is said to be the first commercially available in the country, will also have services such as sterilization of medical masks, dressings, syringes, surgical staplers, and other single-use medical devices.

The facility is set to provide contract irradiation services that are said to improve the quality of agricultural and fishery products.

“This will enable local products, fruits, and seafood to be of export quality and gain wider access to international markets,” Irradiation Solutions President Paul B. Juat said.

The E-beam technology is described as the “most economical option for commercial and sterilization methods” in more than 60 countries.

“It will not only improve the safety and quality of food products in the Philippines, but it will also create new job opportunities and stimulate economic growth in the region,” Mr. Juat said.

According to the company, the Board of Investments has approved the project’s “pioneering status” under Republic Act No. 11534 or the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises Act.

The facility started construction in April 2022 with commercial operations expected to begin by the third quarter of this year.

“As the facility opens, products for irradiation treatment are expected to slowly scale up as customers get accustomed to the availability of the service,” A Brown said,

With the E-beam facility, the listed company expects Irradiation Solutions to contribute to A Brown’s net income starting in 2024. — Justine Irish D. Tabile

Manila Water readies plan for sanitation projects until 2037

MANILA Water Co., Inc. on Monday said that it would submit its completion plan to build and operate water, sewerage and sanitation projects until 2037.

In a regulatory filing on Monday, Manila Water said it had received on Monday a copy of the Jan. 17, 2023 notice from the Supreme Court (SC) that “denied with finality” a motion for partial reconsideration filed by the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) for the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).

“It also stated that no further pleadings or motions will be entertained, and that entry of judgment will be made immediately,” the listed company said.

With the denial, the DENR will have no basis to continue to refuse to accept the company’s payment of fines as computed by the court, Manila Water said. The fines were imposed on the water concessionaires in their case for non-compliance with Republic Act No. 9275 or the Philippine Clean Water Act of 2004.

Aside from the fines, the company said the SC notice also mandated the east zone water concessionaire to submit as required by its legislative franchise a plan for the establishment and operation of water and sanitation projects until the 2037 period.

This includes a five-year completion target, which will achieve 100% water, sewerage and sanitation coverage by 2037.

In October last year, the SC unanimously affirmed its 2019 ruling that the Metropolitan Water Works and Sewerage System (MWSS), Manila Water, and Maynilad Water Services, Inc., should be held liable for violating Section 8 of the Clean Water Act.

However, the High Court also allowed the lowering of the fines imposed on the two concessionaires to P30,000 per day from P200,000 per day from the day of the violation on May 7, 2009 to Jan. 21, 2022, which amounts to P202.26 million.

In 2009, the DENR filed a complaint against MWSS and its concessionaires, Maynilad and Manila Water, for their failure to provide, install, operate, and maintain adequate wastewater treatment facilities for the sewerage system, resulting in the degraded quality and beneficial use of the receiving bodies of water leading to Manila Bay.

Section 8 of the Clean Water Act mandates the connection of existing sewage lines in all subdivisions, condominiums, commercial centers and other establishments, including households, to an available sewerage system within five years from the law’s effectivity in 2004.

Manila Water said it made several attempts to pay the fine but the DENR rejected the payment. The OSG then filed a motion for partial reconsideration on Nov. 2, 2022.

In the SC notice denying the motion, the court said that “the issues raised by the OSG have been passed upon and no substantial arguments were presented to warrant the reversal.”

MAYNILAD
Meanwhile, Maynilad is set to spend around P3.2 billion for the construction of four modular treatment plants in Cavite, the west zone water concessionaire said on Monday.

“Cavite is the farthest point of our concession area, so there are portions that do not yet receive 24-hour water supply. The new modular treatment plants will draw water from adjacent dams, and serve as a dedicated supply source that can lengthen supply availability for these underserved areas,” Maynilad Chief Operating Officer Randolph T. Estrellado, said in a media release on Monday.

The modular treatment plants are expected to be completed between 2023 and 2024, these will be located in the province of Cavite in the cities of Bacoor and Imus, the four modular treatment plants will have a combined water output of 47 million liters per day (MLD) which can provide water supply to about 200,000 households.

Metro Pacific Investments Corp., which has a majority stake in Maynilad, is one of three Philippine units of Hong Kong-based First Pacific Co. Ltd., the others being Philex Mining Corp. and PLDT Inc. — Ashley Erika O. Jose

Araneta unit to open P4-B third tower of Cyberpark in 2025

THE Araneta group’s ACI, Inc. is set to open the third office building of its 8-hectare Cyberpark development by the first quarter of 2025 which it expects to cost around P4 billion.

Called Cyberpark 3, the property will have 27 levels of office spaces, three basement parking floors, and two floors of retail space. The new addition to the P20-billion Cyberpark Complex is estimated to have 91,000 square meters (sq.m.) of gross floor area.

On Feb. 6, the company announced during its first concrete pouring the resumption of the project after being halted by the pandemic.

Once completed, the office tower will be connected to venues such as Smart Araneta Coliseum, Farmers Plaza, Ali Mall, and Novotel Manila.

Rowell L. Recinto, the Araneta group’s senior management consultant, said the complex will also be connected to soon-to-rise Gateway Mall 2, Styles Hotel, and the Manhattan Gardens residential towers.

“Cyberpark 3 is our latest solution to the need of companies and locators looking for options. Once completed, it will serve as a suitable, even superior, alternative to office spaces in the usual central business districts,” said Mr. Recinto.

The new office building highlights green initiatives and renewable energy solutions as it is said to carry a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification.

Among its sustainable features are its energy-efficient double-glazed windows and rainwater collection system.

“We will continue to introduce environmentally impactful design features and specifications in our Cyberpark constructions,” he said.

Cyberpark 3 is the third tower of the five towers expected to rise in the Philippine Economic Zone Authority-registered IT complex. The complex is projected to have a combined floor area of over 500,000 sq.m.

Araneta City opened the first two towers of the complex Cyberpark 1 and Cyberpark 2 in 2016 and 2018, respectively. — Justine Irish D. Tabile

Sangley airport consortium signs JV agreement

PHILSTAR

THE consortium tasked to build the Sangley Point International Airport on Monday signed the joint venture and development agreement with the Cavite provincial government, one of its members said.

In a regulatory filing, Yuchengco-led House of Investments, Inc. said it signed the agreement along with the Philippine members of the consortium, namely: Cavitex Holdings, Inc. and MacroAsia Corp.

Samsung C&T Corp., Munich Airport International GmbH and Ove Arup & Partners Hong Kong Ltd. are also involved in the project. Samsung C&T is the construction arm of South Korean tech giant Samsung.

The signing is part of the disclosure requirements of the Securities and Exchange Commission for the consortium. 

Cavite Governor Juanito Victor C. Remulla previously said that the airport project will begin by the third or fourth quarter of this year.

The Cavite provincial government awarded the project on Sept. 14 to the consortium composed of Philippine, European, and South Korean companies.

By 2028, the consortium expects to run the first phase of the project, which includes the first of the airport’s four runways.

The second phase of the project includes the two-runway system with facilities capable of handling at least 75 million passengers a year. — Justine Irish D. Tabile

Beyoncé breaks all-time Grammy win record; Harry Styles claims best album

BEYONCÉ accepts the award for Best Dance/Electronic Music Album for Renaissance during the 65th Annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, California, Feb. 5. —REUTERS/MARIO ANZUONI

LOS ANGELES — Pop superstar Beyoncé broke the record for most career wins at music’s Grammy awards on Sunday but lost again in the prestigious album of the year category, this time to British singer Harry Styles.

Beyoncé added four Grammys to her collection, bringing her lifetime total to 32 and surpassing the tally of late classical conductor Georg Solti.

Despite her success through the years, the 41-year-old “Break My Soul” singer has never claimed the best album trophy. Styles took home that honor on Sunday for Harry’s House.

“I’ve been so inspired by every artist in this category,” a surprised Mr. Styles said as he accepted the award. “On nights like tonight, it’s obviously so important for us to remember that there is no such thing as best in music.”

Grammy voters spread the top awards among several artists.

Lizzo’s upbeat “About Damn Time” won record of the year.

She dedicated the award to Prince, saying the late artist had inspired her to make positive music. Lizzo also saluted Beyoncé and recalled how she skipped out of school in fifth grade to see the “Halo” singer in concert.

“You clearly are the artist of our lives,” Lizzo said.

Blues singer Bonnie Raitt’s “Just Like That,” about an organ donor, earned song of the year.

Mr. Styles triumphed over a formidable, wide-ranging field that included Beyoncé, Puerto Rican rapper Bad Bunny, Lizzo, British vocalist Adele and disco-era Swedish hitmaker ABBA.

Beyoncé took the stage as she secured the all-time Grammy record with her award for best dance/electronic album for Renaissance.

“I am trying not to be too emotional. I am trying just to receive this night,” Beyoncé said. “I want to thank God for protecting me. Thank you, God.”

She also thanked her family and “the queer community for your love and for inventing the genre.”

Earlier, Beyoncé was absent when she was named the winner of best R&B song for “Cuff It.” Host Trevor Noah said the singer was stuck in traffic. He later handed her the trophy at her seat in the audience.

Bad Bunny took home the award for best música urbana album for Un Verano Sin Ti. For best rap album, Kendrick Lamar triumphed with Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers.

Honorees were chosen by roughly 11,000 members of the Recording Academy.

American jazz singer Samara Joy was named best new artist.

“Oh my gosh. I’ve been watching you all on TV for so long,” she said. “All of you are so inspiring to me.”

NEW EGOT WINNER
Meanwhile, actress Viola Davis on Sunday won a Grammy for her audio recording of her memoir Finding Me, granting her entry into the elite ranks of EGOT winners with an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar and a Tony award.

Ms. Davis is the third Black woman to earn this title, and the 18th person in history, and was thrilled to celebrate the moment on stage. The 57-year-old actor proudly said, “I got EGOT!” as she won a Grammy for best audio book, narration and storytelling recording.

Davis has a 2015 Emmy for TV series How To Get Away with Murder, won an Academy Award for best supporting actress in 2017 for her role in 2016’s Fences and has two Tony awards for Fences and King Hedley II.

“Oh my God,” she said on Sunday as she accepted her Grammy. “I wrote this book to honor the six-year-old Viola, to honor her, to honor her life, her joy, her trauma, her everything.”

Ms. Davis was the only female nominee in her category this year alongside big names Lin-Manuel Miranda, Questlove, Mel Brooks and Jamie Foxx.

Other EGOT winners include Jennifer Hudson, Rita Moreno, Audrey Hepburn and Whoopi Goldberg. — Reuters

DoTr picks best bid for GenSan airport project

THE Transportation department’s bids and awards committee has recommended the award of a project to improve General Santos City’s (GenSan) international airport to a construction firm based in Eastern Samar.

In a notice of award last week, the Department of Transportation (DoTr) identified “B.M. Marketing” through its sole proprietor Edgar A. Tiu as having submitted the lowest calculated and responsive bid for the P37.84-million project.

The General Santos International Airport Development Project covers the construction of the covered drop-off and the expansion of vehicular parking areas in the international airport. The approved budget for the contract is P47.27 million.

The working or window hours for the project will run all day as the scope of work is located in an area outside the flight operations.

According to the bid bulletin, full construction operations during the window hours were allowed by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP).

General Santos International Airport, also known as Tambler Airport, is Mindanao’s largest airport and it is managed by CAAP. — Justine Irish D. Tabile

Office rents may rise by 2% this year

AN OFFICE building is seen at the heart of the business district in Makati City, March 11, 2016. — REUTERS

OFFICE rental rates are projected to go up by as much as 2% this year, thanks to anticipated demand from companies looking to outsource operations to the Philippines, Cushman & Wakefield said.

“Despite the several global economic headwinds ahead, the Philippine IT-BPM (information technology and business process management) industry is expected to significantly benefit from large-scale lay-offs in tech companies. Mass job cuts among tech and startup companies have driven the demand for outsourcing and IT-BPM related industries in order to further save up on operating costs amidst the challenging business environment,” Cushman & Wakefield said in a report.

“As demand starts to recover, average prime and grade ‘A’ rents are estimated to grow at a base scenario between 1.5%-2.0% in 2023.”

Tech giants such as Amazon.com, Inc., Google parent Alphabet, Inc., Microsoft Corp., IBM Corp. and Facebook owner Meta Platforms, Inc. have announced massive layoffs. Financial firms such as Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and Citigroup, have also started reducing staff.

“Overall vacancy rate for Metro Manila is forecasted to go down in 2023 partly due to the rekindled interest of multi-national companies looking at setting up back-office or shared services operations in the country,” Tetet Castro, director and head of tenant advisory group at Cushman & Wakefield, said.

Average vacancy rates inched up to 16.13% in the fourth quarter of 2022, from 16.12% in the third quarter, Cushman & Wakefield said.

While office market recovery continued in the fourth quarter of 2022, Ms. Castro said vacancy rates may slightly go up in the first quarter due to “the addition of new stocks from new building completions as well as non-renewal or early return of space by occupiers continuing their exercise of rightsizing or converting to a hybrid set-up.”

Average rental rates also dipped 0.16% quarter on quarter due to the volume of new stock completions. Year on year, average prime and grade ‘A’ rents fell by 0.51% in 2022, despite a 0.4% year-on-year growth in net absorption.

Claro Cordero, director and head of research, consulting & advisory services at Cushman & Wakefield, said only a handful of buildings have slightly lowered rents, “although rental flexibility is dependent on the amount of space to be taken in by the prospective tenant.”

“Positive rental growth is likely to happen in 2023 as delayed prospects are expected to get a green light this year, giving confidence to developers and landlords to test resistance levels on the pre-pandemic published rates, while overall market vacancy tapers down,” he said.

Mr. Cordero said allowing IT-BPM companies registered with the Board of Investments to continue work-from-home arrangements will also boost growth of flexible workspaces.

“A hub-and-spoke strategy will likely increase the demand for plug-and-play office spaces which are readily-available on short notice and with flexible terms,” he added.

In 2022, total completions stood at 0.34 million square meters (sq.m.), bringing the total prime and grade ‘A’ office supply in Metro Manila at approximately 9.2 million sq.m.

Cushman & Wakefield said office supply is likely to expand by 0.53 million sq.m. this year. — Cathy Rose A. Garcia

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