Luzon business groups vow support for Pax Silica
CITY OF SAN FERNANDO—The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry-North Luzon (PCCI-NL) has expressed support “in principle” for the Pax Silica initiative, which will involve projects hosted inside the New Clark City (NCC) in Tarlac province.
“We do so not because we are indifferent to the concerns being raised, but precisely because we believe that an opportunity of this magnitude must be pursued with the highest standards of transparency, governance, environmental stewardship and Filipino participation,” the business chamber said in a statement on Wednesday.
PCCI-NL consisted of chapters in the provinces and cities of Central Luzon, Cagayan Valley, the Ilocos and the Cordillera regions. About 30 business leaders, led by lawyer Maria Amalia Tiglao-Cayanan, PCCI-NL area vice president, signed the statement of support.
Pax Silica is a coalition led by the United States seeking to strengthen supply chains for critical minerals, semiconductors, artificial intelligence (AI), advanced manufacturing, energy and logistics.
The Philippines joined it last April and has designated a 1,620-hectare site at the NCC in Capas town as a hub for AI and advanced manufacturing and the Port of Subic in Zambales province as its maritime gateway.
The initiative is part of the broader Luzon Economic Corridor partnership, which was among the key topics discussed in the meeting of President Marcos and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio during the latter’s visit last July.
The NCC spans 9,500 hectares of military baselands formerly leased by the United States from the Philippines until the closure of Clark Air Base in 1991 and Subic Naval Base in 1992.
According to PCCI-NL, Pax Silica can become a “generational opportunity” for North Luzon and the country.
“When implemented properly, the project can attract substantial domestic and foreign direct investment, expnd opportunities for local suppliers and service providers, accelerate industrial development, generate quality employment, promote technology transfer, strengthen critical-mineral and semiconductor supply chains and create shared prosperity across our region,” it said, adding that North Luzon has many strategic advantages to support a globally competitive industrial corridor.
‘Core safeguards’
The PCCI-NL proposed six “core safeguards” that include governance and accountability, use of Filipino labor and skills and financial transparency.
It called for expedited but rigorous regulation, a Filipino-first economic framework, creation of a regional business working group, stronger regional coordination and transparent monitoring.
“We support progress. We support responsible foreign direct investment. We support industrialization. We support quality jobs, technology transfer, Filipino entrepreneurship and increased economic opportunity. But we support these objectives with open eyes, informed by history, guided by law and anchored firmly in the national interest,” it said.
In a separate statement, the Pampanga Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PamCham) said its support for Pax Silica “rests on a simple premise.”
PamCham said the Philippines is “not entering this arrangement empty-handed.”
“Decades of experience in electronics assembly and testing, much of it built in this region, give the country genuine leverage to negotiate for technology transfer, supplier development and workforce upgrading—the same trajectory that took the BPO sector from call centers to sophisticated global services,” it said.
Tarlac Gov. Christian Yap has welcomed Pax Silica, citing its job generation potential and its “multiplier effects.”
“This is a welcome project in our province if only because of the thousands of jobs it will generate and its high multiplier effect (on the local economy),” Yap told the Inquirer.
The Bases Conversion and Development Authority earlier estimated that Pax Silica could attract at least $40 billion in investments and generate as many as 130,000 jobs.
