Asean Tribune

MANILA: Taisei Corp., one of the largest contractors in Japan, is buying a 25-percent share in a subsidiary of Yuchengco-led PetroGreen Energy Corp. (PGEC) as part of its investment in renewable energy (RE) here.

In a statement Wednesday, PGEC said it signed an investment framework and shareholders agreements with Taisei on April 23.

Under the deal, Taisei will acquire a 25-percent equity stake in PGEC’s unit Rizal Green Energy Corporation (RGEC).

‘The investment covers the funding, construction, and operation of an initial portfolio of four solar power facilities,’ PGEC said.

These solar power projects include the 41-megawatt direct current (MWdc) Limbauan project in Isabela, the 25-MWdc Bugallon project in Pangasinan, the 19.6-MWdc San Jose project in Nueva Ecija, and the 27-MWdc Dagohoy solar project in Bohol.

‘We are very pleased to be able to contribute to renewable energy in the Philippines, which is experiencing remarkable development, and more importantly, to participate in this project as a busi
ness partner with PGEC,’ Taisei executive vice president Jiro Taniyama said.

Taisei has been operating in the Philippines since 1982 as a general contractor for infrastructure projects under Official Development Assistance (ODA).

However, its partnership with PGEC is Taisei’s first equity investment in renewable energy outside Japan.

‘We are honored that Taisei Corp. has chosen the Philippines to make its first overseas equity investment in RE. Following on the 2022 partnership we forged with Kyuden International Corp. (KIC), Taisei’s entry not only validates PGEC’s performance and integrity as an RE developer and partner but also testifies to the vastly improved energy investment climate in the country under the present administration,’ PGEC chairperson Milagros Reyes said.

PGEC board director and KIC Asia Division managing director Keichi Niinuma also said that Taisei’s expertise in engineering and construction coupled with PGEC’s and Kyuden’s experience in the local energy market and regulatory environ
ment will help in exploring other RE opportunities in the country, including hydropower, floating solar, energy storage and efficiency.

These will help the Philippines achieve its goal of a net-zero future, he added.

Source: Philippines News Agency

Police signed an agreement with the government of the southern county of Imsil on Wednesday to facilitate the burial of police dogs at South Korea’s only animal cemetery in the country to better honor their services.

Under the agreement, the Police Human Resources Development Institute and the government of Imsil, 218 kilometers southwest of Seoul, agreed to cooperate to secure a burial ground for police dogs at the Osu Pet Memorial Park in Imsil and help pay for their funeral costs.

The agreement came amid calls for more respectful treatment of police dogs, given their roles in assisting police with a wide range of tasks from saving lives to helping with scientific investigations.

Park Sung-joo, director of the Police Human Resources Development Institute, said he hopes the agreement will act as the foundation for promoting the respectful treatment of police dogs.

Source: Yonhap News Agency

MANILA: Senate Deputy Minority Leader Risa Hontiveros is calling for an immediate ban on the operation of Philippine Offshore Gaming Operation (POGO) in the country, saying human trafficking is part of its business model.

Hontiveros made the statement during her inspection Wednesday, together with Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, of a POGO firm in Bamban, Tarlac which was raided for human trafficking and illegal detention.

‘Ginagamit talaga bilang legal cover ang POGO ng mga sindikatong scammer. At kahit pa ligal na POGO, hindi ikinaganda ng Pilipinas ang pag-welcome sa mga sugalang ito (Scammer syndicates use POGO as legal cover. And even POGOs are legal, these gambling hubs never made the Philippines any better),” she said.

“Simula pa lang, nakita na natin na mas pinalala lang ng mga POGO ang mga sakit ng ating lipunan (From the start, that POGOs just worsened the problems of our society),’ she added.

During the inspection, the senators were informed by the Philippine Anti-Organized Crime Commission that six
Chinese fugitives running love scams and cryptocurrency investment scams were found in the premises.

Phones hanging on metal racks were also found, together with numerous SIM cards, presumably used to execute fraudulent transactions.

Hontiveros saw that the alleged POGO hub in Bamban, similar to other scam facilities previously raided, also had offices outfitted with computer workstations, along with instructional guides and scripts used in love scams and crypto schemes.

She filed on Tuesday Senate Resolution No. 1001, seeking to start a probe into foreigners using falsified documents to acquire Filipino citizenship.

She cited in the resolution how findings of the Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations and Gender Equality revealed that the Visa Upon Arrival scheme was abused by Chinese POGO workers who wanted to enter the Philippines unchecked.

Source: Philippines News Agency

The vice foreign ministers of South Korea and Canada held talks Wednesday to discuss ways to expand bilateral cooperation in the areas of energy and key minerals, the foreign ministry said.

During the talks in Seoul, Second Vice Foreign Minister Kang In-sun and her Canadian counterpart, Rob Stewart, also agreed on the need to step up cooperation as South Korea and Canada are set to chair the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit and Group of Seven (G7) Summit, respectively, next year.

The two sides stressed the need for Seoul to strengthen ties with the G7 countries, according to the ministry. The G7 consists of the United States, Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan.

South Korea was recently excluded from a list of countries invited to the upcoming G7 summit, set to take place in Italy in June, though the country has been pushing for a “G7 Plus” initiative to expand its role and responsibilities as one of the world’s major middle powers.

Kang also noted “great potential” for cooperation
between the two countries, especially in the areas of key minerals and high-tech future industries, such as electric vehicles and batteries.

Source: Yonhap News Agency

MANILA: The Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) reported on Wednesday that it has doubled its remittance to the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) in 2024 compared to the dividends remitted in 2023.

The BCDA remitted PHP1.1 billion this year, higher than the PHP527 million worth of dividends the previous year.

Its remittance this year will augment the national government’s budget to be spent on critical projects and programs that will propel economic growth, the BCDA said.

‘The BCDA’s higher dividend remittance to the national government reflects its sustained good financial standing amid efficient revenue generation and expenditure management,’ BCDA President and Chief Executive Officer Joshua Bingcang said.

‘This year, we are remitting more than the share mandated by the law as a testament to our commitment to nation-building,’ Bingcang added.

Under Republic Act 7656, or the Dividend Law, all government-owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs) are mandated to declare and remit at least 50 perc
ent of their net earnings as dividends.

The PHP1.1-billion remittance this year represents 75 percent of the BCDA’s net earnings in 2023.

Since the BCDA’s inception in 1992, the GOCC has remitted a total of PHP9.6 billion in dividends to the national coffers.

‘On top of dividends, the BCDA also remits to the [Bureau of the Treasury] guarantee fees for the loan of Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX), as well as proceeds from its asset disposition program, which is distributed to several beneficiary agencies, primarily the Armed Forces of the Philippines,’ the BCDA added.

Source: Philippines News Agency

South Korean stocks soared 2 percent Wednesday as tech, secondary battery and other market heavyweights rallied following overnight gains on Wall Street. The Korean won rose against the U.S. dollar.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index climbed 52.73 points, or 2.01 percent, to 2,675.75. Trade volume was moderate at 319 million shares worth 10.06 trillion won (US$7.34 billion). Winners outpaced losers 610 to 270.

Institutions and foreign investors combined bought a net 855.3 billion won, while retail investors unloaded a net 867 billion won worth of shares.

Overnight on Wall Street, the S andP 500 rose 1.2 percent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq jumped 1.59 percent, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.69 percent, as tech heavyweights lifted the broader U.S. stock market.

Han Ji-young, an analyst at Kiwoom Securities, said Seoul shares advanced on “continued expectations of interest rate cuts by the U.S. Federal Reserve following the latest U.S. Purchasing Managers’ Index data, as well as
strong performances from artificial intelligence-related stocks such as Nvidia.”

In Seoul, most blue chips advanced. Market heavyweight Samsung Electronics surged 4.11 percent to 78,600 won and chip rival SK hynix also surged 5.15 percent to 179,800 won.

Battery shares and energy shares also gained traction. Leading battery company LG Energy Solution jumped 4.05 percent to 385,000 won, and top refiner SK Innovation added 1.48 percent 110,000 won.

Financial shares, however, lost ground following their strong gains in the past few sessions. Kookmin Financial slipped 1.85 percent to 68,900 won, and Hana Financial also fell 1.91 percent to 56,500 won.

The local currency ended at 1,369.2 won against the greenback, up 9.1 won from the previous session’s close.

Source: Yonhap News Agency