Category: Business Mirror

Jordan Bartlett delivered in the clutch as HoopBus HCG captured the inaugural 2026 MelMac Sports 3×3 Invitational title, defeating Taho Story, 21-17, on Sunday night at MelMac Sports.

Bartlett sparked HoopBus HCG’s decisive 7-2 finishing run, scoring six of his eight points in the closing stretch. His biggest basket came with 21 seconds left, when the De La Salle University guard drove to the hoop and finished over Jimwell Ocampo to put the championship beyond reach.

The 5-foot-10 playmaker helped HoopBus HCG erase a 14-15 deficit, capping an unbeaten tournament run and securing the P100,000 champion’s prize.

Billy Baptist and AJ Benson added six points each, while Carlo De Chavez contributed one.

Taho Story settled for the P50,000 runner-up purse after an inspiring Cinderella campaign.

Ike Akpuru scored a game-high nine points, while Ocampo added six. Michael Macaballug finished with two points, and Nikki Monteclaro was held scoreless.

Despite placing fourth in Pool A with a 3-2 record, Taho Story produced the tournament’s biggest upset in the quarterfinals, stunning top-seeded Pool B squad Zark’s Burgers, 14-8. The heavily favored Zark’s lineup featured Mac Tallo, Alvin Pasaol, JR Alabanza and Gian Abrigo.

Taho Story followed that up with a 21-13 semifinal victory over HCG MNL Kingpin to earn a berth in the championship game.

Earlier, L.A.D Basketball claimed third place after defeating a fatigued HCG MNL Kingpin side, 21-14.

JP Sarao led L.A.D Basketball with eight points, while Jey Mark Mallari and Lester Quicho added six and five, respectively, to secure the P30,000 third-place prize.

Kit Aviso and Fubara White scored four points apiece for HCG MNL Kingpin.

Beyond crowning its first champion, the tournament highlighted MelMac Sports’ goal of helping revive the local 3×3 basketball scene by providing a platform for both established and emerging players.

MelMac Sports founder Mel Macasaquit thanked the Villar Group, represented by mall head Jeff Ventura, Smart Sports, and the tournament’s partners for supporting the inaugural event.

‘My passion-really, my obsession-for 3×3 basketball inspired me to build this multi-sports facility,’ Macasaquit said. ‘With the Villar Group and all of your support, we’re continuing to expand because we want to create more opportunities for athletes and help elevate the local 3×3 basketball scene.’

Macasaquit also announced that MelMac Sports is expanding beyond basketball.

Earlier in the day, its FIFA-standard football field at Villar City hosted its first activity through G8 Academy, marking another milestone for the sports complex.

‘We’re not stopping with basketball,’ he said. ‘Today, our FIFA-standard football field welcomed its first activity with G8 Academy, and we’re also expanding with Planet MelMac, our restaurant. We hope you’ll continue supporting us as we continue building a home for sports in the community.’

With the successful staging of its inaugural 3×3 Invitational and continued investment in world-class facilities, MelMac Sports aims to strengthen grassroots sports while establishing itself as an emerging hub for basketball and other sporting events.

Results

Championship

HoopBus HCG 21 – Bartlett 8, Baptist 6, Benson 6, De Chavez 1

Taho Story 17 – Akpuru 9, Ocampo 6, Macaballug 2, Monteclaro 0

Third Place

L.A.D Basketball 21 – Sarao 8, Mallari 6, Quicho 5, Villapando 2

HCG MNL Kingpin 14 – Aviso 4, White 4, Tadena 3, Price 3

THE Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) expects to issue by August a long-awaited order that would make compliance with updated seismic-grade steel standards mandatory, following months of industry calls to tighten construction safety rules.

The updated standards, released by the Bureau of Philippine Standards (BPS) in May, remain voluntary pending the issuance of the memorandum, which will require compliance in the industry.

‘It should be soon. By August. It should arrive soon,’ Trade Secretary Ma. Cristina Roque told reporters when asked about the timeline for the memorandum circular.

Roque said the government is treating the matter with urgency given the country’s vulnerability to earthquakes. ‘We’re really focused on that, especially because of the earthquake. So that’s a very sensitive issue,’ she said.

She added that several government agencies are working together as the government reviews the measure before its implementation.

‘That’s the usual process. But we have an investigation and there’s a lot of government departments that are working closely together to enforce whatever we will decide on this one,’ Roque said, referring to the ongoing public consultation and interagency discussions.

Last month, Southeast Asia Iron and Steel Institute (Seaisi) Chairman and Asean Iron and Steel Council (AISC) President Ronald Magsajo said the revised standards are intended to eliminate the future use of non-seismic-grade reinforcing bars in construction.

He said some induction furnace (IF) facilities continue to manufacture non-seismic-grade reinforcing steel, while newer steelmaking technologies are capable of removing more impurities and producing higher-quality materials.

Magsajo estimated that about 30 percent of the domestic reinforcing bar market is supplied by such, with most products going to hardware stores and smaller construction projects.

Seaisi noted that China banned the use of IF technology for construction steel and shut down IF steel facilities, citing quality and environmental concerns.

Similar restrictions have since been adopted across Southeast Asia, with Indonesia and Thailand prohibiting IF-produced steel in public infrastructure projects, while Singapore and Malaysia impose tighter controls on its use.

In the Philippines, the towns of San Simon in Pampanga and Sta. Maria in Bulacan have also prohibited IF operations over environmental concerns.

The Department of Energy (DOE) is pushing forward with the bidding process for coal development and production areas, including the controversial blocks on Semirara Island.

‘We just have to finish some changes to the rules, which might take a few weeks. I’m hoping that within the month it will be finished,’ said DOE secretary Sharon Garin. She added that the resumption of the bidding process and finalization of enhancements to the rules on how Semirara will be evaluated will most likely take place this month.

Garin recalled that the Semirara auction was put on hold ‘because we are still trying to figure out how (Semirara) should be treated.’

Consunji-led Semirara Mining and Power Corp. (SMPC) currently holds coal operating contract (COC) no. 5, which is among the coal blocks on Semirara Island that will be auctioned. The COC is valid until July 14, 2027.

A pre-bid conference was supposed to take place last month but the DOE deferred the bidding process ‘until further notice’ to address concerns raised over bidding parameters.

Garin said her office is ‘still figuring out’ and working with various government agencies ‘to figure out how to treat brownfield projects, extension or renewals.’

‘Just wait, within the month, we will announce something. We (still) have to deliberate on this,’ she said last week.

However, over the weekend, SMPC petitioned a Makati court for protection against the DOE from sharing the company’s detailed list of assets and propriety information with interested bidders.

In April, the DOE announced five firms have expressed in joining the bidding for coal production and development-Limay Power Inc. (LPI), Malita Power Inc. (MPI), TSR/Sta. Clara, DESCO, and SMPC. According to the DOE, SMPC can still join the bid.

SMPC argued that since it owns these assets by virtue of its COC and the Coal Development Act (PD 972), these assets will not be made available for the use of other bidders and should therefore not be considered in their bid submissions.

The government, it said, can own the assets only if SMPC fails to remove them from the production and exploration area, within one year after the termination of its contract in July 2027.

‘Government ownership of these assets is merely future and conditional. The bidding is supposed to choose a winner that has a viable mine plan and knows how to run one to make sure coal production is seamless to protect the country’s baseload electricity generation. It is not about SMPC and how it runs the mine,’ SMPC added.

SMPC said the DOE directed the company in four separate letters to submit detailed information on its assets, including geological and technical data, and a detailed list of equipment, including those specially reconfigured to manage an intensified river-strength flow of water into the Acacia mine.

DOE contended that once SMPC has recovered its costs, the equipment it acquired become government owned. The company maintains that all assets outside the production and exploration areas, and all equipment removed from the same, within one year from the end of the contract, remain with the company.

SMPC believes the bidding process is best served when each participant undertakes its own technical studies and develops its own approach, rather than relying on information generated through SMPC’s decades of investments and expertise.

This helps ensure that each bidder is evaluated based on its own technical work and proposal, SMPC said.

The petition filed by SMPC, the company said, is not intended to stop or delay the bidding process but merely to get clarity on a legal issue that potentially could harm the company’s legal and financial interests.

SMPC said it remains committed to participating in the bid, cooperating with the DOE, and complying with its regulatory obligations.

The filing has no impact on SMPC’s ongoing mining operations, which will continue as normal until the expiration of Coal Operating Contract No. 5 in July 2027.

According to Garin, her office has yet to receive a copy of the petition. ‘I don’t want to touch on the merits of the case, but I would rather say that it will not delay because we have enough information to bid out the project.’

FIVE sanitary landfills in the country have been identified as being in critical condition by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), officials disclosed during a Senate hearing Monday, as lawmakers examined proposed measures to overhaul the country’s solid waste management system in the wake of recent landfill collapses.

During the joint hearing of the Senate Committee on Environment, Natural Resources and Climate Change, lawyer Michael Drake Matias, current director of the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB), said the five landfills are in Navotas City; Montalban, Rizal; Cebu City; Davao City and Urdaneta, Pangasinan.

Environment Secretary Juan Miguel Cuna told the panel that the sites were flagged following a nationwide assessment ordered through a January memorandum directing all EMB regional offices to inspect operational sanitary landfills.

‘Offhand, there were five that were identified being under imminent danger,’ Cuna said, noting that some sites were also found to face possible fire hazards. He said the DENR would submit a complete report to the committee.

The disclosure came as senators questioned whether previous warnings issued by government agencies had been acted upon before the deadly landfill failures.

Sen. Anna Theresia ‘Risa’ Hontiveros pointed to a 2023 Commission on Audit (COA) performance audit that had warned the Cebu sanitary landfill was at risk of reaching capacity because of increasing waste disposal and the lack of adequate waste diversion facilities.

She questioned why authorities failed to prevent the disaster despite earlier warnings.

‘What is the use of inspections, compliance reports, and assessments if landfill operations continue despite warnings until they completely collapse?’ Hontiveros said during the hearing.

She also asked the DENR to submit records showing how many landfill operators nationwide had previously received warnings from either the DENR, COA, or other government agencies and whether corrective actions had been undertaken.

Cuna acknowledged that the information remained with regional offices and committed to consolidate and submit the data to the Senate.

EMB Region 7 Director John Edward Ang said the agency’s initial investigation found that the collapse in the Cebu landfill was primarily triggered by frequent earthquake activity and heavy rainfall brought by Typhoon Tino, which caused water to accumulate inside the landfill.

‘The build-up of water inside our sanitary landfill contributed to the trash slide incident,’ Ang said, adding that the release of large amounts of leachate after the collapse supported the agency’s findings.

Pressed by Hontiveros on whether internal operational issues also contributed to the disaster, Ang said investigators were still assessing other possible factors, including waste composition, although continuous rainfall remained the principal focus of the ongoing evaluation.

The senator noted that earthquakes and typhoons were recurring events in Cebu and argued that investigators should also determine whether internal deficiencies, such as poor waste segregation or overcapacity, made the landfill more vulnerable.

Cebu City Mayor Nestor Archival, who attended the hearing, said the Binaliw tragedy underscored the need to reduce dependence on landfills by investing in composting, recycling, and other waste processing facilities.

He said Cebu City generates about 600 to 700 tons of waste daily, around 60 percent of which is biodegradable, while only 10 percent to 15 percent consists of residual waste that ultimately requires landfill disposal.

Archival said strict enforcement of waste segregation alone would not solve the country’s garbage problem without sufficient infrastructure to process segregated waste.

‘If there is no adequate composting, recycling, and upcycling facilities, the segregated waste will still end up in the landfill,’ he said.

He added that the collapse of the Binaliw landfill has forced Cebu City to haul its garbage to another disposal site roughly 80 kilometers away, significantly increasing hauling costs.

Archival urged lawmakers to allocate funding for composting facilities, saying these could reduce landfill dependence, lower greenhouse gas emissions from decomposing waste, and produce compost that could benefit farmers.

INCREASINGLY sophisticated financial crimes warrant a stronger legal framework, including amending the Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA), Senator Emmanuel Joel J. Villanueva has asserted, while stressing that the country must, at the same time, ensure that expanded enforcement powers are not prone to abuse.

‘Kapag mabilis kumilos ang mga kriminal, dapat mas mabilis ang batas [When criminals move fast, the law must move faster]. But greater authority must always come with clear limits, transparency, and accountability,’ added Villanueva, the former chairperson of the Senate Committee on Banks.

‘We need to ensure that our institutions have the appropriate legal authority to act swiftly against illicit financial activities while upholding the rule of law, due process, and the constitutional rights of individuals,’ he said.

Villanueva has filed Senate Bill 1983 seeking to amend Republic Act 9160, or the AMLA.

The bill aims to expand the powers of the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC), broaden the scope of covered persons, and update the predicate offenses for money laundering to include emerging crimes.

The AMLC recently repeated its request for additional authority to suspend financial transactions and impose an initial freeze on suspected criminal assets without first securing a court order.

The proposed amendments, said the council, would bolster the country’s position ahead of the Financial Action Task Force’s Global Fifth Round of Mutual Evaluation in 2027.

Villanueva cautioned, however, that any authority to suspend transactions or freeze assets without prior court approval must be narrowly defined, time-bound, supported by sufficient factual and legal grounds, and subject to prompt judicial review and legislative scrutiny.

‘Hindi maaaring maging blank check ang anumang karagdagang kapangyarihan [Any additional power must be treated as a blank check]. The AMLC must be able to act quickly, but its actions must remain reviewable, transparent, and fully accountable under the law,’ the senator said.

Villanueva added that the safeguards established under the AMLA, existing legal frameworks, and Supreme Court rulings must continue to govern the exercise of the AMLC’s powers to prevent them from being misused or weaponized against innocent individuals, legitimate businesses, political opponents, or other sectors.

The AMLC is chaired by the Governor of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas and remains subject to statutory, judicial, and institutional checks. Villanueva said Congress must also ensure meaningful oversight over the implementation of any expanded powers granted under the law.

Under Villanueva’s bill, additional entities, including trust and company service providers, lawyers and accountants involved in specified financial transactions, online gambling operators, and virtual asset service providers, would be covered by AMLA compliance requirements.

The measure grants the AMLC stronger enforcement powers, including the authority to issue transaction suspension orders, administrative freeze orders, and subpoenas, and seeks to streamline court processes to ensure timely action against suspicious transactions.

Villanueva said these powers must be accompanied by clear standards, documentation and reporting requirements, remedies for affected parties, and appropriate penalties for officials who act arbitrarily or beyond their lawful authority.

The bill would also expand the list of predicate offenses to include cybercrime, environmental violations, agricultural economic sabotage, and offenses related to the online sexual abuse and exploitation of children.

The proposal further strengthens customer due diligence and reporting requirements while imposing stricter administrative sanctions to ensure compliance among covered entities.

It also provides safeguards for data protection and allows the AMLC to retain and utilize forfeited assets, subject to prescribed limits, to support its operations.

‘We must continue modernizing our laws so that criminals cannot exploit gaps in our legal framework. At the same time, we must make sure that the powers intended to fight crime do not themselves become instruments of abuse. Effective enforcement and the protection of civil liberties must always go hand in hand,’ Villanueva said.

THE Foundation for Economic Freedom (FEF) has called for the suspension of the P85 daily minimum pay increase in Metro Manila, saying the wage order could do more harm than good.

The group said the increase-which will raise the National Capital Region’s daily minimum wage to P780 for non-agriculture workers and P743 for agriculture, retail, and service workers-could fuel inflation and place additional strain on businesses already contending with weak consumer demand and rising operating costs.

‘An abrupt daily wage increase of this magnitude will trigger severe unintended consequences that disproportionately harm the country’s most vulnerable populations,’ FEF said in a statement on Monday.

According to the think tank, businesses faced with higher labor costs are likely to pass these on to consumers through higher prices, raising the cost of basic goods, and eroding the purchasing power of households.

It added that firms unable to absorb the additional expense may instead slow hiring, reduce work hours, or postpone expansion, making it harder for unemployed Filipinos to find work.

FEF said the burden would also fall most heavily on MSMEs, which make up the majority of businesses in the country but typically operate on thin margins.

Unlike larger companies, it said, many small firms have limited financial buffers to absorb a sudden increase in labor costs, particularly as they also grapple with elevated fuel prices that have pushed up transport and logistics expenses.

‘Faced with higher wages, rising costs driven by uncertainty surrounding the Middle East oil crisis, and higher interest rates, businesses will likely incur losses or raise prices, fueling another round of the wage-price spiral,’ FEF emphasized.

The group also warned that higher labor costs, coupled with uncertainty over global oil prices and elevated borrowing costs, could discourage investments in labor-intensive sectors such as manufacturing and agribusiness.

Apart from its economic concerns, FEF questioned the process that led to the issuance of Wage Order No. 27, saying it was approved despite the opposition of employer representatives.

While Republic Act 6727 does not require unanimous approval, the group said the country’s tripartite wage-setting system is meant to ensure that labor, employers, and government all have meaningful input in setting wage policies.

FEF urged the government to suspend the implementation of the wage order until a broader consensus is reached among the three sectors, adding that wage adjustments should be anchored on productivity growth and prevailing economic conditions.

THE inquiry into the flood-control mess, described as the biggest corruption scandal in the country, will proceed with dispatch as soon as the 20th Congress convenes for its Second Regular Session next week.

The assurance was given at the weekend by the Senate Blue-Ribbon committee chairman, Sen. Erwin Tulfo, even as several lawmakers have been at loggerheads the past months over the manner the inquiry has been handled by different bodies.

In a radio interview, Tulfo clarified the proper process in convening a Senate Committee: ‘In the morning of [July] 27, which is the Sona [State of the Nation Address] day, we will formalize the Blue-Ribbon committee. We cannot conduct a hearing yet because the membership has not yet been finalized. There will still be submissions of names to complete the membership and have it declared on the floor-so it becomes official.’

Tulfo continued: ‘We will have flood control investigation. But what if the same names as to those who were charged by the Ombudsman due to the first Blue Ribbon Committee Report will come up again? Are we going to repeat it? There has to be new names,’ he said.

The flood control mess broke out wide into the open a year ago, when President Marcos used his Sona to call out government officials and big-time contractors that he said had laid waste billions for flood control but left many Filipinos at the mercy of destructive floods. Days before his 2025 Sona, the country witnessed a string of typhoons that laid bare the substandard infrastructure for flood control.

As the Chairman, Tulfo said he will invite all the stakeholders and will introduce new rules such as stricter treatment on affidavits and prohibition on surprise witnesses. All these reforms, according to Tulfo, will be introduced properly once the panel is officially convened.

Infrastructure masterplan

TULFO then emphasized that apart from seeking accountability on the flood control mess, a proactive effort to prevent the flood control scam from happening again, requires a Philippine Infrastructure Masterplan so projects will not rely on politics.

‘The flood control scam, being out in the open, can be considered a blessing in disguise. We discovered that the reason behind the non-stop flooding problem, our roads. It’s because the funds are being pocketed,’ Tulfo said. ‘For too long, infrastructure planning has largely been tied to the priorities of each administration. If we, have a masterplan, it doesn’t matter where the next President would be coming from,’ he added.

He then urged his colleagues to support the push for his Senate Bil 1360 or the ‘Masterplan for Infrastructure and National Development [MIND] Act.’

The said bill will establish a whole-of-government strategy so infrastructure projects in the country. Projects with national significance will be prioritized but the measure will ensure that these will be connected to regional and sectoral development plans.

Once Tulfo’s MIND Act turns into a law, it will harmonize all infrastructure projects from big-ticket to minor ones. ‘This measure will also help ensure that public resources are used more efficiently. If we have good planning, we will remove duplication, ramp up implementation, and bolster accountability. Every peso invested in infrastructure should create the greatest possible benefit for the Filipinos,’ he concluded.

Magdaleno Gamuela, 78, of Candon, Ilocos Sur, sprays pesticide on his half-hectare rice farm, which he has tended for the past five decades.

His field typically produces about 60 sacks of palay each harvest, but farmers like Gamuela are confronting mounting challenges that threaten their livelihoods.

The Federation of Free Farmers (FFF) has warned that the country’s rice production could decline sharply in the fourth quarter of 2026, citing a combination of excessive rice imports, soaring fertilizer costs, the lingering effects of El Niño, and inadequate irrigation systems-pressures that continue to weigh heavily on smallholder farmers and the nation’s food security.

The government is spending P600 million on the construction of the country’s first mega hatcheries which will help the Philippines reduce its reliance on imported fry, according to the Department of Agriculture (DA).

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. has confirmed to the BusinessMirror that the agency has earmarked P200 million each for three mega hatcheries under the National Expenditure Program (NEP) 2027.

Once built, the DA chief said the mega hatcheries could produce a billion fry (young fish) of milkfish and other aquaculture and mariculture species.

‘We’re currently importing almost one billion pieces of fry from Indonesia. So, I said why are we importing when we can produce it ourselves?’ he said in a radio interview.

The DA will construct one mega hatchery in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao, each spanning 40 hectares, which will be completed by the end of 2027.

‘The fry would likely be provided at least at cost or a bit subsidized. What’s important is to lessen our importation and produce our own for our food security.’

The DA chief noted the glut in milkfish and tilapia supply, indicating the capacity of fishers to grow and export these fish species.

‘The next stage…is provide them with postharvest facilities, like processing these into tapa, freezing them, and to export [these products].’

The domestic aquaculture industry’s growth, he said, should be partnered with ocean conservation efforts.

‘We also have to conserve our oceans for future generations,’ he said, citing the closed fishing seasons implemented annually.

He said the DA is planning to establish additional areas where closed fishing seasons could be implemented, such as in Northwest Mindanao.

‘This could be implemented next year. We are still getting the scientific basis,’ he told this newspaper.

The government imposes a three-month closed fishing season in waters northeast of Palawan starting November 1 and in the Visayan Seas and Zamboanga Peninsula beginning November 15. All three areas are spawning grounds for small pelagic fishes like sardines and mackerel.

The closed fishing season in the Davao Gulf from June to August bans catching certain fish species using bagnets, ringnets, and fine mesh nets to allow the recovery of fish stocks.

Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) indicated that the country’s fisheries production slid by 15.3 percent to 856,291 metric tons (MT) in the first quarter from last year’s 1.01 million metric tons.

Of the four subsectors, only commercial fisheries posted an increase in production on an annual basis, based on PSA data.

PSA data showed that the aquaculture subsector, which accounts for over half of the total fisheries output, plunged by nearly a quarter to 432,755 MT during the period, from 573,282 MT in the previous year.

For marine municipal fisheries, PSA said production shrank by 15.5 percent to 168,022 MT in the first quarter, from last year’s 198,945 MT. The subsector accounted for 19.6 percent of the total fisheries output.

Inland municipal fisheries registered 50,279 MT of production during the period, down by 4.5 percent from 52,629 MT in the previous year. This contributed 5.9 percent to the total fisheries production.

THE modernization of the Poro Point Seaport entered its project preparation phase after the state-run Bases Conversion and Development Authority signed a P68.08-million consultancy contract for technical, financial and transaction advisory services.

The contract is financed through the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Center’s Project Development and Monitoring Facility (PDMF) using an Asian Development Bank (ADB) loan.

It covers the preparatory work needed before the project can be offered to private investors under the PPP program.

BCDA President and Chief Executive Officer Joshua Bingcang signed the agreement on July 17 with the PPP Center and the joint venture of Isla Lipana and Co. and Cabrera and Co., which will serve as the project’s consultants.

The joint venture is expected to complete the project preparation phase by around the second quarter of 2028, during which the joint venture will undertake market studies, prepare feasibility and financial analyses, develop the project’s commercial structure, assist in securing government approvals, provide transaction advisory services during the bidding process and extend support after contract signing.

BCDA said the advisory work is intended to prepare the proposed port modernization for implementation through the PPP framework.

‘Modernizing the Poro Point Seaport will strengthen Northern Luzon’s logistics network while supporting the country’s long-term economic growth,’ Bingcang said.

The proposed project seeks to convert the existing bulk and break-bulk terminal into a containerized international seaport equipped with upgraded cargo-handling systems, terminal automation and modern logistics infrastructure.

BCDA said the modernization is expected to improve cargo-handling efficiency, shorten vessel turnaround times and enhance terminal operations.

The agency said the project’s total cost will only be finalized after the completion of the project preparation phase, when the scope, technical requirements and commercial structure have been established.

Construction is targeted to begin in the second quarter of 2027, with project completion expected by 2029.

BCDA also said the seaport project forms part of the broader Luzon Economic Corridor initiative, which aims to improve connectivity among Subic Bay, Clark, Metro Manila and Batangas through coordinated investments in transport, logistics, energy and digital infrastructure.

Once upgraded, BCDA said that the Poro Point is expected to serve as an additional international gateway for Northern Luzon, complementing other logistics hubs and supporting cargo movement and trade across the corridor.