The Senate has recommended a 45-percent increase in the 2026 budget of the Aurora Pacific Economic and Freeport Zone (Apeco), earmarking P380 million for the government-owned and controlled corporation based in Casiguran, Aurora.
The amount is P119 million higher than the P262.46 million initially recommended by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), which is the same amount Apeco had received in 2024.
Apeco said the proposed budget increase reflected the ‘national government’s renewed trust and confidence in the agency’s reforms and strategic direction under its new leadership.’
The allocation remains subject to change as the Senate is still in the period of interpellations and will not accept amendments until Dec. 1.
Approval on third reading is expected by Dec. 9, with the bicameral conference committee targeted for the second week of December.
Projects
Apeco said it plans to use the additional funds to support three major projects.
Part of it will finance the Corporate Campus Development, a two-hectare space leading to Casiguran Cove.
The budget will also cover the second phase of rehabilitating JPEC buildings into beachfront villas. This project is expected to boost retail accommodations as part of tourism expansion at the ecozone.
A portion of the funds will likewise support the construction of the four-lane Apeco expressway, designed to connect its two industrial zones.
Both the JPEC and expressway projects broke ground in August.
‘These projects support Apeco’s long-term vision of building a thriving economic corridor in the Luzon’s eastern seaboard and inclusive growth for the people of Aurora,’ said Apeco president and CEO Gil Taway IV.
Taway added that the government must continue investing in infrastructure such as roads, airports and seaports to attract more investors and prepare northern Aurora for more tourists.