Japanese electronics manufacturer Toshiba Corp. plans to expand its hard disk drive (HDD) manufacturing operations in the Philippines, a move that could create 3,000 additional jobs, according to Malacañang.
On Saturday, Executive Secretary Ralph Recto said in a statement that the Marcos administration expressed support for the expansion in a meeting with Toshiba senior executive vice president Koji Ikeya at Malacañang on Thursday.
‘We are rooting for you. We are glad to hear that your investments in the Philippines are doing very well. Your success here gives us more reason to push this expansion forward,’ Recto told Toshiba executives.
Moreover, Recto described Toshiba’s expansion plans as a ‘vote of confidence for the Philippines.’
Likewise, he assured them that the government is ready to work with Toshiba and other major investors to turn expansion plans into new factories, increased investments, and better-paying jobs for Filipinos.
‘This is exactly the kind of investment we want-one that brings technology, expands our manufacturing base, strengthens our role in global supply chains, and, most importantly, creates thousands of jobs for Filipinos,’ Recto said.
Consequently, the planned expansion comes as the Marcos administration seeks to attract more high-tech manufacturing investment and position the Philippines as a hub for advanced manufacturing and AI-supporting industries.
Meanwhile, Recto cited the Luzon Economic Corridor, which connects Subic Bay, Clark, Metro Manila, and Batangas, as a platform for attracting investments in advanced manufacturing and technology supply chains.
Additionally, the corridor focuses on transport, energy, digital infrastructure and advanced manufacturing.
For his part, Ikeya cited the strategic importance of the Philippines to Toshiba’s global operations and signaled the company’s strong interest in further expanding its manufacturing footprint in the country.
The Japanese firm added that the Philippines’ established manufacturing ecosystem, skilled workforce, existing production facilities, and government support as factors driving its interest in expanding local operations.
Toshiba Information Equipment (Philippines) Inc., a manufacturing arm of Toshiba Electronic Devices and Storage Corp., recently began manufacturing high-capacity HDDs for data centers at its Laguna Technopark facility.
The company, which marked its 30th anniversary on Saturday, said it is expanding local production to meet growing global demand for storage for artificial intelligence and cloud computing.