BIZ BUZZ: Unwinding Gogoro … quietly

When Globe Telecom-led 917Ventures opened the first experience center of Taiwanese e-scooter brand Gogoro at Greenbelt Mall in November last year, it was very optimistic on the prospects of the eco-friendly vehicles.

Gogoro Philippines CEO Bernie Llamzon, at the time, told the media they were opening additional 20 to 30 battery stations across Metro Manila to increase the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs). Gogoro had also looked at establishing presence in Bulacan, Laguna, Cavite, Cebu and Davao.

About a year later, all that optimism disappeared into thin air, along with its Greenbelt showroom, which was once a vibrant outlet showcasing different e-scooter models. This space—meant to attract heavy foot traffic—has been padlocked very recently.

This closure confirmed our earlier report that Globe is mulling over the shutdown of Gogoro operations due to dismal sales, as the price tag on these e-scooters is too expensive for the local market.

But this is just the beginning of Gogoro’s seemingly quiet exit from the Philippines. Biz Buzz learned that many of the 14 battery stations it has already established across Metro Manila will be folded up.

It will only keep “a few”—including the one situated at The Globe Tower in Taguig—to serve its existing buyers, some of whom are Globe employees.

To recall, Gogoro Philippines did a trial run of its EVs with Globe employees to test their viability as a mode of transportation. —Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

Coming soon: New IMF rep

The Philippines is getting a new resident representative from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Ragnar Gudmundsson has returned to the IMF headquarters in Washington D.C. as his still-unnamed successor is set to take over in January 2025.

This marks the end of Gudmundsson’s term that ran for three years after being chosen for the position back in October 2021. He recently hosted the visiting IMF team that trimmed growth forecasts on the Philippines for this year and the next on expectations that consumption would grow “with less momentum” amid lingering effects of inflation.

Before being assigned to the Philippines, Gudmundsson was a senior economist at the Asia and Pacific department of the IMF and the mission chief for Macau.

He also previously served as the IMF’s resident representative in Bangladesh from 2017 to 2020, the West Bank and Gaza from 2014 to 2017, and Kenya from 2010 to 2014.

Whoever will replace Gudmundsson has big shoes to fill and would have to work with Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Eli Remolona Jr., who had confronted the IMF a year ago about the quality of the assessment team coming to town to look at the public sector. —Ian Nicolas P. Cigaral

To go to court or not

It’s always the last resort, but certain industry stakeholders are prepared to go to court to catalyze mining projects that have long languished in the pipeline.

Chamber of Mines of the Philippines chair Michael Toledo said a lawsuit might be necessary if certain policies get in the way of the development of a mining project.

“We all know without mentioning the project that it took more than 30 years for this project to take off simply because there was a local ordinance that went against the national law. How come a local ordinance [could] be beyond a statute for a national law?” Toledo asked during the Digging Deeper Mining Policy Forum held in Mandaluyong.

“We will now definitely question it if we need to [file] a class action suit if possible, but hopefully, that will be prevented when we come up with clear policies on how LGUs (local government units) should deal with the national government and comply with the laws of the land,” he added.

While Toledo did not name the project, he may be referring to the Tampakan copper-gold project in South Cotabato. Its proponent, Sagittarius Mines Inc. of the Sy family, has grappled with multiple delays because of conflicting national laws and local ordinances, specifically the ban on open pit mining imposed by the LGU.

As of this year, the Tampakan project has yet to commence commercial operations, although some companies have signified interest to buy into Southeast Asia’s biggest untapped gold-copper reserve.

Amid these uncertainties, the mining sector is counting on the Marcos administration to revitalize the mining sector to boost economic growth.—Jordeene B. Lagare