‘Green lane’ investment pipeline hits P4.6T 

The Board of Investments (BOI) of the Department of Trade and Industry has tallied P4.61 trillion worth of investments under the “green lane” priority program, a roster that now spans 184 projects.

Bobby Fondevilla, executive director of the BOI investment assistance center, said the list included investments registered as of Feb. 18 this year.

“Our goal is to transform the economy and sustain the economic growth of the country,” Fondevilla said during a forum organized last week in Makati by the British Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines.

“To achieve this, our position and strategy is [to make the country] a regional hub for globally competitive, innovative and sustainability-driven industries,” he said further.

READ: BOI approves green lane certification of two solar facilities

Of the total, 149 or nearly 81 percent of the investments are in the renewable energy sector, according to BOI records.

The food security sector followed with 23 projects, digital infrastructure with eight projects and manufacturing with four projects.

The government launched the green lane program under Executive Order No. 18 in February 2023. It is aimed at expediting, streamlining and automating government approval and registration processes for investments deemed as a priority or strategic.

One of the big-ticket projects is the P200-billion solar power project of the Pangilinan-led Meralco PowerGen Company and SP New Energy Corporation subsidiary Terra Solar Philippines, Inc.

A vegetable farm in Bulacan and another farm in Laguna run by Manuel Pangilinan-led Metro Pacific Investments Corp. with investments worth P3.4 billion are also included in the program.

To attract more investments in the country this year, Fondevilla said that they would soon launch a guidebook for firms looking to enter the country or those planning to expand local operations. —Alden M. Monzon