Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, left, and Chinese President Xi Jinping attend a signing ceremony in Beijing, China, Thursday, Oct. 20, 2016. AP
BEIJING—The pot sweetened for the Philippines on Friday as President Duterte wrapped up a state visit to China, securing investment and credit line pledges amounting to $24 billion, or nearly double the initial amount reported, officials said.
17 more deals
Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said the total included $15 billion worth of investment projects and $9 billion in credit facilities. Earlier estimates placed total pledges at $13.5 billion.
A document obtained by the Inquirer showed that 17 more deals with a combined value of $11.24 billion were signed ON Thursday evening at an event organized by the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industries (PCCI) and the Federation of Filipino Chinese Chambers of Commerce Inc.
(FFCCCI).
Steel plant eyed
Mining firm Global Ferronickel signed a $500-$700 million deal with Baiyin International Investment Ltd. to construct a steel plant, while Greenergy Development Corp. led by businessman Tony Tiu inked a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with PowerChina Guizhou Engineering Corp. to develop the 300-megawatt Pulangi hydropower plant project worth $1 billion.
A local company called MVP Global Infrastructure Group Ltd., a private investment group that is focused on coinvesting with large mainland Chinese companies in Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines, also bagged large investment deals. MVP is composed of three entrepreneurs from Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines.
Railways
The MVP Group signed an MOU to establish a partnership with China Railway Engineering Corp. to undertake $2.5 billion worth of infrastructure investments.
It also signed a deal with Suli Group Ltd. to invest in cabling manufacturing facilities in the Philippines that would produce $3 billion in trade value.
Businessman Reghis Romero scored three deals, including a $780-million contract his Mega Harbour Port sealed with China Harbour Engineering Co. Ltd. to undertake the 214-hectare coastline project.