Japanese electronics firm Tokai expands Batangas operations

The Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) has signed a supplemental agreement (SA) with Tokai Electronics Philippines, Inc., which would allow the Japanese locator to proceed with an expansion in Batangas. In a social media post on Tuesday, PEZA said the agreement would clear the way for Tokai Electronics to build a warehouse at the Lima Technology Center Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Malvar, Batangas. "Under the newly signed agreement, Tokai Electronics may now operate and maintain an additional warehouse facility within the SEZ for the storage, deposit, and safekeeping of electronic goods and products," PEZA said. The SA also covers the import, procurement, and handling of electronic goods for resale, including packing, repackaging, and preparing goods for sale, transfer, disposition, or export, PEZA said. It also expands the company’s 1998 Registration Agreement with PEZA, which covered only warehousing operations at the Laguna Technopark SEZ. The company is a subsidiary of Tokai Electronics Co. Ltd., which has operations in the US, India, Indonesia, Germany, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand, and Singapore. PEZA Director-General Tereso O. Panga said the expansion signals that locators are ready to scale their operations within PEZA-registered ecozones. "This expansion reflects the kind of continuous upgrading we want to see across our locators — companies like Tokai Electronics growing their footprint, deepening their operations, and finding new value within the ecozones," he said. The Philippines is looking to become a global hub for electronics and semiconductor manufacturing, targeting $110 billion in exports by 2030. — Beatriz Marie D. Cruz