SBMA hits all-time high in Operating Revenue of ₱4.116B in 2023

The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) has once again breached its record on operating revenue with a total of ₱4.116 billion as of December 2023, an all-time high record in the history of the agency.

According to SBMA Chairman and Administrator Eduardo Aliño, this figure also marks the second consecutive year that the agency breached the ₱4-billion mark in operating revenue. He added that in 2022, the agency recorded an operating revenue of ₱4.057 billion.

“This is a stellar record for the SBMA. Last year’s ₱4.116 billion operating revenue is higher than 2022’s operating revenue by ₱59 million, which is 1.5 percent higher. Kudos to the men and women of the SBMA for achieving this goal,” he added.

The report from the SBMA’s Finance Group noted that there was an increase in revenue in 2023 despite the effect of the receipt of payment from Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction-Philippines as compliance with the Order of the Court.

In 2023, the SBMA also recorded its highest monthly operating revenue of ₱415 million in April, which trumped the previous record of ₱395 million in January of 2022. “This is the SBMA’s first breach of the ₱400 million monthly revenue mark,” Aliño said.

Meanwhile, Senior Deputy Administrator (SDA) for Support Services Atty. Ramon O. Agregado said that the earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) for 2023 is 23 percent higher compared to the same period the previous year.

“As of December 31, 2023, the net income before tax with subsidy is ₱2.72 billion, which is lower by 5 percent or ₱111 million compared to the same period last year. But the net income without subsidy and gain on forex revaluation is ₱1.933 billion, 38 percent or ₱532 million higher compared to the same period last year,” he added.

The SBMA Finance Group also reported that there was an increase in revenues from the Land and Billing Leases and the Seaport Operations, with a record of ₱1.590 billion and ₱1.595 billion, respectively. The biggest revenue increase was derived from the hospitality and entertainment sector, recording ₱40 million in revenues, a 122 percent increase from 2022’s ₱18 million.

The report also cited that Housing Leases also increased from 2022’s ₱71 million to 2023’s ₱77 million, while the Airport Operations recorded a jump from 2022’s ₱106 million to last year’s ₱165 million. Despite the increase of revenues, the Regulatory Income of the SBMA dipped by 25 percent from 2022’s ₱585 million to last year’s ₱437 million.

“As for Miscellaneous Revenues, the SBMA recorded an increase of 8 percent, from 2022’s ₱196 million to last year’s ₱213 million,” the official stated.

Chairman Aliño lauded the agency’s commitment in providing service to the stakeholders of the Subic Bay Freeport Zone, adding that these stellar records will be broken in the coming years as long as the SBMA continues to stay true to its vision and mission.

“As long the SBMA commits to maintain investor confidence by pursuing continuous improvement, leveraging on technology and providing robust infrastructure, and as long as the agency empowers people and communities through shared stewardship and sustained good governance, Subic Bay Freeport is certain to become the preferred sustainable investment hub and eco-tourism destination in Asia Pacific by 2030,” he said. (MPD-SBMA) 

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SBMA steps up to provide stakeholders ease of bills payment

 

The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) has taken a step further to provide its stakeholders in this premier freeport a faster and more convenient way of paying their bills.

The SBMA recently signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with Intercommerce Network Services Inc. (INS) and I-Pay MYEG Philippines Inc. (IPMPI) to further enhance its Electronic Bills & Payment System (eBPS).

“I think this eBPS would help our stakeholders a lot in terms of convenience in bills payment. This will save them time and fuel. Instead of going to our Treasury office or to any Landbank branch, they could just pay online or visit a partner merchant, at their convenience,” SBMA chairman and administrator Rolen C. Paulino said.

In September 2015, the SBMA first launched the eBPS, initially with the LandBank of the Philippines (LBP) as a collection system partner, and INS as provider of electronic payment platform.

However, with the emergence of a vast number of electronic payment systems, especially due to the restrictions during the pandemic, the demand for additional payment channel options encouraged the partnership to venture into other possibilities to explore further enhancement that will provide efficiencies to SBF stakeholders.

So in 2021, the INS introduced IPMPI to the SBMA to provide an additional electronic payment and collection system partner, giving stakeholders more options of choosing from over 90,000 electronic payment channels.

“We are more than happy that MYEG will be part of this initiative together with Intercommerce. Thank you very much for the partnership and for the trust that you have given MYEG,” said Ann Margaret Saldana, IPMPI Chief Executive Officer.

Saldana said that electronic payment channels such as 7-eleven, Cebuana Lhuiller, Palawan Express for cash payment, and GCash, Maya, GrabPay, Shoppee Pay, as well as credit cards for mobile payments, will be available with the intervention of MYEG.

She also assured that INS and MYEG will be working hand in hand to make sure that the citizens will be familiar with the platform that they could use at their preferred convenience without having to go to different offices to settle payments thru cashiers.

Moreover, INS president Francis Norman Lopez sees the partnership also as opening doors to other payment requirements of the agency.

“We hope that this would also be extended to the other payment requirements of SBMA like port facilities or services, and payment of other transactions of the SBMA. For that matter, I think, SBMA would be the first that would cover all its electronic payment transactions,” Lopez said.

Meanwhile, Paulino added that with the eBPS, the SBMA would also be complying with its obligations to the national government--Ease of Doing Business Act for providing convenience to stakeholders, ARTA for paperless transactions by opening digital payment services, and Executive Order 170 or the Adoption of Digital Payments for Government Disbursement and Collections.

With this MOA the SBMA shall authorize the INS and IPMPI for a period initially of one year to enhance the electronic billing and payment system and include MYEG, and its partners, as an additional payment gateway and to utilize the IPMPI’s multiple payment channels.

The implementation of the eBPS will be a big plus-factor to investors trying to make it happen in the Philippines, the convenience of payment transactions when they invest in Subic Bay.

The eBPS will be re-launched virtually on July 25 and 26 via Google Meet. (MPD-SBMA)

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SBMA earnings dip by 22% under Covid-19 pandemic

Earnings by the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) decreased by as much as 22 percent in 2020 because of the economic slowdown last year brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic.

SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma said the Subic agency posted a total of P1.69-billion in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) at the end of 2020, compared to the P2.17 billion figure it recorded at the end of 2019.

The 2020 figure was lower than the 2019 record by P486.73 million, or 22.35 percent.

Eisma said the Covid-19 pandemic affected not only the operations of business locators in the Subic Bay Freeport, but also those of the SBMA, which is a self-sustaining government-owned agency.

“Subic locked down for close to four months early last year because of Covid-19. That means factories were closed, stores were closed, and there was not much source of income to go around. Moreover, the SBMA was forced to forego much of its collections in the meantime, because there was hardly anything to collect,” Eisma recalled.

She added the economic slowdown “critically diminished the income-generating capacity of registered businesses and sent ripples of disruption across the Freeport that affected even the SBMA income.”

According to the 2020 consolidated year-end report from the SBMA Finance Group, the agency lost P530.31 million in operating revenue last year, whereas it raked in a total of P3.73 billion in 2019.

In terms of operating expenses, meanwhile, the agency was able to save P67.74 million in 2020, as it spent only P1.45 billion, which was 4.45 percent lower than its expenses of P1.52 billion in 2019.

The SBMA Finance Group also reported that the agency’s operating income in 2020 hit only P1.75 billion, which was 20.93 percent lower than the P2.21 billion in 2019, or a difference of P462.56 million.

On the other hand, the agency posted higher bad debts last year— from P32.09 million in 2019 to P56.26 million in 2020, or an increase of 75.3 percent.

Eisma said the agency expects its finances to somehow bounce back this year, as more Freeport firms increase operations under strict health safety protocols imposed by the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF).

Last month, the SBMA approved the Economic Relief Assistance (ERA) Payment Scheme that gave Subic locators up to 36 months to amortize bills that remained unpaid since the pandemic hit in March 2020.

Eisma said the measure was intended to help Subic businesses get back on their feet.

“We are now trying to open up the economy here little by little to curtail the lingering impact of the pandemic, and we’re giving every opportunity for our locators to normalize operations,” Eisma said. 

“I am wishing for bigger (financial) numbers this year, and we are getting back on track every little step that we can take forward, that’s why we always stress that we maintain safety protocols so we can get more industry sectors up and running,” Eisma pointed out.

The SBMA chief is scheduled to give her State of the Freeport Address next month to provide a more comprehensive report on the 2020 accomplishments of the agency and its plans for this year. (MPD-SBMA)

PHOTO:

SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma meets with members of the Subic Bay Freeport Chamber of Commerce on Feb. 3 to discuss 2021 plans and programs, as well as business concerns and protocols under the continuing Covid-19 pandemic. 

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RTC grants Hanjin petition for rehabilitation

The Olongapo City Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 72 on Monday (January 14) granted Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction-Philippines’ petition for receivership and put the Korean shipbuilding firm under corporate rehabilitation.

On Jan. 8, Hanjin sought relief from the Philippine government, filing a petition with the Olongapo RTC to initiate voluntary rehabilitation under Republic Act 10142 or the “Act Providing for the Rehabilitation or Liquidation of Financially Distressed Enterprises and Individuals.”

Hanjin, the fifth largest shipbuilder in the world and biggest investor at the Subic Freeport with $2.3 billion, revealed recently it owes some $400 million in outstanding loans from Philippine banks on top of another $900 million in debt with lenders in South Korea.

Stefani Saño, a former member of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) board as well former senior deputy administrator for investment and business group of SBMA, was appointed by the court as the rehabilitation receiver.

The financial losses allegedly stemmed from a slump in the shipbuilding industry.

Pursuant to RA 10142, Olongapo RTC Branch 72 Presiding Judge Richard Paradeza declared Hanjin under rehabilitation and asked the company to publish the Jan. 14 commencement order in a newspaper of general circulation for two consecutive weeks.

It also ordered the shipbuilding giant to serve a copy of the petition to its creditors – the Bureau of Internal Revenue, Securities and Exchange Commission, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, Insurance Commission, Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board, Department of Trade and Industry and SBMA.

The court also tasked the company to serve a copy of the commencement order to its foreign creditors and ensure that they receive a copy within 15 days before the initial hearing set on Feb. 8.

In its order, the court said Hanjin’s creditors must file verified claims within five days before Feb. 8 or they will not be entitled to participate in the proceedings.

But the creditors may be entitled to receive distributions arising from the proceedings if recommended and approved by the rehabilitation receiver and the court itself.

The court also ordered creditors, government agencies and all interested parties to file and serve to Hanjin a verified comment/opposition to the petition, together with their supporting affidavits and documents within 15 days before the initial hearing on Feb. 8.

The court also prohibited the company’s supplier of goods and services from withholding their supplies and services in the ordinary course of business for as long as Hanjin makes payment from the issuance of the commencement order.

The court also authorized the company to pay for its administrative expenses as they become due.

It said contracts not confirmed in writing by Hanjin within 90 days following issuance of the commencement order will be considered terminated. (Bebot Sison Jr. with Sheila Crisostomo, Philippine Star)


https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2019/01/16/1885490/rtc-grants-hanjin-petition-rehabilitation#0ezcQ5IYvTgXVUm0.99

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SBMA ‘saddened’ by Hanjin debt problem

Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman Wilma T. Eisma said she was saddened to learn that Korean shipbuilder Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction Philippines (HHIC-Phil) is facing serious financial trouble.

Hanjin, which is currently the biggest foreign investor in the Subic Bay Freeport Zone, filed on Tuesday a petition at the Regional Trial Court in Olongapo City to initiate voluntary rehabilitation under Republic Act 10142, otherwise known as “An Act Providing for the Rehabilitation or Liquidation of Financially Distressed Enterprises and Individuals”.

Hanjin officials, Eisma said, had revealed that the company owes some $400 million in outstanding loans from Philippine banks on top of another $900 million in debts with lenders in South Korea.

Eisma said she was informed that the company still has six pending multi-million new building projects at its Redondo Peninsula shipyard here, and that these may have to be cancelled if a rehabilitation plan does not materialize.

“The bottom line is that the company said it does not have enough cash to repay its loans, and that it cannot continue with its operations under these circumstances,” Eisma said.

“It’s really sad that Hanjin would be in dire financial straits after successfully building some of the world’s biggest ships here and putting the Philippines in the map as the world’s fifth largest shipbuilder,” she added.

HHIC-Phil, which has focused in building high-value vessels, was established in 2006 as a subsidiary of Hanjin Heavy Industries & Construction Co., Ltd., a multi-national company that provides shipbuilding, construction, and plant services in South Korea and internationally.

After frenzied construction of its 300-hectare shipyard began in May 2006, HHIC-Phil rolled out its first ship, the “Argolikos” in July 2008.

With some $2.3 billion in foreign direct investments here, the firm proceeded to manufacture some of the world’s biggest cargo and container ships, bulk carriers, liquefied petroleum gas carriers, very large crude oil carriers (VLCC) and very large ore carriers (VLOC).

According to company records, Hanjin has delivered since 2008 a total of 123 vessels to valued clients across the globe, thus cementing its foothold in the highly competitive shipbuilding market.

In the course of its operation, the Korean firm also became the biggest employer among all registered businesses in the Subic Bay Freeport Zone with some 30,000 employees at peak season, and was recognized by both the Philippine Exporter Foundation (Philexport) and the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) as top export performer.

However, in the face of recent liquidity problem, Hanjin has laid off more than 7,000 workers last December, Eisma said. The firm is about to lay off another 3,000 early this year until just about 300 local workers and as few as seven Korean supervisors would remain in March to do facility maintenance, she added.

“The SBMA, of course, expressed its concern about the separation of shipyard workers, but we received assurances that those who were laid off were amply compensated. Still, we’re having this aspect checked out,” Eisma said.

She added that the SBMA is now working with Hanjin officials to find some way to keep the shipbuilder, which has helped build Subic’s huge reputation in the global maritime industry.

“I really hope that Hanin’s creditors would agree to some rehabilitation plan, or that the company would find some financial partner to continue with its shipbuilding operations in Subic,” Eisma also said. (HEE/MPD-SBMA)

PHOTO: 

Hanjin shipyard at the Subic Bay Freeport Zone

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