Wesley So settles for 2nd, earns World Cup slot

Filipino Grandmaster (GM) Wesley So made a quick draw over Chinese GM Zhou Jianchao in the final round of the 9th Asian Individual Chess Championships on Thursday to secure a seat in the 2011 Chess World Cup in Khanty-Mansiyk, Russia.

So split the point with Zhou in 14 moves of the Berlin Opening or less than 10 minutes of play to finish in a tie for 2nd to 5th places at the Subic Exhibition and Convention Center in Subic, Olongapo City.

“I’m happy to make it to the World Cup again,” said So. “I really wanted to finish the tournament unbeaten, but I committed a slight mistake and he (Ni) was quick to capitalize.”

So finished with 6.5 points on 5 wins, 3 draws and 1 loss in the 9-round tournament organized by the National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP). He, thus, earned one of the 5 slots for the World Chess Cup.

GM Ni Hua of China, who dealt So his only defeat during the 7th round on Tuesday, topped the tournament with 7 points. He took home the top prize of $6,000.

Ni also quickly drew with GM Abhijit Gupta of India in the final round.

Joining Ni and So in the Chess World Cup are Gupta, Zhou and GM Le Quang Liem of Vietnam, who also tallied 6.5 points. So, Gupta, Zhou and Le each received $3,625.

Le clinched the 5th and last berth to the World Chess Cup by defeating GM Liren Ding of China.

Biggest revelation

The biggest revelation in the Asian Chess event was national junior standout Jan Emmanuel Garcia, who beat GM Saleh Salem of the United Arab Emirates to finish as the second best Filipino performer with 5.5 points.

The incoming 3rd year Ateneo de Manila high school student finished 17th overall.

The 14-year-old Garcia, a mainstay of the V. Luna Chess Club, also earned an International Master (IM) norm for his showing in the tough, 95-player tournament which had 32 Filipino participants.

GM Rogelio Antonio, Jr., meantime, settled for a draw with Xiu Deshun of China to finish with 5.5 points just like Garcia.

Antonio finished with 2 wins and 7 draws and wound up 21st after the tiebreak. He and Garcia pocketed $820 each.

IM Oliver Dimakiling trounced GM Eugene Torre, GM Darwin Laylo drew with Chinese Wang Li, GM John Paul Gomez halved the point with Vietnamese GM Dao Thien Hai, and IM Oliver Barbosa downed Chinese Chen Wang to lead a big group of players with 5 points.

Women’s game

In the women’s division, woman Grandmaster (WGM) Atousa Pourkashiyan bagged the title with a nine-round total of 7 points. She earned $3,000.

Pourkashiyan, seeded 12th in the 24-player field, drew with 2nd seed WGM Zyongyi Tan of China.

IM Wang Yu of China and woman FIDE Master (WFM) Ding Yixin of China shared 2nd to 3rd places with 6.5 points.

Top seed Wenjun Ju of China, meanwhile, finished with 5 points.

Dresden Olympiad veteran Christy Lamiel Bernales toppled compatriot woman International Master (WIM) Beverly Mendoza to emerge as the top Filipina scorer with 4.5 points. She received $367.

Aices Salvador bowed to WIM Thi Nhu Hoang of Vietnam to finish with 4 points. She took home $300.

Akiko Charmaine Suede finished with 2 points while Mendoiza made 1.5 points.

FIDE General Secretary Ignatius Leong and NCFP president Prospero “Butch” Pichay, Jr. awarded the trophies and cash prizes to the top finishers. They were assisted by SBMA administrator Armand Arreza, FIDE delegate Toti Abundo, NCFP executive/events director Willie Abalos and chief arbiter Merhdad Pahlevanzadeh.

The 2010 Asian Individual Chess Championships was also supported by the Philippine Sports Commission, Department of Tourism, PCSO, PAGCOR and the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority. (Marlon Bernardino, Philippine Daily Inquirer)

Final standings:

7 points – H. Ni (China)

6.5 points – W. So (RP), A, Gupta (India), J. Zhou (China), L.Q. Liem (Vietnam)

6 points – Y. Yu (China), C. Zeng (China), L. Ding (China), C. Li (China), Y. Wan (China), P. Sethuraman (India), W. Zhou (China)

5.5 points – R. Yu (China), A. Golizadeh (Iran), T. Bakre (India), K. Sasikiran (India), J. Garcia (RP), S. Megaranto (Indonesia), E. Ghaemmaghami (Iran), N.N. Truong Son (Vietnam), R. Antonio (RP), D. Harika (India) , P. Harikirshna (India), D, Xiu (China), Z. Zhang (Singapore), D. Khamrakulov (Uzbekistan), Y. Wen (China)

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So regains tie for lead, nears World Cup slot

Filipino Grandmaster Wesley So quickly got back on track Wednesday night, subduing Chinese upstart Yu Ruiyuan in the eighth and penultimate round to gain a share of the lead in the 9th Asian Individual Chess Championship at the Subic Bay Exhibition and Convention Center.

Derailed by a loss to former China national team captain Ni Hua late Tuesday, So played aggressively with black and went on to post his fifth victory after 58 moves of a Sicilian-Rossolimo variation.

The 16-year-old So climbed to 6.0 points in the company of Chinese GM Ding Liren and Indian GM Abhijeet Gupta, who opted for a quick draw in their board two tussle.

So only needs a draw on Thursday to earn one of the five 2011 World Chess Cup slots being dangled in the $50,000 tournament organized by the National Chess Federation of the Philippines.

Co-leaders Ni and fellow Chinese GM Li Chao, both with 5.5 points, are still locked in a tight battle at presstime.

Top seed Le Quang Liem of Vietnam continued his surge with a victory over Mongolian Bayatsaikhan Gundavaa.

The 19-year-old Le, the reigning Moscow Open and Aeroflot Open Group B titlist who boasts an ELO rating of 2689, improved to 5.5 points following his third win in the last four rounds.

Filipino GM Rogelio “Joey” Antonio was forced to halve the point with Chinese Wan Yanguo and virtually dropped his bid for a second straight World Cup stint.

Antonio, an 11-time Olympian, was at 5.0 points and even if he wins on Thursday the best probable outcome for him will be a playoff for the fifth and last World Cup seat. (Roy Luarca, Philippine Daily Inquirer)

Standings after 8 rounds:

6 – W. So (RP), J. Zhou (Chuna), L. Ding (China), A., Gupta (India) 5.5 – L.Q. Liem (Vietnam), S. Sethuraman (India), L. Chao (Chin)*, N. Hua (China)* 5 – R. Antonio (RP), K. Sasikiran (India), E. Ghaemmaghami (Iran), X. Deshun (China), S. Megaranto (Indonesia), A. Golizadeh (Iran), T. Bakre (India), B. Adhiban (India), Y. Yu (China), Y. Wan (China), N.T. Son (Vietnam), Z. Weiqi (China), R. Yu (China)

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SBMA approves Chinese firm’s $75-M wind energy project

Amid intermittent power shortages, rising power rates and the quest for viable alternative energy sources, the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) approved a $75-million wind energy project proposed by China-based Sunnew Investments Ltd.

“This is the answer to our energy problem,” said SBMA administrator Armand Arreza. “This will definitely lower the cost of power in the Freeport, and we could even help neighboring communities with surplus power from wind energy.”

Arreza disclosed that Sunnew-Subic has proposed to construct a total of 25 wind turbines in the Subic Bay Freeport, with the project covering a total area of 50,000 square meters at both the Mt. Sta. Rita and the Redondo Peninsula sites.

The sites, which both face the South China Sea, have strong wind currents all year round, “so the wind harvest is expected to be abundant,” Arreza added.

The project will produce about 50 megawatts (MW) of power by 2012, and will initially employ 103 workers.

Arreza and Sunnew Investments chairman Lee Yin Hung signed a 50-year lease contract for the proposed investment just days after the SBMA board of directors approved the wind energy project.

According to Lee, Sunnew’s investment in Subic Bay “would not only release the pressure of the power demand in this region, but also help realize the era of renewable energy in the Philippines.”

“In terms of economical efficiency, it is better than gas-fired power station,” Lee pointed out. “And it’s getting close to oil-fired power generation, so the cost of wind power generation is actually less than gas-fired power.”

Lee also said that his company is already operating similar wind energy facilities in Taiwan and China, and plans to expand to Australia, United States, and Vietnam.

Arreza said the Subic wind farm project is in line with the national government’s effort to tap alternative energy resources, as stipulated in Republic Act 9513, otherwise known as the Renewable Energy Act of 2008.

He added that renewable energy projects are included in the 2009 Investment Priorities Plan (IPP) issued by the national government to generate more jobs and attract more quality investments to the country.

Charles Chen of PRA Marketing Services Corp., which facilitated the entry of Sunnew in Subic, said that the Philippines “has a lot of potentials, especially business and employment opportunities” under the renewable energy sector.

“Not too many people realize that,” Chen added.

Sunnew Investments Ltd. is a subsidiary of Red Blades Windtek Holdings Ltd. and handles investments outside China for its mother company.

Red Blades Windtek Holdings Ltd. is said to be the only manufacturer of high-performance wind-turbine blades in China. The firm utilizes leading technology and advanced composites for multi-megawatt turbines in domestic and global markets. (SBMA Corporate Communications)

PHOTO: SBMA Administrator Armand Arreza (2nd from left) and Sunnew Investments chairman Lee Yin Hung (2nd from right) prepare to sign a lease contract for Sunnew’s $75-M wind farm project in the Subic Bay Freeport. With them are SBMA senior deputy administrator for business Stefani Saño, and Sunnew-Subic representative Robin Tan.

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PLDT to interconnect Clark, Subic telecoms

The country’s biggest telecommunication firm has recently approved the interconnection of its two service areas in the Clark and Subic Bay free-port zones.

Lito Mercado, general manager of Clarktel, a subsidiary of Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT), said the approval of the interconnection of telecommunication between the two free-port zones is in conformity with the mandate of Subic and Clark as the country’s two best investment destinations that provide world-class infrastructure and utilities.

Although investors and locators from the two zones are expected to save on their long-distance telephone calls, Mercado said the Clark and Subic telecom firms will be losing about P2.5 million to P3 million per annum once the interconnection project is implemented.

The interconnection is expected to take effect by the middle of next month based on information provided to Mercado by Subic and Clark Telecom president Dennis Magbatoc.

However, despite the toll-free calls, Mercado said Clark and Subic will still have to use their respective area codes—045 for Clark (Pampanga) and 047 for Subic (Zambales).

“But definitely, calls for both free ports will be free of charge,” he said.

Mercado said Magbatoc was instrumental in the realization of the interconnection project through the initiative of the Subic Clark Alliance for Development Council, the influential Metro Clark Advisory Council, the Clark Development Corp. (CDC) and the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA).

“Doing business in Clark will be made easier with the toll-free calls between Clark and Subic, considering its impact on the day-to-day operations of the investors in both free-port zones,” he said.

He pointed out that the integration earlier of the telephone infrastructure in Pampanga has given Clark a competitive edge and with the same integration of the service lines between Subic and Clark, the competitiveness of both investment destinations is expected to improve further.

Although PLDT will shoulder the interconnection fees, including the losses in long-distance calls, investors in Clark expressed elation over the integration and interconnection of Clark and Subic because it will open more “windows of opportunities” not only for the two free-port zones, but for Central Luzon as well.

With the integration of Clarktel with all telecom providers in Pampanga in 2004, CDC was able to save about P100,000 a month (or P1.2 million annually) on long-distance calls since the interconnection was implemented.

The amount saved on local long-distance calls through the interconnection project will instead be used to finance other CDC projects as part of the social corporate responsibility of the state-owned firm. (Jacob Cunanan, Business Mirror)

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Wesley So falls, Antonio gains in Subic Chess

While Grandmaster (GM) Wesley So suffered his first defeat on Tuesday, GM Rogelio Antonio, Jr. kept the Philippine pride alive in the 7th round of 2010 Asian Individual Chess Championships in Subic, Olongapo City.

Antonio defeated Iranian Pouria Darini after 33 moves of the Sicilian Alapin at the Subic Exhibition and Convention Center. He improved his score to 4.5 points.

“I still have a good chance of making it with two more rounds left,” said Antonio, who is aiming to get another crack at the World Chess Cup.

Slots to the 2011 World Chess Cup await the top 5 finishers of the 9-round tournament organized by the National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP).

However, leading RP bet So was defeated by GM Ni Hua of China.

So dropped his solo leadership and settled for a tie for 5th to 8th places with 5 points going into the final 2 rounds.

The 16-year-old chess whiz kid tried hard to squeeze out a win before yielding to Ni in marathon 74 moves of the Slav.

Several moves earlier, So even held a slight initiative against Ni but made several passive moves against Ni’s 2 connected rooks that turned the tide in the Chinese’s favor.

Other results

In other matches, GM Li Chao of China crushed compatriot GM Yu Yangyi, GM Abhijeet Gupta of India humbled countryman GM Gopal Narayanan Geetha and GM Ling Direng of China outclassed Bayarsaikhan Gundavaa of Mongolia to vault into a 4-way tie for the lead with Ni with 5.5 points.

GM John Paul Gomez, however, also suffered a loss on Tuesday to GM Zhou Jianchao of China. Gomez now has 4 points.

Filipino International Master (IM) Rolando Nolte, meantime, toppled GM Ziaur Rahman of Bangladesh in 43 moves of the Sicilian to improve to 4 points.

IM Ronald Dableo drew with GM Zhou Weiqi of China, IM Dronavalli Harika of India downed IM Barlo Nadera, GM Wen Yang bested Allan Macala, and IM Oliver Dimakiling beat Paulo James Florendo.

Rapid chess tilt

Meanwhile, Christian Arroyo emerged as the solo winner in the National Amateur Rapid chess championship, a side event of the Asian Championships, which was held over the weekend.

A mainstay of Far Eastern University under GM Jayson Gonzales, Arroyo finished with 5 wins and 2 draws to pocket the top prize of P10,000.

Sharing 2nd to 3rd places were Allan Cantonjos and Ryan Dungca, who finished with 5.5 points. They took home P7,000 each.

Merben Roque and Jerry Areque finished 4th and 5th, respectively. Completing the top 10 were Marlon Ricafort (6th), Sheider Nebato (7th), Ritchie Evangelista (8th), Joey Albert Florendo (9th) and Jerad Docena (10th).

The other awardees were Lourecel Hernandez (top unrated), Vince Angelo Medina (top kiddie) and Judith Pineda (top female). (Marlon Bernardino, ABSCBNnews.com)

Standings after 7 rounds:

5.5 points – H. Ni (China), C. Li (China), A. Gupta (India), L. Ding (China)

5 points – W. So (RP), K. Sasikiran (India), J. Zhou (China), R. Yu (China)

4.5 points – R. Antonio (RP), L.Q. Liem (Vietnam), E. Ghaemmaghami ( Iran), P. Harikrishna (India), T. Bakre (India), Y. Yu (China), G. Geetha (India), B. Gundavaa (Mongolia), Y. Wan (China), C. Zheng (China), D. Xiu (China), P. Sethuranan (India), D. Harika (India)

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SBMA opens bidding for Subic power-plant construction

The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) is now inviting companies to prequalify and bid for the operation of the Subic Diesel Power Plant (SDPP), a 116-megawatt diesel facility that is the sole power-generating plant in this free port.

The SBMA said in an announcement issued recently that it will lease out on an “as-is, where-is” basis the land and the facilities within the compound of the SDPP, a 10-hectare area located near the Sattler Pier.

Duly prequalified proponents are invited to submit proposals for the lease, operation and maintenance of the land and facilities at the SDPP, which was previously occupied by the state-owned National Power Corp. (Napocor).

The SBMA announced it shall “pursue the short-term operation and maintenance of this existing power plant while the reclassification of the land use of the area from utilities to mixed use or commercial/residential/leisure status takes off.”

In bidding for the operation of the power plant, local or foreign companies or joint ventures will be required to submit proposals that will be subjected to competitive evaluation, the SBMA said.

For local firms, the Subic authority will require, among others, a letter of intent duly signed by the authorized representative of the proponent; the proponent’s business profile stating its corporate structure and current business activities; registration with the Department of Trade and Industry; and article of incorporation or articles of partnership from the Securities and Exchange Commission.

If the proponent is a local corporation, the SBMA would also require that its authorized capital stock “must not be less than P200 million or its equivalent in foreign currency” and that at least 70 percent of its stock is fully paid up.

In addition, the SBMA would call for valid and current mayor’s permit or municipal license; tax-information number and tax-clearance certificate from the Bureau of Internal Revenue; statement under oath that the proponent is not blacklisted or barred from bidding by the government; clearances from the Social Security System and the Department of Labor and Employment; and a statement under oath or audited financial statement certifying/evidencing that the proponent has net assets of not less than $10 million.

The SBMA added that if the proponent or any of its members, management or shareholders are registered in the Subic Bay Free Port, it should not have a record of arrears or has not defaulted with its financial obligations with the SBMA.

Foreign bidders will be asked to submit “all the equivalent of all the required eligibility documents for local firms, insofar as may be applicable, duly authenticated by the appropriate official of the Embassy/Consulate of the Philippines in the bidder’s country.”

Parties interested in bidding for the power plant may obtain terms of reference for the submission of proposals at the office of the SBMA administrator, Building 229, Waterfront Road, Subic Bay Free Port. Bidders have until May 7 to submit their proposals, the SBMA said.

SBMA Administrator Armand Arreza said earlier the location of the Subic power plant is part of a parcel of land scheduled for development into a commercial and leisure complex. (Henry Empeño, Business Mirror)

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Asian Chess Championships: So settles for draw, stays on top

Filipino Grandmaster Wesley So settled for a draw with GM Narayanan Gopal Geetha of India in the top board Monday but remained the solo leader in the 9th Asian Individual Chess Championship at the Subic Bay Exhibition and Convention Center.

Unable to find a winning line with black, the 16-year-old So agreed to split the point with Geetha after 32 moves of a Sicilian-Nadjorf variation.

After six rounds, So stayed at the helm of the 89-strong Open division with 5.0 points, boosting his chances for one of the five slots at stake for the 2011 World Chess Cup.

Tied for second with 4.5 points were Geetha, Mongolian Bayarsaikhan Gundavaa and Chinese GMs Ni Hua and Yu Yangyi, who also drew their board 2 encounter. The untitled Gundavaa stunned Chinese GM Zhou Weiqi.

So, the country’s top player with an ELO rating of 2665, needs only to draw his last three games to earn his second straight World Cup stint. He needs at least two victories to secure the title and the $6,000 that goes with it.

“I’ll play my game and see what happens,” said So, who is skipping college this school year to concentrate on chess so he can break into the elite 2700 club.

With the position unclear, So first offered the draw in the 30th move, which Gopal, ninth placer in the 2007 edition held in Mandaue City, declined.

Two moves, later, it was Gopal’s turn to seek a truce and So relented.

Still battling at presstime were Chinese GMs Ding Liren and Ni Hua, who both tote 4.0 points.

Top seed GM Le Quang Liem beat compatriot GM Tu Hoang Thong and vaulted to 4.0 in the company of GM John Paul Gomez and Indian GM Krishnan Sasikiran, who drew their match, as well as Vietnamese IM Nguyen Than Son, who bested GM Darwin Laylo.

Also with 4.0 are Indian GM Bakre Tejas, who bested GM Ziaur Rahman, and Indonesian GM Susanto Megaranto and Iranian Fide Master Ashgar Golizadeh, who figured in another draw.

Filipino GM Rogelio Antonio Jr., a 12-time national champion, could only draw with untitled Chinese Wang Li and, with 3.5 points, needs to sweep his last three games to earn a berth to the World Cup slated in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia.

In the women’s division, Iranian WGM Atousa Pourkashiyan downed Chinese WFM Ding Yixin to rise to 5.0 points and share the lead with Chinese IM Wang Yu, who was held to a draw by Vietnamese WGM Hoang Thi Bao Tram.

The nine-round tournament is organized by the National Chess Federation of the Philippines headed by Prospero “Butch” Pichay with support from the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority, Department of Tourism, Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor), Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) and the Philippine Sports Commission. (Roy Luarca, Philippine Daily Inquirer)

Photo: Filipino Grandmaster Wesley So (right) needs only three straight draws to secure a World Cup stint.

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So scores again, grabs solo lead

Subic Bay Freeport - No opening gambit surprises Wesley So anymore.

Grandmaster Susanto Megaranto tried to waylay the Filipino GM with the Ruy Lopez-Marshall variation Sunday, but the ploy backfired as So exploited his familiarity with the opening to down the Indonesian star in the fifth round of the 9th Asian Individual Chess Championship here.

The 16-year-old So notched his fourth win against a lone draw after 38 moves and grabbed the solo lead with 4.5 points midway through the $50,000 tournament organized by the National Chess Federation of the Philippines at the Subic Exhibition and Convention Center.

“He has never used it against me, so he experimented,” said So, noting that he played the same line against Indian GM Anhijeet Gupta in a game that ended in a draw last year.

So said Megaranto committed an error on his 17th move, when he sacrificed a knight for two pawns instead of just developing his rook.

“I just want to make the top five,” said So, referring to the five slots to the 2011 World Chess Cup at stake in the championship.

“If possible I don’t want to drop a match,” added So, who’s skipping college this year to concentrate on chess.

Chinese GMs Li Chao and Ni Hua and Indian GM Narayanan Gopal stayed close behind So with 4.0 points.

Li stopped Allan Macala’s surprising run, Ni beat compatriot IM Yang Kaiqi while Gopal outplayed Filipino GM Darwin Laylo.

Fourth round co-leader GM Yu Yangyi of China was still trying to extract the full point against Gupta at presstime.

Also locked in a tight battle were Filipino GM Rogelio Antonio Jr. and Vietnamese IM Nguyen Thanh Son.

Two-time Olympian GM John Paul Gomez bounced back at 3.5 points with a victory over International Master Kirili Kuderinov of Kazakhstan.

Gomez, a mechanical engineering graduate from De La Salle University, landed in the company of Chinese GM Zhou Weiqi and untitled Yu Ruiyuan, who drew their match, Megaranto and Chinese GM Zhou Jianchao, who bested Filipino IM Oliver Barbosa.

Other Filipino bets who suffered setbacks were IM Rolando Nolte (2.0 points), IM Oliver Dimakiling, Emmanuel Senador (2), Rhobel Legaspi (1.5) and FM Julius de Ramos (1.5).

FM Haridas Pascua beat Mari Joseph Turqueza to improve to 2.5 points.

Asia’s first GM Eugene Torre finally ended his slump with a victory over countryman Deniel Causo. Torre, who was beaten by Mongolian FM Namkhai Battulga, however, was still way down in the standings with 2.0 points.

The unheralded Macala shared the limelight in the fourth round when he stunned GM Tu Hoang Thong of Vietnam and improved to 3.0 points with 11 others in the event supported by the Philippine Sports Commission, Pagcor, Department of Tourism, PCSO and the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority.

Macala, a mainstay of multi-titled Tagaytay City chess team of Mayor Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino rebounded from a third round loss to Chinese GM Ni Hua. Ranked 80th in the field, Macala has also beaten Indian WIM Dronavai Harika in the first round and Qatari GM Mohammed Al-Sayed by default in the second round.

Asian Zone 3.3 champion GM Darwin Laylo downed compatriot and fellow Olympian IM Oliver Dimakiling.

In other late results, Filipino GM John Paul Gomez drew with Indian FM Asghar Glizadeh of India, Filipino IM Oliver Barbosa halved the point with Iranian GM Ehsan Ghaemmaghami and national junior standout Jan Emmanuel Garcia agreed to a truce with Mongolian Bayarsaikhan Gundavaa.

The games in the top two boards are being shown live by way of ncfphilippines.org and the FIDE website. (Roy Luarca, Philippine Daily Inquirer)

Provisional fifth round leaders:
4.5—W. So; 4.0—C. Li (China), N. Geetha (India), H. Ni (China); 3.5 points— S. Megaranto (Indonesia), Y. Yu (China), J. Gomez, R. Yu (China), W. Zhou (China)

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SBMA joins Bataan fishers in ‘Galunggong Festival’

MORONG, Bataan — With its brass band rendering festive marching music, the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) joined fisher folk in this town for the “Araw ng Mangingisda” festival, which highlights the abundant “galunggong” catch at barangay Sabang.

Organized by the Municipal Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Management Council (MFARMC) of Morong, the celebration is intended to raise public awareness on the importance of the fisher folk sector to the provision of daily food to the community.

The festival is also part of a local fishermen’s program to seek recognition and support from the local government unit of Morong, as well as to broaden the fisher folk’s network of assistance in the province, said Morong FARMC chairman Restituto del Rosario.

“The celebration is the first in a series of events to showcase the large contribution of fisher folk to the larger community here,” Del Rosario explained.

In addition, the festival could serve as inspiration for the fisher folk to continue protecting the abundant marine resources of Morong, he added.

Highlight of the one-day festival was a cooking contest featuring different ways “galunggong” could be prepared.

Del Rosario said that each of the 60 fishing boats that went out fishing on the eve of the event contributed one bucket, or about 20 kilos, of “galunggong” for the cookfest.

The public was then invited to the Sabang barangay plaza to sample the results of the cooking competition.

To spice up to the celebration, the organizers also put up events like street dancing, beach volleyball, chess, table tennis, palosebo, sack race, and other traditional games for the community to participate in.

Later in the day, fisher folk leaders and guests awarded school supplies to winners of the kiddie basketball tournament, which fielded youth members of “Bantay Dagat”, and for teams that collected the most garbage during the coastal clean-up drive.

Del Rosario said that with the successful staging of the festival this year, they will hold the “Araw ng Mangingisda in Morong every year, with a different theme each time.

Del Rosario also lauded the contributions of Anvaya Cove, a private resort located in Morong, which provided cash prizes for the various contests, and the SBMA, which also provided school supplies distributed to schoolchildren in Sabang.

The SBMA has traditionally been a partner of the fisher folk community in Morong in terms of putting up environment-friendly livelihood projects.

After providing assistance for the “lambaklad” project of Morong fishermen several years ago, the SBMA also released early this year a P4-million financial assistance to fishermen for the sustainable development of the Subic Bay area.

The grant benefited fishermen in Morong, Olongapo City, and the municipalities of Subic and San Antonio in Zambales.

According to SBMA chairman Feliciano Salonga, SBMA granted the assistance in fulfillment of the agency’s responsibility to communities affected by the development of the Subic Bay Freeport.

The P4-million assistance is broken down into four components: P2.3 million for the establishment of artificial reefs; P.7 million for the operating expenses of the SB-IFARMC; P.5 million for a scholarship fund to deserving SB-IFARMC members and their immediate families; and P.5 million to fund livelihood programs for SB-IFARMC members and their families. (SBMA Corporate Communications)
PHOTO: Residents of Sabang village in Morong, Bataan show the various ways that “galunggong” could be cooked during the “Araw ng Mangingisda” festival.

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Asian Chess Championships: So stays at helm with third win

Grandmaster Wesley So added IM Oliver Barbosa to his growing list of victims as he fashioned out a 56-move victory for his third win in row and a share of the lead with GM Yu Yangyi of China in the Asian Individual Chess Championships at the Subic Exhibition and Convention Center in Subic yesterday.

So wisely steered the game out of a drawish endgame of a Slav by forcing an exchange of queens before the first time control to produce more active two rooks and two bishops plus a pawn against Barbosa’s two rooks and two knights.

“He (Barbosa) made a slight mistake in the opening that’s why I was able to force an exchange of queens. Before the exchange, the position is unclear,” said So, who plans to skip college this school year to pursue his chess career.

Yu outsteadied IM S.P. Sethuraman of India to hike his total to three points for joint lead in the nine-round tournament organized by the National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) in cooperation with the Philippine Sports Commission, Department of Tourism, PCSO, Pagcor and the Subic Bay Metrpolitan Authority.

Half a point with 2.5 points is GM Ni Hua, who beat Allan Macala.

The two other local bets in the last World Cup – GMs Rogelio Antonio Jr. and Darwin Laylo –drew their respective matches.

Antonio, who finished tied for third in the same qualifying tournament here last year, split the point with fellow GM Nguyen Anh Dung of Vietnam in 26 moves of the Reti.

Laylo, the reigning Asian Zone 3.3 champion, also halved the point with untitled Shanglei Lu of China.

GM John Paul Gomez was also held to a draw by GM Das Neelotpal of India .

In women’s play, Akiko Suede toppled WFM Khouloud Essa Al-Zarouni of UAE to post her first win after back-to-back losses.

Cristy Lamiel Bernales and Aices Salvador agreed to a draw in an all-Filipina showdown, while WIM Beverly Mendoza lost to WIM Kiran Moharty of India. (The Philippine Star)

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Elusive beaked whale stranded in Subic

SUBIC BAY FREE PORT—A rarely seen species of whale was stranded yesterday at the shoreline of barangay Cawag in Subic, Zambales, the first time that such a stranding of an “elusive” deep-sea creature was documented in the Philippines.

The whale, a male specimen of the Blainville’s Beaked Whale (Mesoplodon densirostris), was seen circling the area for two days, then ended up dead at the seashore on Wednesday morning, witnesses said.

Residents of sitio Matangib, located near the Hanjin shipyard at the Redondo Peninsula here, said they tried to push back the whale to deeper waters, “but it kept coming back to the shallows.”

The stranding was documented by authorities from the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority’s Ecology Center, the local office of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, and the Ocean Adventure Marine Park.

Dr. Leo Suarez, a marine biologist at the Ocean Adventure, said this was the first time for biologists to document the beaching of a Blainville’s Beaked Whale in the country.

“This is certainly a rare sighting,” Suarez said. “I believe this is the first time that a Blainville’s Beaked Whale has stranded itself here in the Philippines.”

He added that the cause of the stranding was not known, as the whale species is known to inhabit waters from 1,600 to 3,000 feet deep.

Suarez and the team from Ocean Adventure conducted a necropsy of the animal to determine the cause of death. Thereafter, the carcass was chopped off for an on-shore burial in the area.

The whale measured 4.8 meters long­—a typical size of an adult male—and weighed about 500 kilograms, the biologists said.

It required almost 20 men to haul the animal to the shore where the examination was conducted.

According to the MarineBio Conservation Society, Blainville’s Beaked Whales are “deep divers” found in tropical and warm waters in all oceans.

Strandings of the dense-beaked whale have been reported off Nova Scotia, Iceland, the British Isles, Japan, Rio Grande do Sul, South Africa, Central Chile, Tasmania and New Zealand.

The species got its name from what is described to be a unique, remarkable feature—the “extremely dense bones in the rostrum, which have a higher density and mechanical stiffness than any other bone yet measured.”

While widely distributed, the animals are rarely sighted at sea “due to their long dive times, deep habitat, and unobtrusive surfacing behavior,” the web site of MarineBio said. (Henry Empeño, Business Mirror)

In Photo: Earth Day visitor Marine biologists measure the Blainville’s Beaked Whale that beached in Subic, Zambales, the first known stranding of the species in the Philippines. The rare visitor came just day before the global celebration of Earth Day.

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Wesley So gets off to hot Asian chess start

Wesley So started hot in the 9th Asian Continental Chess Championships Wednesday, posting the first victory of the 9-round tournament at the Subic Exhibition Convention Center here.

The 16-year-old So, the country’s highest-ranked player with an ELO of 2665, took just 16 moves and less than an hour to trounce Vietnamese International Master Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son (ELO 2440) and grab the early lead in the 90-strong Open field.

So, who graduated from high school at the St. Francis of Assisi-Bacoor, recently, exploited a blunder by his rival, who had to resign under threat of losing two pawns.

According to So, who’ll skip college next year to concentrate on chess, he spent one month expanding his opening repertoire for this tournament organized by the National Chess Federation of the Philippines as qualifier for the 2011 World Cup set in Russia.

Other early winners included third seed HM Ni Hua of China, who beat Australian IM Aleksandar; Chinese GM Li Chao, who subdued compatriot Wan Yunguo; Chinese GM Zhou Weiqi, who whipped Filipino National Master Emmanuel Senador; and Indian GM Abhijeet Gupta, who defeated China’s Wang Li.

Meanwhile, Philippine Sports Commission chair Harry Angping gave the go-signal for NCFP president Prospero “Butch” Pichay to look for a foreign coach to guide So in his preparations for the Guangzhou Asian Games in November.

Angping said the PSC is willing to spend up to $3,000 a month for So’s preparation.(Philippine Daily Inquirer)

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Subic puts power plant on auction block

THE FIVE-year lease for a diesel power plant compound at the Subic free port has been put up for auction, the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) announced yesterday.

The winning bidder will control not just the 116-megawatt plant but also the 10-hectare property that is suitable for residential or commercial development, the SBMA said in a published notice.

The lease and management of the power plant is being bidded out as intertwined contracts among SBMA, National Power Corp. (Napocor) and the former plant operator and developer Enron Power Corp. expired in March 2009, the free port authority said.

The plant was commissioned in 1994 through a build-operate-transfer (BOT) agreement between Napocor and Enron, the SBMA said.

The facility sat on a property leased by the Napocor from the SBMA and was promptly turned over to the free port authority when both the lease and BOT deal lapsed last year.

“The SBMA wishes to lease out on an ‘as is, where is’ basis the land and facilities within the Subic Bay Power Plant compound...,” the state agency said.

It is the free port’s sole power plant and its output will be channeled to the national grid, SBMA utilities division head Ariel B. Napalan said in a telephone interview.

Both local and foreign firms and joint ventures are welcome to join the auction as long they have more than P200 million in authorized capital stock, the notice stated.

Mr. Napalan declined to elaborate on the minimum bid price and other requirements.

Interested firms will have until May 7 to obtain the terms of reference covering the bidding of the power plant compound at Causeway Extension of the economic zone, the SBMA said.

Proposals are due in early June, Mr. Napalan added.

The 10-hectare lot is being processed for reclassification into a mixed-use area from its currently utilities zoning to accommodate commercial and residential developments, the SBMA said.

The SBMA is overseeing the plant’s operation in the meantime. (Jessica Anne D. Hermosa, BusinessWorld)

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Government sees accelerating inflow of investments in the next 5 years

The investment promotion agencies foresee an accelerating investments inflow in the next five years from 10 percent growth this year to 20 percent by 2014 driven by the eight industry winners.

Based on the final draft of the Philippine Investment Promotion Plan, which was formulated by 11 government investment promotion agencies (IPAs), the industry growth drivers are agro-industry, BPO-IT, electronics-semiconductor, energy, logistics, mining, shipbuilding and tourism.

The IPAs that would work for the attainment of the growth targets include the Board of Investments, Philippine Economic Zone Authority, Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority, Cagayan Economic Zone Authority, Zamboanga Special Economic Zone, Aurora Special Economic Zone, Philippine Retirement Authority, Phividec Industrial Estate, BoI-Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao and the Bases Conversion Development Authority.


The PIPP will be launched on Wednesday, April 21, by Trade and Industry Secretary Jesli A. Lapus and Japan International Cooperation Agency representative Norio Matsuda. JICA provided for the funding of the 5-year PIPP.

The PIPP has set out an investments growth target 10 percent in 2010 and 15 percent for 2011 to 2012 and 20 percent by 2013 to 2014.

This medium-term marketing plan of the country’s IPAs is expected to steer the Philippines through the tides of globalization and beef up capital inflows into the economy.

The PIPP will serve as the guiding document for all IPAs to synchronize strategies in investment promotion in order to achieve a world class brand image for the country.

Investments generated by the government’s IPAs in 2009 reached P315.28 billion from P473.25 billion in 2008.

The five-year PIPP has also prescribed for a targeted marketing of investment promotion activities.

In particular, the five-year PIPP has put emphasis on Japan being the country’s number one foreign investor.

The plan has identified Japan as an investor that is going to sustain its investments in the country.

The plan noted of Japan’s propensity for green and greenfield projects.

Based on the PIPP’s Qualitative Goal for Japan, the country’s biggest investor is expected to pour more investments in the motor vehicle sector where it is racing for the production of electric vehicles and also in steel manufacturing. (Bernie Cahiles-Magkilat, Manila Bulletin)

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Green forum for Subic businesses

Manila - Over 150 businessmen and residents of the Subic Bay Freeport in Zambales participated in a day-long forum on green financing and carbon credit before the celebration of Earth Hour, the worldwide initiative that enjoined millions of people to turn off their lights for the environment on March 27.

Part of the Art+Environment Festival, the forum was held at the Lighthouse Marina Resort in Subic Bay.

Sponsored by the British Embassy and organized by Greenergy Resources, Contemporary Art Philippines Magazine, and the Lighthouse Marina Resort, the Earth Day event engaged small and medium enterprises (SME), which comprise 96 percent of all registered businesses in the Philippines and employ 70 percent of the local workforce.

Businessmen and citizens participated in the forum (themed “SMEs: Leading the way to a low carbon pathway”), which promoted models for low carbon economy, sharing information on how SMEs can move toward green practices and mitigate the effects of a changing climate.

The first of its kind to be staged outside Metro Manila, the forum featured speakers from the British Embassy Manila, Climate Change Commission, the Department of Science and Technology, Phillip Morris, Aboitiz Power and more.

Focusing on low carbon economy, the event presented available technologies and financing options for SMEs, who would choose to employ green practices in their operations. The DOST presented how companies are able to save on energy just by adopting cleaner production programs that minimize waste.

Nestle served as an example of how going green makes good business sense as seen in the numerous awards the company has received. Korean-based FAWOO showed the benefits of switching to environment-friendly LED lights over CFL and incandescent versions.

Green financing

Landbank as a financing institution responded to the green revolution by helping shoulder the costs of SME programs that will address climate change. The Climate Change Commission also presented various carbon-financing schemes.

After the forum, a ribbon-cutting ceremony opened an art exhibit, another vehicle to raise awareness of the environment. (Philippine Daily Inquirer)

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