Subic Hosts Eco-Regatta As Run Up To Recycling Talks

A regatta, showcasing boats made from recyclable materials, will be held here to promote ecological awareness among different schools and organizations competing in the event on Sunday.

Dubbed the Columbia Recyclable Regatta, the eco-regatta is organized as a kick-off event to Columbia’s “Recycling Talks” for schools and organizations.

Organizers said the main requirement for those participating in the recyclable regatta is for all boats to be 80 percent made up of recycled materials.

The participants are encouraged to find an innovative and resourceful way to transform recyclable materials into a fully functional watercraft for the regatta.

The Lighthouse Marina Resort, in cooperation with Philippine Dragon Boat Federation and the UP Mountaineering, is building two boats made entirely of recyclable materials.

One of the main materials used for the watercraft are slippers that Team Lighthouse found on Capones Island in San Antonio, Zambales during a coast cleanup drive last April 27, 2012 in celebration of Earth Day.

The coastal clean-up was also held in line with The Lighthouse’s “Save Capones Island” campaign.

In this race, participants must paddle their recycled watercrafts over a 200-meter course on the seafront of The Lighthouse Marina Resort in Subic. This match is open to teams of two (either under the “Mens” or “Mixed” categories), of all ages and professions, so everyone is encouraged to join. Cash prizes and Columbia gift certificates await the winners.

The first leg of the regatta will be at The Lighthouse Resort, Subic Bay Freeport Zone and the second leg of the race will be in Cebu City. The registration fee is P2,500 inclusive of rash guard. (Jonas Reyes, Manila Bulletin)

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Catiil shines in Subic age group triathlon

Neil Catiil uncorked the form that made him the toss of Philippine triathlon the past years to rule yesterday’s 2012 K-Swiss Subic Bay International Triathlon Age Group Championships presented by Century Tuna at the Subic Bay Freeport.

The 25-year old Catiil displayed a balanced attack to spoil the challenge of national duathlon member August Benedicto in the race organized by the Triathlon Association of the Philippines.

Former top female duathlete Monica Torres relied on her strong performance in the bike and run leg to dominate the distaff side, which attracted 24 lady triathletes.

The Cagayan de Oro triathlete who was dropped from the national team roster at the start of the year due to conflicts with races she is set to compete in, negotiated the 1.5K swim, 40K bike and 10K run race in 2 hours, 16 minutes, 38 seconds.

Catiil was the second competitor to come out of the water at Dungaree Beach after noted swimmer Guy Concepcion. He relaxed a little bit in the bike, before unleashing a big windup.

Benedicto came in second at 2:20:37 but recorded the best bike split at 1:08:50.

At third was national coach George Vilog (2:24:15). He and Catiil also bagged the gold medal in the 25-29 and 35-39 age groups.

Torres anchored her solid performance with the best bike and run splits at 1:17:38 and 44:12 to highlight the fastest time among the female competitors at 2:31:41. She won the gold medal in the 25-29 class.

Former SEAG silver medalist Sandra Araullo-Gonzales took second (2:35:07) and Doray Ellis third (2:41:44). Araullo-Gonzales and Ellis bagged the gold in the 30-34 and 40-44 age divisions.

The event is supported by K-Swiss, Century Tuna, Speedo, David’s Salon, Travelers Hotel, Asian Centre For Insulation Philippines, Gatorade and Standard Insurance.

For topping the male and female categories, Catiil and Torres will be rewarded with an all-expenses trip to compete in the Hong Kong ITU Triathlon Asian Cup slated late this year.

A total of 550 triathletes took part in the second and final day of the race that is also being supported by Harbor Point Ayala Malls, SM City Olongapo, Fitness First and Philippine Sports Commission (PSC).

Other winners in the different age group categories were Eduardo Pertierra (male 18-19); Mervin Santiago and Kim Kilgroe (male/female 20-24); Jeff Valdez (male 30-34); Michelle Villanueva (female 35-39); Mark Ellis (male 40-44); Abel Alon Alon and Celma Hitalia (malef/female 45-49); Rne Stroem (male 50-54); Alvin Alindogan (Male 55-59); and Virgilio Balaba (male 60 and over). (The Philippine Star)

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Chinese, Japanese top Subic triathlon

ASIAN triathlon powerhouse countries China and Japan shared the limelight in last Saturday’s first day of action at the K-Swiss Subic International Triathlon.

China’s Bai Faquan and Japanese Kawashima Eri ruled their respective divisions on a hot and humid day inside the Subic Bay Freeport.

The 26-year-old Faquan, China’s top-ranked triathlete and no. 2 in Asia, shadowed the lead group in the 20K bike leg after finishing behind in the 1.5K swim at the Dungaree Beach. He was seventh man out of the bike transition area, but made his move in the final 10K run leg, taking the lead from Ireland’s Benjamin Shawn in the second loop and stepping up the pace at the halfway mark. His strategy left the field gasping in his wake en route to a solo finish with a time of 1:50.12.

“I was not sure about my chances because of the strong field, but I was aiming for the top three finish to earn ITU points to qualify for the London Olympics,” said Faquan, whose chance for the elusive Olympic slot was bolstered by his winning in Subic. Another win will practically guarantee him a slot to the Olympics, according to the interpreter, who got the information from the triathlete’s Chinese coach.

Finishing second in the race presented by Century Tuna and sponsored by Speedo, Gatorade, Fitness First, David’s Salon, Standard Insurance, Ayala Land, and Asian Centre for Insulation was 20-year-old Shaw, an Under-23 champion, with a time of 1:50.36.

Comebacking Australian Shane Barrie paid the price for a violation committed in the bike transition area as it cost him a 15- second penalty and he settled for third place with 1:52.09.

It was a different story altogether in the women’s elite division, which Kawashima Eri from Japan dominated. Second placer Grace Musgrove, 19, from New South Wales, Australia said Eri was simply too good. Musgrove clocked 2:08.17 to Kawashima’s 2:06.55. (Lito Cinco, Manila Standard Today)

PHOTO:
Top seed China’s Bai Faquan lived up to his billing in the K-Swiss Subic International Triathlon as he came from behind to win the race. Here, Faquan finishes the initial 1.5K swim leg at the Dungaree beach.

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ERC okays Subic firm, SMEC supply deal

THE Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) said it has provisionally approved the extension of the interim supply agreement between Subic EnerZone Corp. (SEZ) and San Miguel Energy Corp.(SMEC).

In ERC Case 2011-167 RC, the commission said the final generation cost that can be recovered will be determined when it makes the final decision.

ERC made it clear that when the rates provisionally approved are found to be higher than the final rates, the amount corresponding to the excess shall be refunded by SEZ to its customers by crediting the same in their electric bills over a period to be determined by the Commission.

In its letter of agreement furnished to the ERC in November last year, SMEC said it will provide SEZ with 208.06 gigawatt-hours of electricity from December 26, 2011 to December 25, 2012.

SMEC will supply SEZ’s monthly contracted energy at a proposed rate of P3.8916 per kilowatt-hour.

ERC said SMEC assured in its letter that all the terms and conditions in the existing interim supply agreement shall remain in force for the duration of the extended term.

ERC said SEZ previously sourced its power needs from the National Power Corp. under a Contract for Supply of Electric Energy.

Upon the privatization of Napocor’s assets, ERC said the CSEE was assigned to SMEC as it was the assigned as the Independent Power Producer Administrator for the 1,200-megawatt Sual coal-fired power plant. (Paul Anthony A. Isla, Business Mirror)

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SBMA cited for job generation program

Educators in the field of Industrial Technology lauded the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) for its continuing efforts to generate jobs for Filipinos, especially skilled workers.

This message was conveyed to SBMA Chairman Roberto Garcia during the recent opening here of the 10th National Conference of the Philippine Association of Colleges and Universities of Industrial Technology (PACUIT), which was attended by about 250 senior officers, including presidents and directors from state colleges and universities in the country.

“Your contributions to the socio-economic development of the country must be acknowledged,” said Dr. Feliciano Rosete, president of the Ramon Magsaysay Technological University in Zambales and vice president of PACUIT-Luzon.

Rosete also cited the personal contributions of Garcia, saying that the SBMA official has introduced innovative concepts to strengthen the institutional policies of the agency for the benefit of service-clientele, including workers and students.

Garcia, who was invited as keynote speaker in the event, welcomed PACUIT delegates to Subic and acknowledged the role of his predecessors in turning this former military base into a successful free port and special economic zone.

“The Subic Freeport is a true manifestation of Filipino industriousness,” Garcia said. He noted that after only 20 years since its creation, Subic is now one of the most successful free ports in the Asian region with US$8 billion worth of accumulated investment, and a record of more than 92,000 jobs generated.

Garcia said that Subic’s success could be attributed to the professionalism and dedication of workers to their respective jobs, which prospective investors appreciate.

“That is why my heart is very close to industrial technology,” Garcia said. “Our success is a manifestation of the strong quality-control program being implemented here in the Subic Freeport with the help and cooperation of the workers.”

He added that the SBMA would continue supporting industrial technology by accepting students as trainees in various offices of the agency under its on-the-job training program.

The program is in support of President Aquino’s vision of achieving progress through “Daang Matuwid,” Garcia also told members of PACUIT.

PACUIT is an association of educators in industrial technology, which aims to better equip its members in steering industrial technology programs toward technological advancements and make them more attuned with national efforts in industrial development.

With the theme “Strengthening Response to the Emerging Industrial Technology Challenges,” the Subic conference was designed to solicit and discuss issues and concerns affecting PACUIT members, including the challenge for attendees to make local industrial technology education match with emerging trends in modern technology. (RAV/MPD-SBMA)

PHOTO:
SBMA chairman and administrator Roberto V. Garcia (left) shares a light moment with CHED Commissioner Dr. Nona Ricafort during the 10th PACUIT National Conference at the Subic Bay Freeport. Also in photo is RMTU president Dr. Feliciano Rosete (right).

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Subic’s Ayala mall opens doors to indigenous communities

As part of Ayala Malls' corporate social responsibility program, Harbor Point, Subic’s newest shopping destination, is opening its doors to indigenous groups in communities surrounding the Subic Bay Freeport Zone.

The mall, which formally opened on April 26, envisions itself as a home for the different community groups in the Zambales and Bataan area, said Bobby Dy, Ayala Land’s senior vice president.

“We welcome all these groups, and we will work closely with them. We want this to be their home,” Dy said, adding that the mall’s management is in close talk with the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) to accommodate community events at Harbor Point.

He said the mall is planning to have community events Mondays to Thursdays. The mall is also providing business opportunities for local indigenous peoples, particularly the Aetas in this free port.

According to Armie Llamas, manager of the SBMA public relations department, Harbor Point has initially allocated a complimentary stall where Aetas from the Pastolan village in this free port can sell slippers that they have crafted. Proceeds from the sale will go directly to the livelihood program of the Aeta tribe, she added.

Llamas, who is in charge of the SBMA's outreach projects for the Aetas in Subic, as well as other community groups, said the tribe is thankful to the mall management for giving them some space in the Harbor Point mall.

She added that the SBMA is also looking forward to other programs that Ayala has lined up, especially for some opportunities for the Aetas to showcase their culture. “They do dance numbers and cultural productions, so Harbor Point can perhaps hire some Aetas for cultural presentations to give them an additional source of income,” Llamas said.

Conrado Prenilla, chieftain of the Pastolan Aeta community, also expressed gratitude for the additional income that Aeta women could earn from selling slippers at the Ayala mall.

“Marami sa mga kababaihan namin ang walang trabaho, kaya po malaking bagay para sa kanila itong ibinigay na livelihood project para po makatulong sa kanila,” he said.

Harbor Point, the latest addition to Ayala Land’s chain of shopping malls, was formally opened on April 26 by Ayala Land’s top executives, including Ayala Land chairman Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala. The opening was also graced by SBMA chairman and administrator Roberto Garcia, and Olongapo City mayor James Gordon, Jr.

Antonino Aquino, president of Ayala Land Inc., said that the mall will strive to complement the development that is happening within the Subic Bay Freeport and Olongapo City.

“This is extremely important for us because we know that this is something that is going to be contributing to the further development of Olongapo and Subic,” he said. “We would like to be part of the continued progress that is happening in this twin development.”

Aquino also stated that Ayala Land is looking forward to be a part of Subic and Olongapo’s future towards progress. “We would like to be part of that great journey, and we would like to make sure to start today here in Harbor Point, where every day is a holiday,” he said. (FMD/MPD-SBMA)

PHOTO:
Pastolan Aeta women sell their handcrafted slippers at a complementary stall given by the management of Harbor Point, the newest mall in the Subic Bay Freeport.

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Hanjin, Huntington ink US Navy service deal

HHIC Philippines Inc. (HHIC-Phil), a unit of South Korean shipbuilder Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction Co. Ltd., is partnering Amsec Llc of the United States to provide maintenance, repair, and logistics services to the US Navy and other customers in the Western Pacific region.

HHIC-Phil signed recently with Amsec, a subsidiary of the largest US naval shipbuilder, Huntington Ingalls Industries, an agreement that will enable Hanjin’s subsidiary to diversify its operations at Subic Bay leveraging on its investment and increasing long-term revenue stability while benefiting from Huntington’s expertise.

“We could not be more pleased with this new strategic relationship with Amsec and Huntington Ingalls,” said Jin Kyu Ahn, president of HHIC-Phil.

“Combining Amsec’s industry leading technical services capabilities with HHIC-Phill’s unparalleled production ability, technologies and quality, delivered from the world’s most efficient marine production system will allow us to offer MRL services at new levels of value to customers,” Jin said.

Harris Leonard, HII vice president and president of Amsec operations, said: “This partnership enables us to leverage Hanjin’s state of the art shipyard at Subic Bay, and I am confident we’ll be able to expand our efforts in providing quality technical services to our most important customer, the US Navy, wherever they may be operating.”

HHIC-Phil, completed in Subic Bay in 2009, operates Subic Shipyard and is equipped with high-tech shipbuilding facilities that include two mega-docks with 550 meters in length and 135 meters wide, four kilometers of front quay facilities, four units of Goliath cranes and an assembly shop with automated facilities 1,000 meters in length.

Hanjin’s Subic Bay shipyard generates 5 percent of Philippine GDP and is one of the largest single employers in the country. Because of the capabilities of the Subic shipyard, the Philippines ranks as the world’s fifth-largest shipbuilding country.

Hanjin Heavy is a world leader in shipbuilding, construction, and other diversified businesses. Since its founding in 1937 as

Korea’s first shipbuilder, HHIC has been a leading force in Korea’s economic development with its many “first-in-Korea” achievements in ship construction and heavy industry.

With offices in eight countries around the world, including Korea, US, Greece, UAE, and Hong Kong, HHIC’s employees continue to be industry leaders in HHIC’s diversified businesses with world class creativity, capability, technical expertise, and dedication to delivering customer value.

Amsec is a subsidiary of Huntington Ingalls Industries. With about 2,000 employees in 27 locations nationwide and overseas, Amsec is a full-service supplier to the US Navy and the commercial maritime industry.

The company provides naval architecture and marine engineering, naval ship systems assessments, maintenance engineering, waterfront maintenance support, acquisition program support, shipyard industrial engineering and C4I installation and support services.

Huntington Ingalls designs, builds and maintains nuclear and non-nuclear ships for the US Navy and Coast Guard and provides after-market services for military ships around the globe. For more than a century, the firm has built more ships in more ship classes than any other US naval shipbuilder.(Malaya Business Insight)

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Ayala Land keen to increase presence in central Luzon

Ayala Land, Inc. yesterday bared plans to further expand its presence in central Luzon by adding residential or office projects in the area after launching the Harbor Point mall here.

“We are definitely expanding our national presence. We have identified the Pampanga-Bataan-Zambales corridor as a key growth area, and with the opening of Harbor Point, you can say we have already deepened our presence in those areas,” Bernard Vincent O. Dy, Ayala Land executive vice-president, said in a press briefing.

Aside from Harbor Point, Ayala Land’s other developments in central Luzon included Anvaya Cove, a 320-hectare leisure complex in Bataan that the company developed in partnership with Subic Bay Development and Industrial Estate Corp.

“As you can see, we’re always on the lookout for opportunities, and right now, we are in discussions with the [Olongapo] city government and SBMA (Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority) if we can expand further our product offerings. We’re looking at possible residential or office buildings, in addition to Harbor Point,” Mr. Dy said.

Harbor Point, the first Ayala Land mall opened this year, is located on a 3.5-hectare lot along the Subic Bay freeport’s Rizal Highway.

Around 80% of the mall is already leased out to tenants, from which Harbor Point expects to net some P100 million in revenues annually, Javier D. Hernandez, Ayala Land commercial business group assistant-vice president said. (Franz Jonathan G. de la Fuente, BusinessWorld)

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Holy Week proved Subic’s drawing power

As expected, the Holy Week again spiked up tourist arrivals in this free port, as visitors from Manila and nearby areas took advantage of a long weekend to enjoy some days of vacation in this eco-tourism site.

According to the data provided by the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), around 50,500 vehicles visited the Subic Bay Freeport on April 1-9, as compared to a record of 30,480 in the same period last year.

Using a standard multiplier of four persons per vehicle, an estimated 202,000 tourists came in to spend the five-day Holy Week here.

Meanwhile, data compiled by the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) indicated that hotels in the free port posted a 100 per cent occupancy rate on April 5-8, and 75 per cent for the entire week (April 1-9).

SBMA officials said the surge in tourist arrivals here was facilitated by the implementation of a dedicated Subic lane at the North Luzon Expressway and the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway, wherein motorists only had to pay a one-time toll fee for easy access to Subic.

Events scheduled for the Holy Week, as well as the natural environment and modern facilities here, also proved to be the main attractions for thousands of visitors, the officials added.

Various religious services and events throughout the five-day holiday drew thousands of faithful to the4 Spanish-era San Roque Chapel in this free port. These included the “Pabasa” and Stations of the Cross, and the traditional Good Friday procession, which attracted at least 3,000 devotees.

Visitors attended the Good Friday “Walk to the Calvary” re-enactment at the Holy Land Subic Theme Park here, as well as a healing concert by the Bethesda Springs of Hope Ministry in the evening of Good Friday.

Meanwhile, non-religious activities also contributed to the well-rounded Holy Week activities here. These included the Greater Subic Bay Tourism Bureau’s “Hataw Sayaw” competition that was joined by 14 dance groups from Metro Manila, Laguna, Cavite, Pampanga, Zambales and Olongapo City.

Also, BigBoi Productions set up a shoe exhibit at the Subic Gym on April 7. Dubbed as Sneakerology, it featured DJs and music artists from Manila while shoe exhibitors, collectors and traders went around the exhibit. (FMD/MPD-SBMA)

PHOTO:
The Holy Land Theme Park is an emerging tourism attraction in the Subic Bay Freeport.

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Hanjin set to deliver newly-built crude oil tanker and bulk carrier

Relentless in its effort to achieve greater heights in its core business, shipbuilding industry leader Hanjin Heavy Industries & Construction - Philippines, Inc. (HHIC-Phil, Inc.) is set to deliver two newly built vessels before the end of April, 2012 namely: M/T Brightway, a DWT 160,000 Crude Oil Tanker ordered by a Liberian company Modmal Shipping Limited and M/V FMG MATILDA, a DWT 205,000 MT Bulk Carrier owned by Bocimar Hong Kong Ltd. based in Belgium. Both ship-owners are engaged international shipping and maritime solutions.

M/T Brightway and M/V FMG MATILDA were launched last April 27, 2011 and July 29, 2011, respectively and the 34th and 35th vessels to be delivered from Hanjin’s Subic shipyard. Singapore is M/T Brightway’s future port of registry while M/V FMG Matilda is Hong Kong.

Mr. Jin Kyun Ahn, president of the Korean shipbuilder giant, said that the scheduled vessel delivery will highlight the competitiveness of HHIC-Phil’s Subic shipyard which produced the state-of-the-art commercial vessels. “What made this possible is our very efficient, cutting-edge shipbuilding facilities and highly skilled workforce,” he said.

President Ahn explained that Hanjin’s Subic shipyard is compliant with international safety standards as evidenced by its ISO certification and that “the well-being of our shipyard workers is given top priority in all stages of the production process.”

Ahn said that Hanjin has made great strides in promoting the welfare of its workers while training them to become world-class shipbuilding employees, able to build huge ships for various foreign nations in the world.

He also recognized the HHIC-Phil’s shipyard safety committee (largely composed of shipbuilding subcontractors’ representatives) for exerting “utmost efforts in the implementation of the best health and safety practices in order to achieve zero fatal accident in the shipyard in the long term.”

The shipyard has a modern emergency medical facility being manned by competent medical professionals who are ready to provide quality health and medical services to the workers 24 hours a day, which is at par with the international standard.

“This strong resolve on safety concerns has substantially reduced reported cases of work-related accidents, and most noteworthy, fatal accidents have rarely happened.” according to President Ahn.

He also emphasized that the average rate of work-related accidents in the Subic shipyard is much lower as compared to any other heavy industries here and abroad, based on the available statistics from the DOLE and other international organizations.

As part of its commitment to maintain a hazard-free working environment for the shipyard workers, HHIC-Phil in cooperation with the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) thru the Bureau of Working Conditions have forged a pact last February 17 of this year.

The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) is in line with DOLE’s KAPATIRAN-WISE-TAV program of pursuing a culture of compliance with labor standards and of occupational health and safety standards to attain high productivity and quality at the workplace - especially in the face of technological advancement, modernization and globalization.

Since 2006, HHIC-Phil operates two (2¬) state-of-the-art Skill Development Centers - one located at SBFZ’s Industrial Park and the other in Cagayan de Oro City to fully equip Hanjin’s Filipino workforce with skills in shipbuilding, which has enabled its workforce to attain global competitiveness.

These training facilities, which serve as the catalyst for developing skills required in the shipyard, have already mentored more than 25,000 trainees and will continue to hone and develop Hanjin’s workforce to keep them globally competitive.

To date, Hanjin’s Subic shipyard currently employs nearly 20,000 local employees and continues to generate more job and business opportunities in the surrounding communities.

Maximizing its assets and capabilities, HHIC-Phil will be expanding its investment in the Philippines by engaging in offshore business, ship repair, and construction, fabrication and installation of various steel structures for key industries.

The Philippines currently ranks as the world’s 4th largest shipbuilding countries as per record of the Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA), an agency under the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC).

Indeed, the presence of the Subic shipyard at the Freeport has also been positively contributing to the growth of the Philippine economy amid the looming world economic crisis. (HHIC-Phil)

PHOTOS: M/T Brightway & M/V FMG Matilda

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Balikatan exercises held in Subic

The Hawaii National Guard, together with the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) fire department, conducted a search and rescue exercise here on April 20 as part of the 28th Balikatan exercises between the military forces of the United States and the Philippines.

The exercise was held at the Collapsed Structure Search and Rescue Training Facility in this free port. The facility is designed to simulate different scenarios during an earthquake.

Participants in the exercise demonstrated different rescue techniques such as high angle rope rescue, collapsed structure rescue, shoring, breaching and breaking.

Capt. Aaron Blanchard, officer in charge of the Hawaii National Guard, stressed the importance of disaster preparation.

“Obviously when disaster happens there’s no time to train then, and the only time to train is when you get opportunities like this,” said Blanchard.

Blanchard also said that the Subic exercise gave them an opportunity to work with different agencies.

“It’s a learning experience for everyone. We learned techniques and procedures and we shared our experiences, too,” he said.

During the simulation, the participants also used the incident command system (ICS), an emergency system designed for planned and unplanned events.

According to Capt. Ranny Magno, SBMA fire department chief, the ICS is a very flexible emergency response system that is being used in other countries.

“One of the features of ICS is that it is flexible and modular. In other words, its use depends on the situation. You can adjust it,” Magno said.

Magno also took note of the preparedness of the SBMA in responding to emergency situations.

“If there is a disaster, the SBMA is ready to respond, to give assistance,” he said. “In many cases, when neighboring municipalities, towns and cities request for our help, we respond immediately. We have the equipment, we have the manpower, plus the kind of discipline of responding immediately because time is the very essence in any emergency, especially in natural calamity.”

The Philippine National Red Cross along with the Olongapo City Disaster Risk Management Council also participated in the activity.

The Balikatan is a combined joint military exercise conducted under the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty and the Visiting Forces Agreement between the two countries. This year, the joint military exercises focus on Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Response (HADR) Training. (FMD/MPD-SBMA)

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Subic Bay is now a Wi-Fi zone

PHILIPPINE Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) has added Subic Bay Freeport to its list of Wi-Fi Zones, enabling subscribers to connect to the Internet when they visit popular destinations.

The phone giant, in a statement, said it will provide free Wi-Fi service until May 5 at the free port zone areas such as the Zoobic Safari, Subic Yacht Club Hotel, Pier One, Royal Subic, Times Square Cinema and the Meat Plus/Freeport Exchange.

“We are glad to bring the Wi-Fi zone to Subic Bay visitors so that they will be able to share in real time photos or videos of their vacation this summer to their families and friends here and abroad,” said PLDT Home Wired Data Head Gary Dujali.

Other areas covered by the Wi-Fi zone are Subic’s Remy Field, Eastern Gasoline Station, Petron Gasoline Station, PLDT Subictel, and the area along the Subic Bayfront boardwalk.

“The Wi-Fi zone complements myDSL service at home, allowing customers to stay connected even outside their home,” Dujali said.

After May 5, myDSL subscribers may continue to experience the same strong connection outside the home, in Subic and other Wi-Fi zones in key cities nationwide by just adding P150 to their monthly subscription. Meanwhile, Subictel and other PLDT landline subscribers will just add P300 to their monthly subscription to get the unique Wi-Fi pin which allows access to Wi-Fi zones nationwide.

During the Holy Week break, PLDT also provided free Wi-Fi zone access to travelers in gasoline stations along North Luzon Expressway (NLEx) and South Luzon Expressway (SLEx). The telecommunications company’s Wi-Fi zones also powered establishments and landmarks in nearby towns and cities like Tagaytay and Laguna.

The Internet access is a valuable tool for travelers as they chronicle their trip and post live photos and updates as they happen via Twitter, Facebook, or other social networking sites. It also connects them to news and travel sites that give them the latest traffic information.

Currently, PLDT has over 3,500 Wi-Fi zones in key cities nationwide, including Metro Manila, Cebu, Baguio, and Davao, and more coming soon.(Lenie Lectura, Business Mirror)

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Subic Bay triathlon lures foreign bets

OVER 40 elite male and female triathletes from Australia and 10 other countries will compete in the 19th edition of the K-SWISS ITU Subic Bay International Triathlon on May 5-6 at the Subic Bay Freeport where Olympic qualifying points are up for grabs.

Aside from Australia, other countries represented in the event presented by Century Tuna are China, Ireland, Jordan, Japan, Zimbabwe, Mexico, Chinese Taipei, Macau, New Zealand and Morocco.

Local triathletes, meanwhile, will face entries from Malaysia, Thailand and China.

In the Mini-Sprint 13-15 category, several competitors will vie for possible entry into the 2014 Youth Olympic Games triathlon event in Nanjing, China, among them Magali Echauz, Batang Pinoy 2011 champion Jessica Salazar, Sixto Lalanto, Jimuel Patilan, and Justin Chiongbian.

In the Junior Sprint 16-19 category of the event sponsored by K-SWISS, Century Tuna, Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority and Speedo, Cebu’s Rochelle Tan and Davao’s Mary Pauline Fornea will clash for the female title while the male crown will be disputed by Allen Santiago, Marc Altura, Javier Ocampo and Kurt Cabanilla.

Nikko Huelgas will lead the national team in the elite category, along with teammates Jonard Saim, John Chicano and Kim Mangrobang. Saim, Chicano and Mangrobang are currently in a high-performance training camp in Brisbane, Australia under coach Dan Atkins. (Malaya)

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Unique course brings Century Tuna 5i50 Triathlon Philippines to Subic

This former military base where the best American soldiers were trained to win a war is now officially the home of Century Tuna 5i50 Triathlon Philippines, a distance competition where some of the world’s best triathletes are expected to compete.

The good news was announced as Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) chairman Roberto Garcia and Alaska Milk Corporation (AMC) president and CEO Fred Uytengsu signed a memorandum of agreement making the Subic Bay Freeport the venue for the 5i50 Triathlon this year until 2014.

Garcia said the agreement would place Subic in the forefront of top-caliber sports events for three years, as the Century Tuna 5i50 Triathlon would be the first 5i50 distance triathlon in Asia to be sanctioned by the World Triathlon Corporation (WTC).

The Olympic-distance Century Tuna 5i50 race will involve a 1.5 kilometer swim, a 40-kilometer bike event, and a 10-kilometer run.

“This is a very welcome opportunity for Subic to host this kind of event, and we thank Century Tuna Inc. and Sunrise Events for bringing this to Subic and adding more excitement to this emerging sports center in the region,” Garcia said.

“As you know, sports tourism is a major thrust in our tourism master plan and we really look forward to hosting world-class events from marathons to biking, to sailing,” he said, pointing out that Subic has just hosted the Rolex China Sea Race which started in Hong Kong and ended in Subic Bay, and the Commodore’s Cup, which is also part of the competition in the Asian sailing circuit.

For his part, Uytengsu said that Alaska milk will stage the Olympic-distance Century Tuna 5i50 Triathlon Series in the Philippines every month of June, starting this year until 2014.

Asked why Subic was chosen as venue for the 5i50 event, Uytengsu replied that they chose Subic because of its challenging course that incorporates scenic features.

“If you look at the landscape of Subic Bay, you would see that it has the best roads you’ve never seen in any road race in the country, and they are extremely safe and very well maintained,” Uytengu said.
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He added that the area also offers a very challenging course from the organizer’s stand point, which is something different from what has never been experienced before.

“Subic offers many different looks and many different experiences. This course is uniquely Century Tuna’s 5i50 course, and this is ours alone,” Uytengso happily pointed out.

Garcia added that Subic is also known for its road discipline and is a gated and fenced community, offering great security to sports participants. "We also have a 24/7 911 emergency assistance hotline that brings assistance to you wherever you are in the Freeport in a matter of minutes". (RAV/MPD-SBMA)

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Q1 2012 tax collection in Subic Freeport hits record P1.79-B

Tax collections by revenue and customs offices here in the first quarter of the year again surpassed previous records, leading to combined remittances of P1.79 billion in just the first three months of 2012.

The P1.79-billion collection total remitted by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and the Bureau of Customs (BOC) represented an increase rate of 10.83 per cent, or P174.8 million, over the P1.61-billion aggregate collection for the same period last year, records from the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) showed.

SBMA chairman Roberto Garcia noted that the first quarter collections this year are record highs for both the Subic customs office, which netted a total of P1.46 billion, as well as for the district revenue office, which collected P328 million.

SBMA records also revealed that the uptrend in first quarter revenue collections here began in 2003, when a total of P665.18 million was generated. Over the succeeding years, this record was constantly topped by higher revenue collection figures.

The P1.79-billion first quarter 2012 collection alone is already 22.76 per cent more than the revenue collections made in the entire 1998, which amounted to P1.46 billion.

The BOC’s P1.46-billion collection was derived from duties and taxes from ship calls, transhipment operations, and the importation of various products and general merchandise.

The Customs collection for the first quarter slightly exceeded last year’s P1.37-billion record by 6.47 per cent, or 88.76 million. However, the bureau also slightly missed its P1.52-billion target for Q1 2012 by 3.75 per cent, or P53.14 million.

The slight variance, however, was more than made up for by the BOC's total non-cash collection of P191.44 million, indicating a 151 per cent increase compared to the first quarter last year.

Meanwhile, the P328-million cash collections by the BIR reflected a 35 per cent increase compared to the P241.97 million in the same period last year. This also surpassed the district’s first quarter goal of P274 million by 19.34 per cent.

It was also noted that the BIR’s overall performance for the first quarter still improved despite the 2010 implementation of a new tax collection scheme allowing the SBMA to directly receive two per cent of corporate taxes being paid by locators. The two per cent went to the revenue shares of eight local government units (LGUs) that are contiguous to or affected by the Subic Bay Freeport Zone. (RFD/MPD-SBMA))

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