PAL to close Cambodia Air deal by Oct

 Economy
Aug 122013
 
PAL to close Cambodia Air deal by Oct

MANILA, Philippines – National flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL), is set to complete the deal with Royal Group of Cambodia (RCG) to form Cambodia Airlines Co. Ltd. within the next two months. Ma. Cecilia Pesayco, assistant corporate secretary of PAL’s parent firm PAL Holdings Inc., said the closing date of the completion of a joint venture with RCG’s Inter Logistics (Cambodia) Co. Ltd. (ILC) has been moved to Oct. 15. The new closing date is three months longer than the original closing date target of July 15. “We received today the notice from PAL informing us that the closing date for the completion of PAL’s joint venture with ILC has been moved to Oct. 15,” Pesayco told the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE). PAL is pumping in $10 million worth of equity for a 49 percent stake in Cambodia Airlines that is 100 percent owned by Inter Logistics (Cambodia) Co. Ltd. ILC is 100 percent owned by RGC chair Neak Oknha Kith Meng. PAL is supposed to make a downpayment of 10 percent or $1 million of the total acquisition cost on the completion of closing conditions targeted last July 15 while the balance of $9 million would be paid upon the call of the board of Cambodia Air. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 The closing conditions include the registration of the investment of PAL in Cambodia Air as well as the procurement by Cambodia Air of all the necessary franchises, permits, and licenses to operate and Read More …

San Miguel to form new unit for Angat hydropower

 Economy
Aug 122013
 
San Miguel to form new unit for Angat hydropower

MANILA, Philippines – Highly-diversified conglomerate San Miguel Corp. (SMC) will form a new unit to handle its investment in the Angat hydro powerplant, a company disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) said. At the same time, SMC said its board also authorized the management of Angat “to discuss, negotiate, and to enter into a joint venture with K-Water Resources Corp., under the terms and conditions favorable to the company.” SMC said the new entity would undertake the administration, rehabilitation, operation and management of the hydropower facility. Last month , SMC announced plans to form a joint venture with K-Water for the Angat plant. K-Water is currently negotiating to bring down the $440.88-million price tag on the plant, citing the state of the facility as well as several changes the government put in the agreements signed by both parties. K-Water won the bidding in 2010 for the 218-megawatt plant, which sources its power from the Angat Dam in Bulacan. The Korean water firm said it wants to “achieve the same level of benefits expected” in its 2010 bid for the power plant and wants the plant’s Auxiliary Units 4 and 5 to be included in the takeover. The auxiliary units are owned by the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1

Hong Kong warns travel to Philippines

 News
Aug 122013
 
Hong Kong warns travel to Philippines

By Matikas SantosINQUIRER.net 2:43 pm | Monday, August 12th, 2013 MANILA, Philippines – Hong Kong has updated its travel advisory against the Philippines, citing the car bomb explosion in Cotabato last week and the United States’ warning of possible kidnapping threats in Mindanao. “Serious hostage-taking incident happened in Manila on 23 August 2010. Residents should avoid all travel to the country. Those who are already there should attend to personal safety and exercise caution,” the advisory said. The Outbound Travel Alert, issued by the Security Bureau of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR), was revised on their website August 9, 2013. Last August 23, 2010, some 20 Hong Kong tourists on a bus were held hostage at gun point by Rolando Mendoza, a relieved police officer who wanted to get his job back. Mendoza and the eight hostages were killed when negotiations broke down and a gun fight ensued between him and authorities. “On early August 2013, a car bomb explosion occurred in southern city of Cotabato, resulting in serious casualties,” it said. Around nine people were killed in the incident, two of whom were siblings aged five and seven. “On 29 May 2013, the US Embassy in Manila issued a message to US citizens in the Philippines warning against a credible kidnap threat against foreigners in the Zamboanga area on the island of Mindanao,” it added. It further cited travel advisories issued by China, Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom that all specified Mindanao as an area that Read More …

Filipino victories in basketball and math

 News
Aug 122013
 
Filipino victories in basketball and math

By Benjamin Pimentel 2:20 pm | Monday, August 12th, 2013 SAN FRANCISCO – Gilas Pilipinas just wrapped up an incredible run at the Asian championship. They deserve all the praise they’ve received, despite not winning the gold. The last time the Philippines won the Asian championship was in 1986. Before that, the Philippines last won in 1973 when the country was still indisputably a dominant force in Asian basketball. I remember the ’70s when the only teams we had to worry about were Japan and South Korea. But then other countries caught up and got stronger, led by China. That put an end to those years of Filipino basketball dominance. But this year’s victories show that the country can steadily rebuild and adapt to a more competitive world of basketball. And that’s probably true in another arena: math. Filipinos know about the exploits of Jason Castro and Jimm Alapag, but have probably not heard of Jan Kendrick Ong and Naomi Anne King. They’re among the Filipino kids who won gold medals at the recent Singapore International Mathematics Contest. Gilas Pilipinas grabbed the silver at FIBA Asia. These Filipino children reaped 23 golds, 45 silvers and 93 bronze medals. And they beat the country that has long dominated this competition, China. It’s an inspiring victory, one that the country can build on to improve math education in the country and most important of all, to get young people excited about math, and even science and technology, in general. Getting people excited Read More …

Talks on increased rotational presence of US troops in PH start Wednesday

 News
Aug 112013
 
Talks on increased rotational presence of US troops in PH start Wednesday

By Frances MangosingINQUIRER.net 12:28 pm | Monday, August 12th, 2013 Secretary of Foreign Affairs Albert del Rosario. AP FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines–The Department of Foreign Affairs and the Department of National Defense on Monday announced that negotiations on a framework agreement on increased rotational presence of U.S. troops in the Philippines will start this week. “This week, diplomacy and defense will once again intersect to secure our nation. This week we start negotiations with the United States to institutionalize this policy through a framework agreement,” Secretary of Foreign Affairs Albert del Rosario told media men at Camp Aguinaldo. The first round of talks will begin Wednesday at DND in Camp Aguinaldo, and is expected to be finished within four meetings. Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin said the plan is in line with the realignment of American troops in the Asia-Pacific, and comes as China, the Philippines and several other nations are locked in territorial disputes in the West Philippine Sea. Gazmin stressed that the wider U.S. troop presence will comply with the constitution, which bans foreign military bases, and will not be permanent. Del Rosario, for his part, said:  “For our defense, modernization can begin even before we are able to purchase the necessary defense systems. Deterrence can be enhanced even before modernization. Maritime security and maritime domain awareness will be given a boost even before we have ships and aircraft we need. And even before we have the advanced and sophisticated hardware we wish for, we will know how to Read More …

Power, transport needs noted

 Economy
Aug 112013
 

DAVAO CITY — The government eyes an “effective demand forecasting system” to ensure stable power supply in Mindanao and will also undertake a multi-billion peso program to further enhance the trade and tourism potentials of the island, Cabinet officials said at the Mindanao Business Conference (MinBizCon) last Friday.

CNG stations bid out

 Economy
Aug 112013
 

PNOC-Exploration Corp. (PNOC-EC), the upstream energy development arm of state-run Philippine National Oil Co., is seeking offers for the design and construction of its compressed natural gas (CNG) refilling stations in Batangas and Laguna.

Reflecting credit risk in fair value of derivatives

 Economy
Aug 112013
 

(First of two parts) The 2008 financial crisis has led to some significant changes in the areas of fair value and risk management, including an increased emphasis on counterparty credit risk in derivatives. These changes are starting to take root in the Philippines through the implementation of Philippine Financial Reporting Standard (PFRS) 13, Fair Value Measurement, and the adoption of the Basel III capital reforms on counterparty credit risk. PFRS 13, which took effect on Jan. 1, 2013, requires all entities to consider credit risk in determining the fair value of derivatives. The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) plans to adopt the Basel III capital rules on counterparty credit risk, currently contained in an exposure draft that is expected to take effect starting Jan. 1, 2014 when finalized.

PLDT completes P2.5-B fiber optic project

 Economy
Aug 112013
 
PLDT completes P2.5-B fiber optic project

MANILA, Philippines – Dominant carrier Philippine long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) has completed a P2.5-billion expansion project involving the installation of over 5,000 kilometers of fiber optic cables to support the aggressive roll-out of high-speed data services on its fixed and mobile networks.  PLDT president and chief executive officer Napoleon Nazareno said the PLDT Group’s fiber optic network is now over 71,000 kilometers including 7,200 kilometers of submarine-international fiber, over 4,000 kilometers of submarine-domestic fiber, and 4,000 kilometers of wireless access network.  The PLDT managed to expand its domestic fiber optic network (DFON) to over 60,000 kilometers as of end-June this year from 54,000 kilometers as of end-2012.    “If we include our international fiber optic links and leased facilities, the PLDT Group now has more than 71,000 kilometers of fiber assets. This fortifies our already formidable network advantage as we cover more areas, increase data speeds and provide enhanced redundancies for improved resiliency,” Nazareno stressed.  The project that was completed ahead of schedule is accelerating the deployment of PLDT’s fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) service and the fourth-generation mobile data service called Long Term Evolution (LTE) of its wireless subsidiary Smart Communications Inc.  “We have built early and we continue to expand as the demand for broadband heavy applications continues to surge. This is what we call future-proofing our network. We want to make sure that the capacity, speed, and reliability are there when our customers need them,” he added.  Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 For his part, Read More …

DOE eyes 5,905 MW from new RE projects

 Economy
Aug 112013
 
DOE eyes 5,905 MW from new RE projects

An example of a renewable energy project. MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Energy (DOE) expects an additional 5,905 megawatts of potential capacity from 347 new projects under the Renewable Energy law. These projects will have an installed capacity of 2,334 MW, according to the DOE. Of the 347 renewable energy projects, 177 are hydropower projects, 39 are geothermal ventures and 37 are wind farms. There are also 34 solar projects, 29 biomass projects and three projects that would utilize ocean energy, the DOE said. There are also 249 pending projects under the RE law, with a potential capacity of 3,301 MW and 20.75 MW of installed capacity. The Energy department is focused on solving the short-term power supply problem in Mindanao. The Mindanao Development Authority (MinDa), has been urging renewable energy investments in the region to help address the current power supply crunch. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 The government has been encouraging players in the renewable energy sector through feed-in-tariffs. The FIT regime is a form of incentives for renewable energy players. Feed-in tariffs offer cost-based compensation to renewable energy players among other perks.

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