200-K Jobs Loom in P’sinan

 

As Long Guico Admin. Mediates for Connectivity, Land, Power

By Mortz C. Ortigoza, MPA

LINGAYEN, Pangasinan – The governor of the more than three million population’s Pangasinan province can attract 100, 000 to 200, 000 jobs for the employment of his constituents from investors of light industries as long as the needed power, land and internet connectivity could be met.

POWERS. Top of photo and clockwise are coal power plant, biogas reactor and swath of solar panels.

Governor Ramon Guico III said that he could chalk-up these major requirements that could eventually be a bonanza to the almost ten percent of the population.

“Isang lungsod 100, 000 to 200, 000 jobs pinapangako po nila. Andami pong hurdles like lupa, connectivity pinakamabigat na isa diyan ang power requirement kasi kailangan they need a certain megawatt in order to thrive at saka sa tamang presyo po ng kuryente,” the chief executive of the province said.

Guico said he is talking with some investors that could put the mentioned shops in the province.

When he inked the joint venture and tollway concession agreement for the 42.76-kilometer phase one of the Pangasinan Link Expressway at the Capitol in Lingayen last October 19, San Miguel Corporation President and Chief Executive Officer Ramon Ang assured the governor that additional hundreds of megawatts power could be buttressed to the 1,200 megawatts’ coal power plant runs by SMC in Sual, Pangasinan.

Coal, biogas and solar are the sources Guico are looking to beef up the power requirement to attract investors to come in the northern Luzon province.

Minimum wage in this four cities and forty-four towns’ province is P435 a day while it is much higher a day in the central and southern Luzon’s provinces and P610 daily in Metro Manila.

The swath of land and mountain ranges of Pangasinan bode well to provide space for the solar panels of the probable investors

“Dahil malaki ang kalupaan at kabundukan ng lalawigan so binibigay po namin ito sa mga non-irrigated and non-arable land para hindi sayang and couldn’t be in conflict on the policy of donation binibigay namin gusto namin iyan. We allow them to use these unutilized lands of the province usually sa mountain ranges,” he said.

Presently the 321 megawatts (MW) solar power plants of CS First Green Agri-Industrial Development Inc., URIT Limited Philippines Corporation, China Energy International Group Company, and the China Energy International Group Company, the Aboitiz Power owned 94 MW Cayanga Solar power and the 159 MW 159-MWp Laoag and Laoag 2 solar power projects and the 60 MW Pangasinan Solar have invested in the towns of Dasol and Infanta, San Manuel, Bugallon, Aguilar and San Manuel, respectively.

What these investors are required is to register their businesses to the province so the hosts barangay and town can get tax allocations from the national government, Guico cited.

The Governor said that scarcity of power is not only a problem in the province but an endemic to the other parts of the country.