J. Albert Gamboa l 12 April 2022
The Authority of the Freeport Area of Bataan (AFAB) is in talks with California-based Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) on the possibility of locating the initial Southeast Asian operations of the Elon Musk-owned firm at the Freeport Area of Bataan (FAB) in the town of Mariveles.
SpaceX officials were recently in town to meet with Bataan Governor Albert Garcia and AFAB Chairman Pablo Gancayco regarding the Starlink low earth orbit (LEO) satellite service that will be launched in the Philippines this year. This high-speed, low-latency broadband internet enables video calls, streaming, online gaming, and other high data rate activities using advanced LEO satellites.
Starlink Market Access Director Ryan Goodnight and SpaceX Senior Manager Rebecca Hunter focused on how connectivity shall ultimately be a crucial element in realizing the plans of FAB and the Province of Bataan – with Starlink’s satellite technology as the game changer to spur rural development in the country.
During the meeting that was attended by Bataan Congressman Jose Enrique Garcia III and iWave Inc. President Ramon Garcia Jr., the ecozone officers presented FAB’s performance history as the fastest growing freeport in the Philippines. The provincial officials also discussed how Bataan is uniquely positioned to be the country’s next area of growth and development.
AFAB is a government agency attached to the Office of the President. Created by Republic Act 9728 in 2010, it seeks to attract more locators to the former Bataan Export Processing Zone – the first official ecozone in the Philippines. AFAB’s powers and functions were strengthened with the passage of Republic Act 11453 in 2019, which enabled the freeport to expand its operations anywhere within Bataan.
It now has the capacity to license, register, supervise, and approve local and foreign business entities engaged in pioneering industries such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, cybersecurity, distributed ledger technology, internet of things, virtual reality, and smart cities initiatives.
When Republic Act 11659 was enacted last month with much-needed amendments to the Commonwealth-era Public Service Act (PSA), AFAB moved another step closer to its goal of becoming an offshore financial center that embraces emerging fintech markets. The new law paves the way for the liberalization of foreign ownership over utilities operating in the Philippines.
Subsequently, AFAB Administrator Emmanuel Pineda was authorized by the agency’s board of directors to engage in negotiations with SpaceX to operate the Starlink internet system in the FAB ecozone. Such a move would benefit the freeport locators’ processes and operations as well as other telecommunications-related activities.
A multi-billionaire, Musk is the world’s richest man according to Forbes magazine. His real-time net worth as of April 10, 2022 has reached $274.3 billion while his rocket company, SpaceX, is valued at $74.0 billion. He is also working to revolutionize transportation through his electric car manufacturing and clean energy firm, Tesla Inc.
Department of Trade and Industry Secretary Ramon Lopez said the Philippines would be the first Southeast Asian country to avail of Starlink’s technology. He disclosed that SpaceX will set up a wholly owned subsidiary in the country to serve as its corporate vehicle for the project, which is anticipated to be finalized before President Rodrigo Duterte steps down from Malacañang on June 30, 2022.
This was validated by the Board of Investments, which issued a statement that it had been meeting with SpaceX executives after Congress ratified the amended version of the PSA allowing foreign businesses to fully own their operations in the public service sector.
J. Albert Gamboa is a Life Member of the Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines (FINEX). He is the Chairman of the FINEX Media Affairs Committee and the Editor-in-Chief of FINEX Digest. The opinion expressed herein does not necessarily reflect the views of these institutions and the Manila Bulletin.