If Subic Port is strategic for Central Luzon, then we’re strategic for Southern Luzon.

Officials of the Sinisian Lemery Batangas Port and Industrial Park break ground at the six-hectare facility designed to decongest existing infrastructure in the Luzon area.

The Sinisian Lemery Batangas Port and Industrial Park Corp. (SLBPIP) on Friday broke ground for a 6-hectare port and industrial park in Lemery, Batangas seen as a major gateway to Southern Luzon upon its completion in 2021.

The port and industrial park will be equipped with international and domestic deep port facilities to cater to industrial port and warehousing needs for import and export distribution.

According to SLBPIP president and Cohaco Merchandising & Development Corp. general manager Ferdinand Co, the facility is intended to address congestion issues in the region as well as meet infrastructure demands by the government’s “Build, Build, Build” program.

“(The) deep port can be up to 30 meters deep and 160 meters wide, that can handle even up to a panamax vessel, which is very rare to have in the Philippines. (Locators) can use that port and use our warehouse for them to be able to import or export,” Co said at the sidelines of the ceremony in Batangas, Friday.

“If they import, they can use that as advantage — since we’re located in Batangas — to distribute to Southern Luzon, Metro Manila or even nearby islands. If Subic Port is strategic for Central Luzon, then we’re strategic for Southern Luzon,” he added.

Cohaco, one of the main stakeholders in the project, also led the groundbreaking for the two anchor locators of the port and industrial park — Lemery Cement Silo Tank Corp. and Lemery Oil Terminal Corp.

Construction for the three projects are expected to start by the first quarter of 2020, with operations slated to commence by the first quarter of 2021.

Co said SLBPIP is on the lookout for oil importers for the oil terminal, which will be open to independent oil and fuel importers.

Meanwhile, he said Makati-based cement importer Cohaco itself will be one of the occupiers of the cement silo to warehouse high-quality, imported cement from China, Vietnam and Indonesia

Located in Brgy. Sinisian West, Lemery Highway in Batangas, the port and industrial park is 104 kilometers (km) away from Manila, 68 km away from the Laguna International Industrial Park and 68.4 km away from the First Cavite Industrial Estate, making it a viable option for locators seeking to expand operations, Co said.