The Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) on Sunday said it welcomes President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s order to expand the West Cebu Industrial Park–Special Economic Zone (West Cebu Estate), a move expected to create more jobs and boost revenues for Cebu.

The Presidential Communications Office earlier announced that the Chief Executive signed Proclamation No. 1105 on 4 December, designating seven parcels of land in Balamban, Cebu, for inclusion in the existing West Cebu Industrial Park–Special Economic Zone. The newly added lots cover a total of 69,490 square meters in Barangays Arpili and Buanoy.

“We welcome this long-overdue expansion of West Cebu Industrial Park, which will pave the way for more expansion projects of Aboitiz Land, the zone developer, and its biggest locator, Tsuneishi Heavy Industries (Cebu) Inc., one of the leading medium-sized shipbuilders in the world, as well as the entry of new investors from the shipbuilding industry,” said PEZA Director General Tereso Panga.

Located on Cebu’s western coast, West Cebu Estate is known as the Shipbuilding Capital of the Philippines and is recognized as one of the country’s top industrial developments.

Established in 1992, the 540-hectare PEZA special economic zone is a joint venture between the Aboitiz Group and Japan’s Tsuneishi Holdings. It currently hosts a range of global enterprises and employs more than 14,000 skilled Filipino workers across medium to heavy industries.

“We are glad that the President has directed the concerned agencies to speed up the facilitation of WCIP’s expansion area, so the same can be proclaimed ASAP as a PEZA zone. We fully support WCIP and its host LGU, Balamban in Cebu, which is widely recognized as the shipbuilding capital of the Philippines,” Panga added.

The expansion is subject to the provisions of Republic Act No. 7916, or the Special Economic Zone Act of 1995 as amended by RA 8748, as well as its implementing rules and regulations and PEZA Board Resolution No. 22-117 series of 2022.

In Barangay Arpili, the parcels of land included in the ecozone are covered by land titles Lot 4-A Sk-07-000192 (TCT No. 113-2024000343) and Lot 1770 Sk-07-000190 (TCT No. 113-2024000072).

In Barangay Buanoy, the expansion covers five titled lots: Lot 1437-A-2-A-2 Sk-07-000191 (TCT No. 113-2014000144); Lot 1437-A-2-B-2 Sk-07-000193 (TCT No. 113-2014000351); Lot 1437-A-2-C-2 Sk-07-000191 (TCT No. 113-2014000146); Lot 1686 Sk-07-000313 (TCT No. 113-2025000701); and Lot 1695 Sk-07-000186 (TCT No. 113-2024000260).