Frederick D. Go
Secretary of Finance
Delivered by Undersecretary Miko Alejandro
Thank you for the kind introduction.
To the officials and members of the Chamber;
Friends and partners from the private sector;
Fellow workers in government;
Special guests, On behalf of Sec. Frederick D. Go and the DOF,
Good morning.
We find ourselves in uncertain times. Geopolitical tensions, volatile commodity markets, and the accelerating demands of a growing economy have revealed that we can no longer defer the conversation on energy security. It is more urgent, more consequential, and more central to our national interest than ever before.
The government understands this and our response has been to act swiftly and strategically. We have responded decisively to the crisis, and we are well-positioned for what comes next. The Philippines stands more ready to expand its energy capacity at scale.
We have been deliberate and purposeful in cultivating an enabling environment that welcomes large-scale investment, reducing the barriers for development. We are sending a message to the private sector, both domestic and foreign, that the Philippines is open, prepared, and serious about building the energy foundations this country needs.
We are aligning our fiscal policy, our regulatory frameworks, and our investment architecture toward a single objective: to give energy projects — across all sources and scales — the conditions they need to move from proposal to reality. And fast-tracking the development of indigenous energy sources like natural gas, solar, wind, and hydroelectric power is exactly the kind of progress we aim for.
Allow me to lay the groundwork on which large-scale energy ventures can be built.
This Philippine government remains steadfast — now more than ever — in its commitment to fiscal discipline and smart spending. Reducing the fiscal deficit is the cornerstone of our economic strategy.
It requires a whole-of-government effort – to cut inefficiencies and ensure that every peso is directed to productive, high-impact, and high-multiplier programs that create jobs, drive growth, and deliver real benefits to every Filipino.
At the same time, we remain focused on enhancing the ease of doing business, reducing the cost of doing business, and promoting greater predictability in the business environment.
Let me assure everyone that despite global uncertainties, the long term fundamentals of the Philippine economy remain intact and on solid footing – strong GDP growth, manageable inflation, a robust labor market, and prudent fiscal management.
Even amid extraordinary challenges in the second half of 2025 – external shocks, war, tariffs, natural calamities, and the President’s flood control exposé – growth moderated but still hit 4.4 percent for year. This is well above the global average of 3.4 percent.
We are confident that the current challenges are temporary. And when the external shocks end, we will be back on track to our previous growth rates.
On the fiscal side, National Government debt stood at 63.2 percent of GDP in 2025. The latest data for General Government debt is as of 2024 – which is at 53.88 percent of GDP. Way below the 70 percent international threshold for general government debt-to-GDP ratio.
In March unemployment continued to ease to 3.9%, downward from 5.1% in February and 5.8% the month prior, this indicates a healthy climate for businesses across different sectors.
Additionally, Investment Confidence remains solid. Our strong macroeconomic and fiscal position is reflected in the country’s triple B plus and A- investment-grade credit ratings from various organizations
At the same time, the three pillars of growth remain solid and reliable. In 2025, remittances grew by 3.3%, BPO industry grew by 5.3%, and exports grew by 8.7%.
Within ASEAN, the Philippines is among the most resource-endowed in critical minerals — including nickel, copper, gold, and chromite — all essential to clean energy technologies and advanced industrial production.
This positions the country as a key contributor to the emerging green metals and energy transition value chain, with a focus on responsible extraction and higher-value processing.
The Philippines stands out demographically, with a large population of close to 120 million people and with a median age of around 25 — among the youngest workforces in the ASEAN — this at a time when many global economies, on the contrary, are aging.
This gives the Philippines a distinct advantage in sectors that depend on digital natives, high technology adoption, and workforce scalability.
Additionally, Filipino talent is regionally and globally recognized for adaptability, creativity, and strong English proficiency.
The country is also one of ASEAN’s largest consumer markets, with household consumption serving as a steady growth engine — giving investors both a production base and a demand base within the same economy.
Complementing these strong fundamentals, the Philippines now has the most open and liberal investment environment in its history.
Through progressive reforms and decisive steps, we are positioning the Philippines as the destination of choice for investments. Let me highlight five examples.
First, enacting the CREATE MORE Act, which offers up to 40 years of fiscal and non-fiscal incentives.
Last year, Samsung Electro-Mechanics availed of the 40-year incentive. With a one-billion-dollar investment, they will establish a multilayer ceramic chip capacitor factory in Laguna.
Second, implementing the new PPP Code to promote better public-private sector collaboration;
Third, amending the Investors’ Lease Act, extending lease terms to as much as 99 years, giving non-Filipinos and Filipinos an option to secure land for long-term investments. This is a practice that is now at par with the best in Asia.
Fourth, passing the Accelerated and Reformed Right-of-Way Act, which helps push critical infrastructure projects forward. We had identified ROW acquisition as one of the main reasons for delays in infra projects, and have acted upon it accordingly.
Fifth, implementing CMEPA, which reduces the stock transaction tax (STT) from 0.6% to 0.1%. This practice is now aligned with Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Malaysia whose stock transaction taxes are either 0.05 or 0.1%.
To expound further, the CREATE MORE Act is one of the key reforms to facilitate the swift entry of large-scale players in energy.
This law provides various incentives to businesses whether you are: Registered Export Enterprises, High-Value Domestic Market Enterprises, and Domestic Market Enterprises.
Depending on the type of enterprise and the amount of your investment, the incentives that are available may include the following:
– Income Tax Holidays of up to 7 years,
– 5% Special Corporate Income Tax or a 20% Reduced Corporate Income Tax Rate
– Enhanced deductions of up to 27 years
– 100% deduction on electricity costs
– Zero-Rated VAT on local purchases
– VAT and Duty-free importation
CREATE MORE likewise established the Registered Business Enterprise Taxpayer Service, or the RBETS, a specialized one-stop-shop within the BIR that provides “Green Lanes” for end-to-end tax support.
I thus urge all of our potential partners to seek assistance from our Investment Promotion Agencies to determine the incentives that are available to you.
The CREATE MORE Act offers the fiscal certainty and ease of doing business necessary for long-term investment in the Philippines. When rules are clear and predictable, businesses can focus on investing, expanding, and creating jobs for Filipinos.
In addition to CREATE MORE, I’d like to share a few more reasons why now is the best time to start energy projects in the Philippines.
At the Bureau of Customs (BOC), we have recently extended the validity of importer accreditation from one (1) year to three (3) years while at the same time reducing total accreditation fees.
Just recently too, the Clark Development Corporation (CDC) launched the Auto-Renewal of Business Permits, boosting ease of doing business in the Clark Freeport Zone.
With this, there will be no need to apply for renewal of the Authority to Operate if the locator or investor is fully compliant with the annual regulatory requirements of CDC – an Authority to Operate is good for 3 years provided all requirements are met.
Again, these reforms allow businesses to focus more on operations and growth rather than administrative requirements.
Circling back to PPPs, I’d like to highlight that the Marcos Jr. administration has successfully awarded three major airport projects, the Manila International Airport, our main gateway, together with the New Bohol International Airport in Visayas, and the Laguindingan International Airport in Mindanao.
When we first said we would tender the Manila airport – nobody believed us. Today, we have done three in just the first half of the admin. I hope you are convinced. Despite the distractions, this government means business and will continue to pursue the right reforms and programs.
The momentum continues through the Build Better More program. Several flagship projects are available for PPPs. At the Economic Development Council in January, we approved the 105.7 billion peso PPP for public school infra projects aimed at closing the classroom availability gap and providing better learning environments for our youth.
We currently have 209 infrastructure flagship projects, 49 of which are under PPP.
Together, these investments will expand access to education, healthcare, ease daily commutes, and build a more connected, more resilient Philippines.
More renewable energy PPPs are in the pipeline, expanding waste-to-energy, wind, solar, and hydropower energy generation in the Philippines. These projects – a mix of solicited and unsolicited – are in various stages in the PPP cycle from planning or pre-development while some have already been inaugurated.
We are actively inviting you to participate in the solicited bids for these. Likewise, we welcome unsolicited proposals for projects of interest.
In addition, the whole of government continues to pursue Big, Bold Reforms to inspire optimism, strengthen partnerships, and renew investor confidence.
To trade and investment – we are steadily expanding our economic partnerships. We have four bilateral trade agreements, eight ASEAN trade agreements, and we are exploring nine more free trade or economic cooperation agreements, including the EU Free Trade Agreement.
While we breezed through these slides, Our direction is clear. We are keeping Philippine trade policy open, relevant, and future-oriented.
We continue to see strong interest in the Philippines from both domestic and foreign investors. Investment Promotion Agency and Board of Investment approvals stood at 1.9 trillion pesos for 2025.
Of this, a total of 983.3 Billion Pesos worth of energy investments were approved by the BOI. These projects are expected to generate a total capacity of 10,405 MegaWatts, significantly bolstering our country’s energy security. The top 3 were in renewable energy– particularly solar, wind, and hydropower.
A solid domestic base gives you confidence. But global conditions determine how far that confidence can scale. So we look at both, and we manage both.
We are operating in a more complex external environment where trade, energy, and capital flows are being reshaped and continuously evolving.
The Philippines is responding with a calibrated approach. We stay engaged, we maintain macro discipline, and we continue structural reforms to strengthen resilience.
Currently, what’s in front of us is the Middle East conflict. Oil prices have been rising but we are responding in a decisive and coordinated way.
UPLIFT or the Unified Package for Livelihoods, Industry, Food and Transport is a whole of government effort chaired by President Marcos Jr. himself. Through this, we are taking proactive measures to mitigate the impacts of the war.
While efforts were well underway, we are now further accelerating the diversification of our energy sources. This includes expanding supply options beyond traditional Middle East partners and even resuming imports from alternative sources.
At the same time, we are protecting the most vulnerable – households and key sectors such as transportation through targeted support. We do so responsibly while maintaining fiscal and monetary discipline. This balance is critical as we must manage immediate pressures without compromising long-term stability.Over the medium term, we are exploring alternate sources to our energy mix, strengthening storage and reserves, and reducing structural exposure to global shocks.
Ultimately, these external shocks are more frequent – this has become the norm. Our nation must be prepared for the unexpected. What is important is that we have strong institutions to withstand these and enable a rapid response to the shocks. It is imperative we create an even more resilient economy – this is where the Department of Finance is holding the fort.
Let me close with this. The reforms are in place. The fiscal and investment framework have been deliberately designed to attract serious capital and protect long-term returns. The environment is open – more than it has ever been in its history. One that is built to welcome private participation, reduce friction, and reward commitment.
I emphasize that our greatest asset is our people. Our Filipino engineers, project managers, and those who work on the ground have continued to represent us well on the world stage. We have a talented workforce available for energy development and capable of leading it.
The fundamentals are solid.
The Philippines is prime for large-scale investment in energy. We call on you to join us in this work — because the progress of your enterprises and the progress of this nation thrive in tandem, as each success paves the way for the other.
Together, we look forward to building an energy-secure future for our country. Good day to all. Maraming Salamat po.
