Nidec to invest another P4 billion in Subic

A Japanese manufacturing firm is planning to expand its operation in Subic Bay through a P4-billion worth of additional investment, an official of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) said in a report by Philippine Daily Inquirer.

In a statement, SBMA Chair and Administrator Rolen Paulino, said the expansion of Nidec Subic Philippines Corporation will generate 3,400 jobs for skilled workers.

Paulino said the company plans to increase the number of workers from 625 to 4,028 once the expansion project is completed by 2025.

“This is to fulfill its production target of 350,000 per year, all of which will be exported to the USA, Europe, Japan, Korea, China, India, and Brazil,” said Paulino.

Nidec is manufacturing reducer gears for robotic applications, and the company intends to produce a new product called Flexwave, a middle-sized speed reducer for robots.

“The number of skilled workers in the free port’s adjacent communities is certainly in high demand. The SBMA will help in any way it can to provide the company with the manpower needed for its expansion,” he added.

Such expansion will entail two phases. The first phase will be the renovation of two of their buildings, which are expected to be completed by the third quarter of 2022. The second phase will be constructing a new building, which is expected to be completed by November or December of 2022.

At the height of the pandemic, the firm had to reduce its number of employees due to the closure of its base production of spindle motors to ensure the financial stability of the company.

As a result, the company retrenched 70 percent of its workforce due to the adverse effect on the global economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. The company was forced to give 784 workers their separation pay.