Unilever to invest P4.7 billion in Philippines with automation, digitalization plans

Multinational consumer goods company Unilever will invest P4.7 billion in the Philippines as it plans to automate and digitalize its operations in the country.

This developed after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. met Unilever officials led by Matt Close, the company's president of the global business group, to discuss investment opportunities.

According to the Office of the Press Secretary, the multibillion-peso investment was proof of the firm’s commitment to the Philippines, which the firm considers as “one of Unilever’s important locations for investments.”

Unilever executives said the company invested “heavily” in their Philippine factories, with an eye on using renewable energy and ensuring sustainability in the last three years.

Marcos thanked the Unilever executives for their strong commitment to the Philippines, saying that it was "good to see that Unilever is continuing with that trend.”

“I think that we have a good opportunity with some of the policy measures that have been taken from the previous administration and some of the policy changes that we have made at the beginning of this administration,” Marcos said.

The President was referring to measures such as include the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) Law, which will allow companies to provide competitive incentives.

The other measure is the removal of foreign ownership restrictions on undertakings aimed at harnessing renewable sources of energy that had been previously capped at 40%.

Marcos said forging strong partnerships was one of the “centerpieces” of his administration’s policies, focusing more on public-private partnerships (PPPs), joint ventures, and all kinds of tie-ups to encourage investment in the Philippines.

He said that he wanted to talk with the Unilever officials to listen to them and assess policy directions to make investment easier for the company.

“It complements the President’s thrust of attracting more foreign investment to prop up the country’s manufacturing sector considering its huge domestic market,” the OPS said.

His meetings on Wednesday were pushed through after Marcos missed his coffee meeting with members of the Philippine media due to a cold.

Marcos in his closing remarks at the ASEAN-EU Business Summit on Tuesday night apologized for his voice, citing the cold weather in Brussels.

New plant

In a separate statement on Friday, the Board of Investments (BOI) said it is putting up a production plant in Cavite province, reaffirming its confidence in the Philippines as an attractive manufacturing hub.

Unilever PLC, through its Philippine subsidiary Unilever Phils. Inc., is constructing the new factory in Gateway Business Park, General Trias, Cavite, the BOI said.

“We expressed to President Marcos our long-term commitment to sustainable and responsible growth in the country and we are optimistic that our new P4.8 billion investment in a future-fit personal care factory in Cavite will contribute to the Philippine manufacturing sector’s competitiveness as we employ highly advanced technologies, with the potential to qualify the facility for the World Economic Forum’s ‘Advanced Fourth Industrial Revolution Lighthouse,'” said Benjie Yap, Unilever Philippines chairman.

The BOI said Unilever’s new plant will manufacture personal care products which includes hair care and skin care products as well as deodorants.

The investment promotion agency said it approved the investment plan for the new facility that will employ up to 130 people.

The BOI said commercial operations are expected to begin this month, with the formal inauguration of the plant expected in the first quarter of 2023. 

Originally, the company’s personal care products are being produced in its Manila plant specifically in Paco, Manila, it said.

“With the development in Manila shifting towards commercial and residential use and considering its limited area, the Manila plant will be closed and Unilever will have a new, bigger, and more technologically advanced plant in Cavite, with additional 15% production capacity,” the BOI said.

The agency said that 95% of all Unilever’s products in the domestic market are made in the Philippines.

“The Cavite plant utilizes modern technology equipment and facilities to complement the company’s capabilities and digitization opportunities for its manufacturing operations,” it said, adding that an automated manufacturing system for personal care products would further improve and enhance Unilever’s production efficiency rate.

The BOI has said that the new plant in Cavite is expected to become one of Unilever’s biggest personal care factories globally.—Ivan Mayrina and Richa Noriega/NB, GMA Integrated News