Top legislator receives leaders of major Philippine companies

NA Chairman briefed Perez-Chiong on the outcomes of the Vietnam-Philippines Investment and Trade Forum which took place earlier on the day, and trade relations between the two countries in 2021.

Despite complex developments of the COVID-19 pandemic last year, bilateral trade remained high, with the trade of rice and construction materials seeing stable growth.

Two-way trade reached 7 billion USD for the year, he said, noting that the two countries are striving to raise revenue to over 10 billion USD in 2026 when they celebrate the 50th founding anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties.

He said Vietnam stands ready to import more goods from the Philippines, and noted his wish that the Philippines will facilitate the penetration of Vietnamese goods into the market.

Perez-Chiong said her corporation will work harder to promote trade ties between the Philippines and its neighbouring countries through inter-governmental contracts.

The Philippine International Trading Corporation, a100% state-owned company under the Department of Trade and Industry, specialises in commerce and implementing special trade agreements of the government. It also performs intergovernmental procurement activities and plays a part in price stabilisation and connecting domestic and foreign businesses.

Later the same day, the Chairman received Eric Francia, President and CEO of AC Energy, Inc; Patrice Clausse, Chief Operating Officer of International Group; and Nguyen Nam Thang, General Director of AMI Renewables JSC, which was established in 2017 as a result of cooperation between AMI Renewables (Vietnam) and AC Energy (Philippines).

Francia said ACEN has rolled out many projects in Indonesia, the Philippines, India, Vietnam and Australia, noting that Vietnam is a foreign partner in which the group has invested the most in renewal energy, with a total of over 1 billion USD.

Lauding ACEN’s investment in Vietnam, Hue highlighted Vietnam’s advocacy of renewable energy development, saying renewable energy is set to make up about 12% of the total electricity output by 2030, and 48% by 2050 in order to reach the target of net zero emissions.

Vietnam welcomes investors that have financial and technological capacity and governance experience like ACEN in this field, he said, asking the group to coordinate closely with Vietnamese ministries, agencies and localities to ensure project efficiency and progress.

He also suggested ACEN expand its investment in the Cambodia-Laos-Vietnam development triangle in the sphere of wind and solar power.