The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said that the government will demand for gross revenue sharing from mining projects to ensure that the government gets something to correct any disturbance in the environment.
DTI Secretary Gregory Domingo also said that the government is more amenable now in allowing foreign entry in several previously restricted industries.
Domingo told reporters at the Arangkada Forum at the Makati Shangrila Hotel yesterday that the DTI, and the Department of Finance plan to set minimum sharing on revenues and not profits to ensure that the country gets compensated. The mining project can incur a loss but the government gets paid.
“There should be a minimum amount of returns to government and the people of the Philippines for anyone to do mining activities in the Philippines because there will be a disturbance, there is a risk, on the environment. There has to be adequate compensation. It cannot be that even if the firm is not making money you continue to operate and destroy the environment,”Domingo said in explaining the advantage of having a floor share.
Domingo assured the new sharing scheme would not be a disincentive to investors.
“We want to promote mining but at the same time there has to be a proper compensation for mining for us to promote it.” he added.
Domingo also said DTI, DOF, the National Economic and Development Authority and Congress would also do an overall review of the foreign investment negative list (FINL) and the “general direction is to liberalize” the list.
“We would like to see whether the restrictions still make sense and if there are restrictions that we should add. It could go both ways,” Domingo said.
One sector that the review would tackle is a clamor by Joint Foreign Chambers to allow practice of certain professions currently saved for Filipinos.
“We’ll also look into that,” he said
The two bills, along with the rationalization of incentives, are hoped to be passed within the year, according to Domingo
The JFC earier said the 9th FINL released in late 2012 was more negative as it has failed to address constitutional restrictions on foreign capital and foreign professionals.
The JFC in particular cited as one way to make the FINL less negative is to remove from the list the practice of all professions.
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Source: Malaya Business Insight, 27 February 2013
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