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CHEMICAL Industries of the Philippines Inc., the sole
local manufacturer of sodium tripolyphosphates-technical grade (STPP-TG),
a major ingredient in making detergents, is closing down its
manufacturing plant to stem losses incurred following the
government’s decision to allow the entry of cheaper imports.
Alexandra Garcia-Verzosa,
Chemphil chief operating officer, said the company plans to close
the plant in Pasig City by end-May.
“We will do whatever it takes
to survive, however, due to the decision made by Trade Secretary [Favila],
I don’t think we could still afford to operate this year. We
really need to close down,” Garcia-Verzosa said.
Chemphil said it is seeking a
dialogue with Favila, to grant the company’s request for a
three-year window to make its operations more competitive in terms
of price and production.
STPP-TG is a powdered or granular
substance that is the main ingredient for synthetic detergents as it
provides antiredeposition properties and water softening. STPP-TG
is also being used for the purification of China clay, as antipitch
agent in papermaking and textile processing, and as dispersant in
cement.
Last month, the Department of
Trade and Industry (DTI) decided to lift the provisional safeguard
duty on STPP-TG amounting to P14.15 per metric ton. Favila said that
the safeguard measure on the product runs counter to public
interest.
Garcia-Verzosa said that the
DTI’s decision caught the company off guard, adding “before the
decision has been announced, we were negotiating with the DTI and
Tariff Commission, we were confident we would win.”
She said the company already cut
its plant’s workforce from 200 to 30 due to weak sales arising
from the surge of cheaper imports.
China’s STPP-TG, which is known
to be the toughest competitor of the local manufacturer used to be
more expensive when safeguard measures and dumping duties were still
in place, at $950 per ton as opposed to the local counterpart’s
$750 per ton.
The Soap and Detergent
Association of the Philippines, meanwhile, welcomed the trade
department’s decision to remove the safeguard measure on STPP-TG.
The nongovernment Fair Trade
Alliance, however, warned that the agency’s decision would
transform the Philippines into a dumping ground for surplus STPP-TG
from neighboring countries.
--Katrina Mennen A. Valdez
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