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THE Board of Investments (BOI) is set to include
steel products for basic construction in this year’s Investments
Priorities Plan (IPP), a Department of Trade and Industry official
said.
The ranking trade official
said that besides iron and steel products as well as integrated
facilities for hot rolled and cold rolled facilities, the government
is keen on widening the coverage of incentives to rolling mills that
will manufacture rebar and long steel products.
Rebar is commonly used in
reinforced concrete and reinforced masonry structures. It is usually
formed from carbon steel, and is given ridges for better frictional
adhesion to the concrete.
The trade official said that
rebar and long products are basic steel products used in buildings,
thus giving incentives to makers will spur competition, leading to
more affordable products.
Last month, the BOI identified
only six preferred sectors for this year’s IPP, down from the 11
sectors in the 2007 list.
“The listing of steel under
engineered products is currently under review, since [we] want to
include facilities that will produce rebar and long steel
products,” the source said.
“Since one of the
government’s thrusts is to have competitive infrastructure, [we]
should likewise find ways to make the construction materials more
affordable,” he said.
Besides steel products, the
BOI also expressed willingness to include cement making as a
preferred activity so as manufacturers bring down prices.
--Katrina Mennen A. Valdez
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