The National Development Co. (NDC) is renegotiating the terms of the lease of the property occupied by Chevron Philippines Inc. (CPI), according to Trade Secretary Alfredo Pascual.
Pascual is chair of the board of the NDC, the government’s investment arm. NDC through through Batangas Land Co. Inc. owns the 120-hectare property in Batangas, site of CPI’s depot.
Pascual said the appraisal of the property will be updated to get the fair market value (FMV).
He said this will be the basis of the proposed renewal of the lease.
Pascual said the NDC targets to finalize the terms of the new lease contract before the current agreement expires. The lease is originally set to expire on September 2025.
“Our end goal is to ensure the continued presence of Chevron (in the Philippines),” Pascual told reporters.
He said the re-appraisal ai part of the NDC’s pro -active stance in negotiating the lease.
On May 15, CPI and BLCI signed a memorandum of understanding on the lease renewal.
Chevron primarily markets Caltex’s fuels, lubricants, and other petroleum products through nearly 600 service stations in the Philippines.
The previous administration had wanted to dissolve BLCI to enable the government renegotiate the rental fee of 74 centavos per sq. m. a month, which amounts to only P10.66 million per year for the property Chevron has been paying to the government since 2010. — Irma Isip
