Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 5) — The ₱8-billion Batangas facility of plastic and food input producer D&L Industries is expected to be operational by the second quarter of 2022, a delay from its October 2021 target as COVID-19 spike looms, the company has announced.
In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Thursday, the listed company said the Philippine Economic Zone Authority granted its unit D&L Premium Foods Corp. (DLPF) the start of commercial operations (SCO) extension to January 2023.
The group said DLPF—which is tasked to produce various food ingredients targeted for export business—was supposed to be up and running in October of this year. This has now been pushed back due to the protracted public health crisis, exacerbated more recently by the entry of the highly contagious Delta variant, which delayed the arrival of the plant’s equipment and machinery.
Another subsidiary Natura Aeropack Corp., which will manufacture coconut oleochemicals for various consumer care products, will be the first plant to operate in the production facility in Batangas.
Commercial operations in the 26-hectare facility will begin in May of next year.
“While the COVID-19 pandemic and various mobility restrictions have caused challenges in the completion of our Batangas plant, we remain committed to this project,” D&L president and CEO Alvin Lao said in the disclosure.
“We see ever-growing opportunities in relevant industries in the new normal that we can tap into with this new plant,” he added.
Lao noted the delay has no material impact on the group’s current operations.
Its net income in January to March period rose to ₱695 million from ₱515 million posted in the same period last year. The company’s sales also increased by 23% to ₱7 billion from last year’s ₱5.67 billion.
