WHY INVEST IN ORIENTAL MINDORO 

The Province of Oriental Mindoro is a major food supplier and an emerging eco-tourism destination. With agriculture and tourism as major industries that support the pillars of the local economy, the province offers many areas for potential investment opportunities. These opportunities range from investments in agro-processing and agri-business enterprises to tourism-oriented establishments and service enterprises as well as water, power and telecommunication technology enterprises.

Oriental Mindoro offers advantages in terms of accessibility from Metro Manila, availability of land, abundance of produce, presence of a skilled labor force and a stable peace and order condition. 

Beautiful, Bountiful…. The Advantage of Oriental Mindoro 

• Vital link between Metro Manila in Luzon and the Visayas and Mindanao Islands through the Strong Republic Nautical Highway

• Proximity and accessibility from Metro Manila (140 kilometers south of Manila)

• Established transportation network and communication facilities

• 45 minutes away from Batangas City

• Rice granary and food basket

• Major food producer of a wide array of fruits, agricultural and marine products

• Billed as the country’s Calamansi King

• One of the top 10 banana producers of the country

• Third among those with the biggest fishpond area and aquaculture production in the Southern Tagalog Region

• Top tourist destination in the MIMAROPA Region

• Unspoiled natural beauty

• Lush forests and majestic mountains

• White sand beaches, flowing streams, natural waterfalls, bays and lakes

• Exotic flora and fauna

• Warm, hardworking and friendly locals

TRADE 

            The Province of Oriental Mindoro is now rising as the strategic gateway for trade and investments in the eastern side of the country.  Oriental Mindoro is situated at the crossroads of big and growing markets of the CALABARZON (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon) and the National Capital Region in Mainland Luzon, and Panay, Iloilo and Cebu in the Visayas.

As the centerpiece of the country’s Nautical Highway transport system, the Calapan City Port, in a span of four years, registered an increase in cargo throughout by 76%, from 391,293 metric tons in 2001 to 690,792 metric tons in 2005.  As a result of the efficient Strong Republic Nautical Highway, passenger traffic likewise jumped by 45%, from 1,560,370 in 2001 to 2,246,171 in 2005.  As a result of the faster turnaround of the movement of goods and people to and from the province, Oriental Mindoro now enjoys increasing economic activities not only in the trading sector, but also in the tourism and agriculture sectors.

By switching to an outward-looking paradigm, Oriental Mindoro was able to achieve a much more rapid pace of the trading sector than would have been if it had focused on only its limited domestic market.  The bulk of outward merchandise consists of rice, banana, calamansi, livestock and poultry and fish products.  Notably, Oriental Mindoro is the country’s top producer of palay with an annual production of 358,000 metric tons, calamansi at 42,000 metric tons and banana at 400,000 metric tons in 2005.  Inward merchandise, on the other hand, consists mainly of petroleum products, basic and prime commodities, consumer electronics, motor vehicles and parts, and construction materials.  The stability of the supply of these goods contributed a consistent single-digit inflation rate that is lower than the regional and national averages.

Major trading partners are the nearby CALABARZON provinces and Metro Manila which are currently the center of the country’s economic gravity.

At present, there are 35 trips daily from Batangas City International Port to Calapan Port – either by fastcrafts (45 minutes) or by Roll-On-Roll-Off (RORO) vessels (2 hours).