A REVISED road map of the country’s iron and steel industry is almost done, the head of the sector’s association said on Wednesday.
“We’ve been collaborating with the Board of Investments (BOI) in finalizing the revisions,” Philippine Iron and Steel Institute (PISI) President Joel Ronquillo told reporters at the Philippines-Korea Business Forum in Manila.
The road map — a strategic plan led by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the BOI — targets 70-percent self-sufficiency in steel production by 2030, reducing import reliance and strengthening the local, sustainable production of high-quality, world-class steel products.
In 2024, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ordered the DTI-BOI to update the road map to guarantee its “continued stability and relevance amid regional and global trends and challenges.”
The president has been asking for an update, SteelAsia Vice President for Industry Development Bobby Batungbacal said, noting that “we’re responding to that.”
The revised version, which Batungbacal said will highlight growth, green steel and new products, will be completed this year.
In January, officials of the Bureau of Customs and PISI announced a collaboration to enhance custom modernization and advance mechanisms for iron and steel imports.
The partnership includes forming a technical working group that will develop a unified, time-bound database to monitor steel imports, improve commodity classification and support standardized customs valuation based on historical data.