THE Bureau of Customs (BOC) Port of Cebu collected P591.842 million in duties and taxes last month, slightly exceeding its self-imposed target of P590.250 million.
Florante Ricarte, assistant assessment chief, said Customs Commissioner Napoleon Morales had imposed a target of P400.848 million for the Port of Cebu for the month of January.
However, the Port of Cebu requested that it be allowed to set its own monthly targets, hence, the P590.250-million self-imposed goal for January.
The top importers for the month were the same ones who had already paid a huge amount of duties and taxes last year: the power generating companies Cebu Energy and Development Corp. (DEDC) based in Toledo City and Korean Electric Company (Kepco), which has a joint business venture with SPC Power Corp. for the construction and operation of two 100-megawat coal-fired power plants in Naga City, Cebu.
CEDC and Kepco received certificates of recognition as top importers from the Port of Cebu last Dec. 15.
2009 collection
Assessment Chief Carlos Corsiga said the huge payments of CEDC and Kepco on the importation of their power plant equipment and machinery enabled the Port of Cebu to record a total revenue collection of P5.6 billion in 2009, exceeding the BOC target by P200 million.
CEDC is constructing clean coal-fired power plants with a capacity of 246 megawatts in Toledo City, 82 megawatts of which will be operational by the end of this month. Kepco, on the other hand, will start operating the two 100-megawatt coal-fired power plants next year.
Last Jan. 18, Port of Cebu District Collector Ronnie Silvestre met with the Cebu Filipino-Chinese Chamber of Commerce (CFCCC) Inc. and promised to promote trade facilitation.
Streamline
He said the Port of Cebu is streamlining the importation procedures to cut the number of importation document signatories.
Silvestre said the target for 2009 was P5.663 billion, and they collected P5.6 billion. This year, the Port of Cebu is aiming to collect P7.67 billion or P2 billion more than its actual collection last year.
CFCCC president Filomeno Lim said that with Silvestre’s promise to make transactions with the BOC easier, he is confident the Filipino-Chinese community in Cebu will cooperate with him.