APECO courts Canadian energy investors for defense hub

November 3, 2026

The Aurora Pacific Economic Zone and Freeport Authority (APECO) is pitching Canadian energy companies on a role in powering a planned defense and industrial hub on Luzon’s eastern seaboard, betting that reliable electricity will be as important as land and logistics in attracting investors.
APECO launched its Canadian investment roadshow in Montreal on Nov. 2, with a Calgary briefing set for Nov. 5 aimed at energy companies in Alberta, a province known for its large energy industry.
The pitch ties APECO’s defense ambitions to a more basic requirement for industrial development: building a dependable and sustainable power supply before prospective manufacturers and other investors arrive.
“As we build a self-sustaining ecozone on the eastern seaboard of Luzon, we need reliable and sustainable power, which Canadian businesses, especially those in Alberta, can help us set up given their expertise in energy,” APECO president and chief executive Gil Taway IV said.
Taway cited available land for energy projects, investment incentives and the zone’s access to the Pacific as potential draws for Canadian investors.
The roadshows, organized with the Asian Consulting Group and Philippine diplomatic and trade offices, are expected to bring together about 100 executives and representatives from energy, infrastructure, defense, aerospace, manufacturing, agriculture and logistics.
The delegation will also travel to Ottawa for meetings with the Canadian Commercial Corporation, Canadian Association of Defence and Security Industries, JCM Power and Sandstone Group.
Beyond electricity, APECO is seeking Canadian participation in defense technology, manufacturing and dual-use industries as the Philippines pursues its Self-Reliant Defense Posture.
The strategy effectively turns energy infrastructure into an investment proposition of its own. A defense or manufacturing hub cannot do much business without power, and APECO is seeking to line up that backbone alongside the industries it hopes to attract.
The roadshow also reflects the Philippines’ effort to translate closer security ties with Canada into commercial opportunities.
For now, however, the Canadian pitch remains just that. APECO disclosed no investment commitments, proposed generation capacity, project costs or development timetable, leaving the scale of the opportunity to be determined by the investors it is courting.