The Bureau of Customs (BOC) has opened the Duty Free Shop complex along Sucat Road in Paranaque City as satellite processing area to resolve the warehouse congestion at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), which has been disrupting imports, particularly of the semiconductor and electronics industry.
This developed as exporters expressed alarm over what they described as “very” serious warehouse congestion at the NAIA airport.
Ferdinand “Perry” Ferrer, president of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry PCCI, noted that all wafers or chips are shipped by air but shipments have been disrupted due to the lack of warehousing facilities.
(Photo credit: PCCI Photo)
Ferrer noted that before the warehouse congestion at the airport, 95 percent of its imports were cleared in 2-3 days. Now, only 76 percent of imports are cleared in 2-3 days.
Danilo Lachica, president and CEO of the Semiconductor and Electronics Industry of the Philippines Inc. (SEIPI), described the impact of the airport warehouse congestion as “very” serious. Electronics accounts for 60 percent of the country’s total merchandize exports. In 2025, these export receipts reached nearly USD50 billion, serving as the country’s primary economic driver.
Atty. Vincent Philip C. Maronilla, assistant BOC Commissioner said they just had a meeting Thursday morning to allow processing of cargoes at the Duty Free Shop facility. With the designation of the Duty Free facility by the BOC as satellite peocessing area for PAIR PAGs, the congestion is expected to ease up before the “ber” months.
Maronilla, however, said they have to be updated as to the plan for NAIA cargo operation because despite the operation of Clark International Airport, cargo volume at NAIA still continues to increase.
An industry source said that the warehouse congestion at the airport started when two warehouses – Philippine Skyland and MIASCOR – stopped operations, leaving PAIR-PAGS as the loan cargo processing facility for Philippine Airport Ground Support Solutions, Inc. (PAGSS) at the NAIA airport. PAIR-PAGS handles 3,000 to 4,000 square meter facility with 5 level racks.
At present, Cargo Haus of AC Logistics also operates its own warehouse facility while Philippine Airlines has its own facility but only caters to its own cargo volume.
Maronilla said the Duty Free Shop facility has 2,000 sqm capacity but not enough to handle all the cargo capacity at NAIA. An industry source said the best solution is to allow the opening of additional warehouses. Maronilla responded that BOC will welcome any new cargo warehouse facility, but proponents have to seek approval from the new NAIA operator – the New NAIA Infra Corp.
