New radar system tracks vessel movement in Misamis Oriental

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The Coast Guard installs a radar system at the Phividec Industrial Estate in Misamis Oriental to track vessel movements amid growing scrutiny over smuggling and a planned a naval base in the area

MISAMIS ORIENTAL, Philippines – The Philippine Coast Guard installed on Friday, March 28, a radar system at the Phividec Industrial Estate in Tagoloan, Misamis Oriental, which officials said, is designed to track vessel movement across Macajalar Bay, a deep-water stretch now being increasingly scrutinized for what moves in – and what slips through.

Phividec, a sprawling 3,000-hectare complex straddling the towns of Tagoloan and Villanueva, has long been a focal point of industrial ambition. But beyond its factories and docks, the estate is also being positioned for a more strategic role – hosting a future naval base intended to reinforce the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) site in Lumbia, Cagayan de Oro.

The installation comes months after lawmakers sounded alarm over the estate’s vulnerability, alleging that during the Duterte administration, its ports became conduits for smuggled goods and illicit drug shipments. One of Phividec’s former administrators has denied the allegations, but the scrutiny lingers, adding a layer of intrigue to the Coast Guard’s latest move.

Coast Guard Vice Admiral Edgar Ybanez said the Vessel Tracking Monitoring System (VTMS) can detect ships through their Automatic Identification System (AIS), a shipboard broadcast system that transmits a vessel’s identification, position, course, and speed.

“This system helps avoid vessel collision, coordinate search and rescue, and can monitor up to 36 nautical miles of Macajalar Bay,” Ybanez said.

He said the VTMS is the first of its kind to be installed in a Mindanao port. Once a ship’s AIS is detected by radar, its position will be monitored via an Electronic Chart Display until it leaves the area.

Phividec Administrator Joseph Donato Bernedo said the radar would help monitor the 15 ports operated by concessionaires in the estate.

Bernedo said vessel traffic is expected to increase with the construction of an additional berth in the estate.

He added that the radar system would help deter smuggling activities by providing real-time monitoring of vessel movements. A previous radar system, donated by the Japan International Cooperation Agency, stopped working in 2008.

“With this new enhanced radar system, we will know where the vessels have docked, who is coming and going out of our ports,” Bernedo said.

The government has plans to establish a naval base within the industrial estate, according to Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro during his visit to Cagayan de Oro in November 2024.

Teodoro said the planned base, to be operated by the Philippine Navy Fleet Command, would serve as a logistics hub for military forces in Mindanao. The project, he said, would be funded by the Office of the President under Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

The planned base is expected to complement air operations at Lumbia Air Base in Cagayan de Oro, where a Philippine Air Force facility for the 5th Fighter Wing and a humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) warehouse are located. The US government has yet to deliver its pledged $3.7 million for base improvements under EDCA.

The industrial estate is also where controversial Chinese businessman Tony Yang established the Philippine Sanjia Steel Corporation. The firm, which has its own wharf at Phividec, was linked to alleged drug shipments and smuggling during the 2024 House quad committee hearings.

Yang and his group were linked to illegal offshore gaming operations.

In September 2024, immigration authorities arrested the Chinese businessman, the brother of former presidential economic adviser Michael Yang, at Ninoy Aquino International Airport for being an undesirable alien.

During a House committee hearing, lawmakers alleged that Tony Yang had used a fake identity to register his businesses. – Rappler.com