The Subic Special Economic and Freeport Zone, often shortened as Subic Bay or Subic, is a special economic zone and freeport area covering portions of the city of

Olongapo Olongapo (), officially the City of Olongapo (; ; ; Kapampangan: ''Lakanbalen/Ciudad ning Olongapo''), is a highly urbanized city in the Central Luzon region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 260,317 peo ...

and the town of Subic in

Zambales Zambales, officially the Province of Zambales (; ; ; ; ), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Central Luzon Regions of the Philippines, region. Its capital is Iba, Zambales, Iba, which is located in t ...

, and the towns of Hermosa and Morong in

Bataan Bataan (, , , ; ) , officially the Province of Bataan, is a province in the Central Luzon region of the Philippines. Its capital is the city of Balanga while Mariveles is the largest town in the province. Occupying the entire Bataan Peninsula ...

in the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

. The relatively developed and fenced area is called the Subic Bay Freeport Zone (SBFZ). The economic zone was the location of U.S. Naval Base Subic Bay, until the latter's decommissioning in 1992. The SBFZ is operated and managed by the

Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA; ) is a governmental agency of the Philippines. The SBMA has played a significant part in the development of the Subic Special Economic and Freeport Zone into a self-sustainable area that promotes the ...

(SBMA). The harbor faces the

Zambales Mountains The Zambales Mountains is a mountain range in western Luzon. The mountains spread along a north-south axis, separating Luzon's central plain from the South China Sea. The range extends into five Provinces of the Philippines, provinces: Zambales, ...

to the west and

Subic Bay Subic Bay is a bay on the west coast of the island of Luzon in the Philippines, about northwest of Manila Bay. An extension of the South China Sea, its shores were formerly the site of a major United States Navy facility, U.S. Naval Base Subi ...

opens to the

South China Sea The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by South China, in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan island, Taiwan and northwestern Philippines (mainly Luz ...

History

Subic Bay is surrounded by the towns of Hermosa, Morong, and Subic, and the city of

in the provinces of

and

, respectively. The Spanish built a shipyard and naval base in Subic bay in the 1800s. During the Philippine Revolution, the Cuban-Filipino

Vicente Catalan Vicente Catalan was a Cuban-Filipino of Criollo descent known for his mutiny against his Spanish naval officers in the 800-ton steamer of the Compania Tobacco De Filipinas seized by its Filipino Crew who killed the Spanish Officers. The Filipino mu ...

and his fleet in the nascent

Philippine Navy The Philippine Navy (PN) () is the naval warfare service branch of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. It has an estimated strength of 24,500 active service personnel, including the 10,300-strong Philippine Marine Corps. It operates 91 combat ...

, seized Subic from the Spanish and delivered it to the

First Philippine Republic The Philippine Republic (), now officially remembered as the First Philippine Republic and also referred to by historians as the Malolos Republic, was a state established in Malolos, Bulacan, during the Philippine Revolution against the Spanish ...

. Afterwards when the Americans invaded, it became an American naval base. The development of Olongapo was largely tied to the presence of the United States Navy base, once the largest

U.S. military The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. U.S. federal law names six armed forces: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and the Coast Guard. Since 1949, all of the armed forces, except th ...

naval base in

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

. An

arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

and ship-repair facility was established at Subic Bay in 1885 by the then

colonial power Colonialism is the control of another territory, natural resources and people by a foreign group. Colonizers control the political and tribal power of the colonised territory. While frequently an imperialist project, colonialism can also take ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. Following the

Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...

, Subic Bay became a U.S. Navy and Marine base, and grew to be a major facility. Until 1991, it was the base of the United States

7th Fleet The Seventh Fleet is a numbered fleet of the United States Navy. It is headquartered at U.S. Fleet Activities Yokosuka, in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is part of the United States Pacific Fleet. At present, it is the largest of th ...

. A

red-light district A red-light district or pleasure district is a part of an urban area where a concentration of prostitution and sex industry, sex-oriented businesses, such as sex shops, strip clubs, and adult theaters, are found. In most cases, red-light district ...

developed around the base, drawn by the presence of American personnel. In early 1991, after the collapse of protracted negotiations, the

Philippine Senate The Senate of the Philippines () is the upper house of Congress, the bicameral legislature of the Philippines, with the House of Representatives as the lower house. The Senate is composed of 24 senators who are elected at-large (the country f ...

rejected terms for renewal of the base's lease. The U.S. Navy was already in the process of downsizing its Subic operations in June 1991, when

Mount Pinatubo Mount Pinatubo is an active stratovolcano in the Zambales Mountains in Luzon in the Philippines. Located on the tripoint of Zambales, Tarlac and Pampanga provinces, most people were unaware of its eruptive history before the pre-eruption volc ...

erupted. One of the largest volcanic eruptions in the last 100 years, it covered the Navy Base in volcanic ash and collapsed a significant number of structures. On March 13, 1992, the Philippine Congress passed Republic Act 7227, known as the Bases Conversion and Development Act of 1992, in anticipation of the pullout of the US military bases in the country. Section 13 of Republic Act No. 7227 converted Subic Bay Naval Base into Subic Special Economic and Freeport Zone and created the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) to develop and manage the Freeport which provides tax and duty-free privileges and incentives to business locators in the special economic zone. Richard Gordon, then the mayor of the City of Olongapo, became the first SBMA chairman. The last ship, USS ''Belleau Wood'', left on November 24, 1992.

Post–Cold War

Subic Bay was converted into a commercial zone largely through the efforts of some 8,000 residents of nearby Olongapo, under the leadership of mayor Richard Gordon, who wanted to protect and preserve the $8 billion worth of facilities and property from looting and destruction. Subic was transformed and became a model for bases conversion into commercial use after the

Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...

with blue chip companies like Coastal Petroleum and Fed Ex pumping in over $3 billion of investments, creating 70,000 jobs in the

free port A free-trade zone (FTZ) is a class of special economic zone. It is a geographic area where goods may be imported, stored, handled, manufactured, or reconfigured and re-exported under specific customs regulation and generally not subject to ...

's first four years. It was host to the 4th

APEC Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC ) is an inter-governmental forum for 21 member economy , economies in the Pacific Rim that promotes free trade throughout the Asia-Pacific region. Following the success of Association of Southeast Asia ...

Leaders' Summit on November 24, 1996 and

FedEx FedEx Corporation, originally known as Federal Express Corporation, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate holding company specializing in Package delivery, transportation, e-commerce, and ...

's Asia-Pacific hub, Asia-One, was located in Subic Bay for almost ten years. In 2013, Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin said that the Philippines intended to move military forces to the base in response to the

territorial disputes in the South China Sea Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, the People's Republic of China (PRC), Taiwan (Republic of China/ROC), and Vietnam have conflicting island and maritime claims in the South China Sea. The disputes involve the islands, reefs, banks, ...

. The United States Navy sought access on a rotational basis for ships and Marines, and conducts maritime patrol aircraft patrols from bases in the Philippines.

Geography

While the Subic Special Economic and Freeport Zone (as well as the agency responsible for the freeport zone's operations and management

(SBMA)) shares a name with a nearby town, it covers portions of

and the town of Subic in

, and Hermosa and Morong in

. It covers a total area of , but the area that is secured and fenced hosts much of the development. This area is referred to as the Subic Bay Freeport Zone and out of this area is suitable for development, with the remaining portions consisting of high slopes, forests, or protected areas. In 2017, negotiations with local government units next to the Subic Bay Freeport Zone expanded the fenced area. The special economic zone is adjacent to

. At least six mangrove areas are found in the Freeport Zone.

Districts

The Subic Freeport Zone is divided into districts. The freeport zone has a Certificate of Ancestral Domain Title (CADT) Land, which is the ancestral domain of the

Aeta people Aeta (Ayta ), Agta and Dumagat, are collective terms for several indigenous peoples who live in various parts of Luzon islands in the Philippines. They are included in the wider Negrito grouping of the Philippines and the rest of Southeast A ...

. *Binictican Heights *Central Business District (CBD) *Cubi-Triboa *Ilanin Forest East *Ilanin Forest West *Kalayaan Heights *Port District * Redondo Peninsula *Subic Bay Forest District (consisting of the non-adjacent areas of Tipo and Minanga areas) *Subic Gateway

Demographics

Subic Freeport's population of at least 6,000 people is concentrated in the Kalayaan and Binictican areas. Portions of the Subic Freeport area form part of a formally recognized

ancestral domain Ancestral domain or ancestral lands are the lands, territories and resources of indigenous peoples, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region. The term differs from indigenous land rights, Aboriginal title or Native Title by directly indicating r ...

of the Aetas, an indigenous ethnic group living in the area prior to its usage as a US military base. A significant Aeta settlement in Subic is Pastolan.

Economy

In mid-2019, some 135,000 workers were employed in Subic Bay Freeport, 68% in the service industry and 17% in the manufacturing industry. Subic was a shipbuilding hub. The now-defunct Hanjin Philippines was the single biggest employer in the area prior to its bankruptcy in January 2019. As of mid-2019, 5,901 workers were employed in the shipbuilding and maritime industry by 96 firms. Subic is served by the Port of Subic.

Tourism

Subic Bay is a popular destination for weekend visitors from

Metro Manila Metropolitan Manila ( ), commonly shortened to Metro Manila and formally the National Capital Region (NCR; ), is the capital region and largest List of metropolitan areas in the Philippines, metropolitan area of the Philippines. Located ...

. Attractions include

beach A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from Rock (geology), rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle beach, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological s ...

es, an underwater

aquarium An aquarium (: aquariums or aquaria) is a vivarium of any size having at least one transparent side in which aquatic plants or animals are kept and displayed. fishkeeping, Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, aquati ...

jungle jungle is land covered with dense forest and tangled vegetation, usually in tropical climates. Application of the term has varied greatly during the past century. Etymology The word ''jungle'' originates from the Sanskrit word ''jaṅgala'' ...

survival tours, and

duty-free shop A duty-free shop or store is a retail outlet whose goods are exempt from the payment of certain local or national taxes and duties, on the requirement that the goods will be sold to travelers who will take them out of the country, who will ...

ping. Destinations include eco-tourism theme parks, the Ocean Adventure, Zoobic Safari, and the Pamulaklakin Nature Park, which is home to the indigenous Aetas who once trained the U.S. Navy in jungle survival tactics. Subic International Raceway (SIR), the Philippines' first purpose-built motorsports venue, opened in 1994 near

Subic Bay International Airport Subic Bay International Airport serves as a secondary and diversion airport for the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Metro Manila and Clark International Airport in Pampanga. It also serves the immediate area of the Subic Bay Freeport ...

. It was established by racing champion Pocholo Ramirez and his family. SIR hosted international racing events, such as the Asian Festival of Speed, Asian Formula 2000 and the

Asian Formula Three Championship The Asian Formula Three Championship was a Open wheel car, single-seater racing series based in South East Asia. It is one of a number of national and international Formula Three championships that form part of an established "career ladder" belo ...

. Local races, such as the Philippine Touring Car Championship, Run What You Brung (RWYB) and Circuit Showdown were held there. The racetrack closed in 2010 after its lease ended. The economic zone hosts the Subic Bay Yacht Club. The bay is favored for sailing sports, especially during the '' Habagat'' season. Subic Bay hosted the sailing events for the

2019 Southeast Asian Games The 2019 Southeast Asian Games, officially known as the 30th Southeast Asian Games, or the 30th SEA Games, and commonly known as Philippines 2019, were the 30th edition of the SEA Games, Southeast Asian Games, a biennial regional multi-sport ...

. The Subic Sun Convention Resort and Casino, will be the first international branded hotel complex in Subic and is set to open in 2025.

Transport

The Subic Special Economic and Freeport Zone is served by the

Subic–Clark–Tarlac Expressway The Subic–Clark–Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX), signed as E1 and E4 of the Philippine expressway network, is a controlled-access toll expressway in the Central Luzon region of the Philippines. From its northern terminus in Tarlac City to its so ...

(SCTEX). Subic is the site of

which can be used for chartered flights. The airport was a former Asian hub of multinational logistics company

. The Port serves direct passenger traffic through ferries going to and from

Orion, Bataan Orion, officially the Municipality of Orion (formerly Udyong), (), is a municipality of the Philippines, municipality in the Philippine Province, province of Bataan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 60,771 peop ...

. The freeport zone is accessible via SCTEX and its gates in

Olongapo City Olongapo (), officially the City of Olongapo (; ; ; Kapampangan: ''Lakanbalen/Ciudad ning Olongapo''), is a highly urbanized city in the Central Luzon region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 260,317 peo ...

and Morong.

Industrial parks

Most of the businesses in Subic Freeport's industrial parks are manufacturing, construction, and warehousing. These industrial parks are: * Subic Bay Gateway Park (''formerly Subic Bay Industrial Park'') * Subic Techno Park **On March 22, 2024, Sanyo Denki Philippines, Inc. Chairman Chihiro Nakayama with President Hirokazu Takeuchi and SBMA Chair, Eduardo L. Aliño led the inauguration ceremony of the P2.3-billion expansion project, phase 4 at the Subic Techno Park. The construction of a fourth factory building will need an additional 1,500 workers to manufacture uninterrupted power supplies, cooling fans, servo amplifiers and stepping motors. * Global Industrial Park (SRF Compound)
Tipo HighTech Eco-Park

References

External links

*
Subic Bay (Freeport) Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) official website

The Official Tourism Website for the Subic Bay area, containing tourist and accommodation information (Authorized by SBMA)
{{Authority control Redeveloped ports and waterfronts in the Philippines Redevelopment projects in the Philippines Industrial parks in the Philippines Buildings and structures in Olongapo Buildings and structures in Zambales Buildings and structures in Bataan Free ports Olongapo Red-light districts in the Philippines 1992 establishments in the Philippines