Section 6Sec./Art. 6

Criteria for the Establishment of Other ECOZONES. - In addition to the ECOZONES identified in Section 5 of this Act, other areas may be established as ECOZONES in a proclamation to be issued by the President of the Philippines subject to the evaluation and recommendation of the PEZA, based on a detailed feasibility and engineering study which must conform to the following criteria:

a. The proposed area must be identified as a regional growth center in the Medium-Term Philippine Development Plan or by the Regional Development Council;

b. The existence of required infrastructure in the proposed ECOZONE, such as roads, railways, telephones, ports, airports, etc., and the suitability and capacity of the proposed site to absorb such improvements;

c. The availability of water source and electric power supply for use of the ECOZONE;

d. The extent of vacant lands available for industrial and commercial development and future expansion of the ECOZONE as well as of lands adjacent to the ECOZONE available for development of residential areas for the ECOZONE workers;

e. The availability of skilled, semi-skilled and non-skilled trainable labor force in and around the ECOZONE;

f. The area must have a significant incremental advantage over the existing economic zones and its potential profitability can be established;

g. The area must be strategically located; and

h. The area must be situated where controls can easily be established to curtail smuggling activities.

Other areas which do not meet the foregoing criteria may be established as ECOZONES: Provided, That the said area shall be developed only through local government and/or private sector initiative under any of the schemes allowed in Republic Act No. 6957 (the build-operate-transfer law), and without any financial exposure on the part of the national government: Provided, further, That the area can be easily secured to curtail smuggling activities: Provided, finally, That after five (5) years the area must have attained a substantial degree of development, the indicators of which shall be formulated by the PEZA.