SANTA ROSA CITY, Laguna—Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. is forging ahead with its four pillars of service —education, medical and health, environment and community service —for this city.
Lawyer Rommel Gutierrez, first vice president of TMPC, told reporters here the firm aims to improve its services beyond its commercial and manufacturing presence in the city’s special economic zone.
Apart from manufacturing the popular Vios and Innova models locally at its Santa Rosa plant, “Toyota also attended the government summit for electric vehicles and hybrid vehicles, and the program for modernization of local PUVs [public utility vehicles],” Gutierrez said.
“We’re not out to totally change the PUV but upgrade the vehicle, as the government sees the need to develop it from assemblers and local players. We can come up with the best solutions and alternatives, and we can collaborate on the improvement of the engines [of PUVs], like using only Euro 4 (rated) engines for the good of the environment,” he added.
Even Toyota’s diesel engines are being developed to be more environment-friendly, Gutierrez noted, as it continues to provide the local market with its Filipino-made cars.
“Toyota Santa Rosa still manufactures the Vios and Innova to maintain and sustain the plant for the local supply, as these models are being used by both taxi and Uber or Grab drivers, and so we have to maintain our good service,” he added.
Beyond that, TMPC is continuing its reforestation of 2,500 hectares of the Penablanca Protected Landscape and Seascape in Cagayan province, a project that began in 2007, Gutierrez said.
The firm’s mother company, Toyota Motors of Japan, has pledged $3 million and a Hilux pickup to the project in partnership with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and Conservation International.