Six years ago, Bislig was briefly pitched to the whole country as the site of a future world-class port. On September 25, 2020, construction firm JM McGregor Haggens, Inc. presented a project called "The Maritime City" at a press briefing carried live by Radio Television Malacañang.
The details below come from PortCalls Asia, the shipping trade publication that covered the briefing the same day.
What was announced
The company's chairman and chief executive, Jonathan Sanchez, was described as a former seafarer who hails from Bislig City. He said the plan was to "transform Bislig City in Surigao del Sur into the next global destination port in Asia."
According to the report, the project was meant to be:
- A freeport that would welcome ships from all flag states
- A shorter stopover for vessels sailing between Australia and Japan, Korea, China and the United States
- A provider of bunkering (ship refueling) and ship repair
Sanchez said his vision was for The Maritime City to become the "busiest shipping route next to Singapore" within 10 years of construction.
Fifteen projects in one
The hub was described as at least 15 projects, including:
- An oil refinery and an oil depot
- A shipyard and a container port
- Cold storage and a food processing plant
- A power plant and a water treatment facility
- A hospital, a hotel and an integrated market
- A convention center and a government center
The first phase was to build the shipyard, container port, oil depot, hotel and hospital at the same time, with work scheduled to begin in early 2021. PortCalls reported that the project "has been approved by the local government of Bislig City," and that funding would come from Aria Indonesia-Aria Asset Management of Luxembourg and nine other entities from different countries.
Why Bislig was chosen
Sanchez pointed to location. Bislig faces the Pacific on Mindanao's east coast, and he argued that this mattered "considering that the South China Sea passage is being contested by different countries in the region." A Pacific-side port, in that reasoning, offers an alternative route for ships avoiding the South China Sea.
What the public record shows since
Bislig Today searched news coverage and official sources for later updates on The Maritime City and found no public reports of construction, permits or financing after the 2020 announcement. That does not prove the plan is dead, but there is no published evidence that the shipyard, container port or refinery has broken ground.
Bislig's maritime plans today look smaller and more concrete. The city's new fish port is built and awaiting turnover. In August 2026, the city council endorsed a request from the Philippine Coast Guard station commander in Surigao del Sur for a Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) satellite office in Bislig (Resolution No. 2026-684). And the city is courting investors for a 75-hectare economic zone.
So the next time someone says Bislig could become "the next Singapore," you will know where that line came from: a televised press briefing in September 2020.
Sources: PortCalls Asia, "Firm to build multi-billion peso port complex in Surigao" (September 25, 2020, updated September 27, 2020); Wikipedia, "Bislig"; City of Bislig, list of 2026 Sangguniang Panlungsod resolutions on bislig.gov.ph.