DOST clarifies: No data centers planned under Pax Silica in Clark

DAVAO CITY — The Department of Science and Technology moved to clarify the Philippines' involvement in the US-led Pax Silica program on Thursday, emphasizing that discussions do not encompass the establishment of data centers in New Clark City in Tarlac. Science Secretary Renato Solidum Jr. told reporters that while the Pax Silica initiative contains multiple components, data center development remains outside its scope in the country. "We should understand that this Pax Silica program of the United States has many components. It has a component that manufactures chips and semiconductors that will be used later on in the development of data centers or artificial intelligence hubs. But it is not a data center," Solidum said. "There will be no data center to be put up there," he added, seeking to distinguish between the semiconductor manufacturing aspects of the program and downstream artificial intelligence infrastructure projects. The Pax Silica framework, designed to strengthen semiconductor supply chains among allied nations, appears focused on chip production capabilities rather than data storage and processing facilities in the Clark site.