Stock News 2013: Vista Land hikes capex to P20 billion

English: Manny Villar was seen on Tinalak/T'nalak Fiesta Street Parade and Street Dancing taken on South Cotabato SMRAA, Koronadal City during T'nalak Festival on July 18,2009. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The real estate unit of the Villar family is jacking up its capital spending to as much as P20 billion this year to take advantage of the robust demand.

Vista Land & Lifescapes Inc. will roll out more residential projects in the provinces in the next two to three months, its top official said.

“We are prepared to spend more than P18.5 billion....We might spend up to P20 billion,” Vista Land chairman and founder Sen. Manuel B. Villar said on the sidelines of the topping off ceremony of the first building of Wil Tower Mall.

Villar said Vista Land is looking to increase its capital expenditures to take advantage of increasing demand for house and lot units.

“We are going to launch 14 new projects in the next two to three months,” Villar said.

For this year, Vista Land will launch residential projects in 12 new locations. As of the first quarter, Vista Land had a presence in 31 provinces and 63 cities and municipalities around the country.

“We are going to open in Marbel in South Cotabato, Sta. Maria in Bulacan, Kalibo in Aklan, Silang in Cavite and Roxas City [in Capiz],” Villar said.

For 2013, Vista Land will launch P30 billion worth of projects offering 15,000 residential units, up from P25 billion and 12,000 units last year.

Villar said the bulk of Vista Land’s sales will come from the house and lot units given the strong demand from end-users and first time home owners.

Vista Land targets to grow its reservation sales by 15 to 20 percent to as much as P50 billion this year from P40.09 billion in 2012.

In terms of high-rise projects, Vista Land has nearly sold out units in the first building of the 42-storey Wil Tower Mall in Quezon City.

The project, in partnership with variety show host and celebrity Willie Revillame, includes a four-storey shopping mall.

Villar said the second tower that will require P1.5 billion in capital spending will be launched when the first building is sold out.

Villar said adjacent lots can also be developed to complement the Wil Tower Mall, which sells units at P3 million to P6 million each.

Vista Land will also expand its portfolio of shopping malls.

“Vista Land has four right now and we are putting up another four,” Villar said.

Specifically, the listed property firm will put up the new phases of Vista Mall in Presidio in Sucat and Evia in Daang Hari. It will also build a Vista Mall in San Fernando in Pampanga and in Antipolo.

http://www.philstar.com/business/2013/06/03/949378/vista-land-hikes-capex-p20-b

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Stock News 2013: Ayala Land cashes in on FTI

Skyline of the City of Manila, seen from the Cultural Center of the Philippines (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Property giant Ayala Land Inc. has started to unlock values from the Food Terminal Inc. property in Taguig City, now called “Arca South,” selling a number of commercial lots to ignite development in the 74-hectare landbank it acquired from the government last year.

In a briefing last week, ALI chief finance officer Jaime Ysmael said ALI sold about 17 commercial lots in varying sizes—typically ranging between 2,500 and 3,000 square meters—based on a headline price of P150,000 to P155,000.

“It’s intended not only to generate liquidity and monetize part of what we paid for FTI but, at the same time, accelerate the rate of development … this is what we’ve been doing in previous developments,” Ysmael said.

ALI earlier estimated that its acquisition price of FTI per square meter was a little over P32,000—a significant discount to Makati and BGC land values. ALI won the property through a public bidding with a net present valuation of P23.9 billion. Including value added tax, total cost is estimated at P27 billion.

FTI is the single biggest landbank acquired by ALI since taking over the Bonifacio Global City project in 2003. This accounted for bulk of the company’s landbanking cost last year.

“In Fort Boni, when we took over in 2003, the first order of business for us was to sell off [commercial lots] in peripheral areas. That way … we can actually pay down debt which, at that time, was quite substantial. At the same time, [this is to] encourage other people to build faster and help in timing the development. That’s really the development model,” he said.

ALI gave an average discount of 10 percent to the commercial lot buyers because a lot of them availed of an early payment package, Ysmael said. The buyers can use these lots to put up offices, a vertical school, hotel, retail center or even a residential project. “It’s flexible,” he said.

Ysmael said the FTI master plan, which would likely take 10 to 15 years to develop, was similar to ALI’s “Vertis North” project, a large-scale mixed-use urban hub comprising about 45 skyscrapers at the heart of what is envisioned to be the central business district of Quezon City.

He said the recently sold 17 commercial lots would accommodate new buildings, while ALI itself would put up its own, likely at least 10 to 20 buildings. But unlike the skyscrapers in nearby BGC, typical height of the FTI buildings will only be around nine stories. The height restriction is due to its proximity to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, at present the main international gateway to Metro Manila.

“The development model in FTI is kind of unique. To gain additional areas, we’ll have a below-ground type of main highway, something that has been done in other countries. This will allow us to recover, maximize space,” Ysmael said, estimating a one-kilometer length for this underground highway.

While planned as a mixed-use development, ALI’s projects in Arca South will be “predominantly” residential, Ysmael said.

Also, the lack of access points to FTI will be addressed by an intermodal transportation terminal hub that the government plans to implement in the complex. This six- to seven-hectare terminal hub is expected to be a government project, but if it were to be offered under the public-private partnership framework, Ysmael said it would be something that ALI would be interested to bid for.

http://business.inquirer.net/107969/ayala-land-cashes-in-on-fti

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Stock News 2012: DOTC moves to address San Miguel-MIPC row

200 px (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) has come out with a compromise solution to the issue on the funding of the shared portion of two separate roads that will link highways north and south of Metro Manila.

The issue had put two of the country’s top conglomerates—San Miguel Corp. and Metro Pacific Investments Corp.—on a collision course that threatened to delay the implementation of their respective projects both seen as cornerstones of the Aquino administration’s economic agenda.

San Miguel Corp., through subsidiary Citra Metro Manila Tollways Corp. (CMMTC), plans to extend the Metro Manila Skyway from Buendia, Makati to Balintawak, Quezon City, creating a nearly-seamless link with North Luzon Expressway.

MPIC, for its part, has a pending proposal to connect the NLEx with the Skyway via an alignment that follows the existing Philippine National Railways line from Tondo, Manila to Makati.

MPIC, through Metro Pacific Tollways Corp., holds the concession to NLEx, while CMMTC holds the concession to the Skyway.

Transportation Secretary Jun Abaya this week said the compromise deal would be incorporated in CMMTC’s revised concession for the Skyway. The deal will also be part of the Department of Public Works and Highways “Swiss” challenge for MPIC’s proposed connector road.

CMMTC’s planned project is part of its original concession deal for the Skyway. MPIC’s project, however, is an unsolicited proposal to the government and will, therefore, have to undergo a “Swiss” challenge, where other interested parties will be given the chance to submit better offers.

Abaya declined to give further details on the compromise deal. Officials from both CMMTC and MPIC were not available for comment to confirm if the concerned parties had accepted the government’s compromise proposal.

Worth about P7 billion, the 5-kilometer extension will be shared by Citra and MPIC, before their respective connectors veer off to their separate alignments.

http://business.inquirer.net/100041/dotc-moves-to-address-san-miguel-mipc-row

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Stock News 2012: Ayala seals Valenzuela land deal

English: Blank map of Valenzuela city in the Philippines divided into its legislative districts (district 2) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Property giant Ayala Land Inc. and the Gatchalian family have finalized a deal to develop 17 hectares of the latter’s “Plastic City” estate in Valenzuela City, envisioned to be redeveloped into a mixed-use urban complex in northern Metro Manila.

Philippine Estates Corp. (PHES), the Gatchalians’ property development arm, disclosed to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Tuesday the signing of an agreement with ALI’s Avida Land to develop the company’s properties in Valenzuela.

This deal comes about a week after the signing by PHES of a memorandum of agreement with ALI’s low-cost residential unit, Amaia Land, to likewise develop the former’s property in Cavite into a residential or subdivision project.

PHES is one of the owners of the property that Avida proposes to develop in Valenzuela. “The agreement signed is an initial step to move forward planning and developing the area,” a spokesperson from ALI said.

The 17 hectares covered by the deal is part of the Gatchalian family’s 60-hectare former plastics manufacturing hub, but ALI president Antonino Aquino said the Ayala-controlled real estate firm was interested to develop the entire area under a mixed-use masterplan.

But Aquino said the plan would be to pursue the development in parcels.

The Gatchalian’s Plastic City Industrial Corp. (PCIC) has long ceased its plastics manufacturing and commercial operations due to continued losses, but its subsidiaries have leased out its warehouse and building facilities in the estate.

ALI had been in talks with the Gatchalians for over a year for the development of the property in Valenzuela, which has a lot of spending power especially because it has a number of large industrial manufacturers as locators.

Through these property deals with the Ayala group, the Gatchalian family, for its part, seeks to unlock more values from its real estate assets, taking advantage of the robust property market in the country.

It was earlier reported that the redevelopment planned by the Gatchalians for Plastic City would include an educational complex envisioned to be a smaller version of the UP technohub in Quezon City. It also aims to build office space that will attract business process outsourcing (BPO) companies, banking on expectations that more and more BPO locators will move outside the main central business districts in search of other hubs around Metro Manila.

Part of the proposed master plan is likewise to put up a new hospital to serve Valenzuela City. The residential portion is envisioned to offer townhouses and condominiums for different market segments.

http://business.inquirer.net/98799/ayala-seals-valenzuela-land-deal

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Stock News 2012: Robinsons Magnolia Is ‘Green Mall’

Fotoloco Smart Parenting @ Robinsons Magnolia Grids 245 (Photo credit: FOTOLOCO!)

Robinsons Magnolia Mall, which was opened recently, has been certified as a green infrastructure by the local government of Quezon City, making it the “First Green Mall Building” in the country’s most populous city.

In a statement, the Gokongwei-led Robinsons Land Corp. said the four-level retail complex was awarded the certificate in ceremonies in City Hall. It was found to have strictly adhered to the stringent standards set under the city government’s Green Building Ordinance of 2009, which requires the design, construction or retrofitting of building, other structures and movable properties to meet minimum standards of a green infrastructure.

The awarding of the green building certification now makes the Robinsons Magnolia Mall, located along the bustling corner of Aurora Boulevard and Hemady Street, a showcase of sustainable development practices.

According to Arlene G. Magtibay, Robinsons Malls’ General Manager, “We are very glad that Robinsons Magnolia has been certified as Quezon City’s first Green Mall Building.  We have always been concerned that our developments work with and not against the environment, and we are happy that the QC government shares the same vision and has recognized our efforts towards this common goal.”

Magtibay said that RLC’s 32nd mall was installed with skylight and glass curtains that allow natural lighting, a move that is expected to rake in huge energy savings for the company.

To further reduce its carbon footprint, Robinsons Magnolia Mall used the more energy efficient colored LED (light emitting diode) light fixtures for the façade.

Compared with normal high wattage metal halide lamps, the LED lighting saves 50 percent in energy consumption.

In the interior, the mall resorted to high efficient light fixtures that saves energy by 30 percent.

Robinsons Magnolia likewise treats the wastewater coming from its sewage treatment plant (STP) and recycles the wastewater for use in cleaning, flushing toilets and irrigation.  It has installed rainwater collectors which help reduce its usage of fresh water.

http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/384175/robinsons-magnolia-is-green-mall#.UMKGS-Smj3w

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Stock News 2012: Ayala, Rustan’s plan dep’t store chain

Shangri-La Plaza (Photo credit: Brian Sahagun)

Ayala Land Inc. will soon debut into the department store retailing format in partnership with the Rustan’s group by investing in the anchor tenant of a new Ayala shopping center rising in Fairview, Quezon City.

This will implement an earlier announced equal joint venture with the Tantoco family’s Specialty Investments Inc. (SII) to “pursue opportunities in the Philippine retail sector.”

ALI and Rustan’s are likewise investing in the 24-hour convenience store business under Japanese retailing chain FamilyMart, the world’s second-largest convenience store operator.

Although a late entrant in the high-volume but low-margin retailing business in department store and convenience store businesses, ALI is confident that having Rustan’s as a partner would create a “formidable” alliance that could effectively compete in this segment, said ALI chief finance officer Jaime Ysmael.

In a talk with reporters at the sidelines of the Securities and Exchange Commission hearing on foreign capital computation, Ysmael said ALI was now developing a new mall—Fairview Terraces—whose anchor tenant would be a department store co-owned by the Ayala-Rustan’s partnership. Typically, he said the anchor tenants in Ayala’s shopping centers would occupy about 10,000 square meters of retail space like Landmark (in Glorietta and Trinoma) or Gaisano (in Market!Market!).

“We haven’t come up with the name yet,’ Ysmael said, when asked what would be the branding for the upcoming Ayala-Rustan’s department stores. “Close to opening, that should be available,” he said. Parkview Terraces is expected to open by the end of next year.

This would not mean that ALI would no longer provide retail space to other department store operators in other upcoming malls, Ysmael said. “We will still have that kind of relationship with existing partners. It’s just that we want to put up our own so that we can move faster than that we’ll be able to do if we don’t have our own department stores. But those (other) stores will continue. They are longtime partners,” he said.

Ysmael said Rustan’s, apart from being the dominant retailer for the high-end segment, had a vast experience in the broader consumer market through its Shopwise grocery chain. “We’re confident that the partnership will be able to compete,” he said.

For the convenience store business, which is in partnership with FamilyMart and Japanese conglomerate Itochu, Ysmael said this should also be a “formidable” retail format.

The partnership is investing about P200 million to jumpstart the business. While the initial target is to set up 30 stores in the first year of operations, Ysmael said it should roll out “a couple of hundred stores to be able to make a difference.” As Ayala has hundreds of property developments across the country, Ysmael said the rollout should not be a problem.

“We’re positioning also in other areas, not just in our developments, but the priority is to locate in our developments,” he said.

http://business.inquirer.net/92476/ayala-rustans-plan-dept-store-chain

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Stock News 2012: SMDC profit rises 5.7%

English: One e-CommCenter, SM Mall of Asia Complex Picture taken by Exec8 December 4, 2007 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

SM Development Corp. (SMDC) said its earnings in the nine months to September rose 5.7 percent to P3.3 billion from a year ago.

The property arm of mall and banking tycoon Henry Sy recorded a 42.7-percent uptick in revenues from real estate sales at P16.1 billion, from P11.3 billion in the same period last year.

“SMDC’s projects have been very well received by the market because of their quality, affordability, location,” the company said in a statement.

Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) in the nine-month period was at P3.7 billion, resulting in an EBITDA margin of 23 percent.

Return on equity was maintained at 12 percent, SMDC said.

Majority of the units sold were from Shell Residences in the Mall of Asia Complex, Green Residences along Taft Ave. Jazz Residences in Makati, Light Residences along EDSA, Sun Residences near the Welcome Rotonda in Quezon City, and Wind Residences in Tagaytay, SMDC said.

The company scheduled the launch of five projects in the second half, equivalent to around 73,000 new residential units.

It represents a sharp increase from the 9,000 units developed in 2011. The company stands to generate about P37 billion from the sale of these units.

SMDC has set a capital spending of P20.7 billion this year, significantly higher than the P13 billion spent in 2011. Bulk of the programmed capital budget will go to the construction of ongoing and new projects while about P4 billion has been earmarked for land banking.

http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=867827&publicationSubCategoryId=66

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Stock News 2012: ALI pushes P20-B entertainment complex

Makati Skyline, Philippines (Photo credit: ibarra_svd)

Property giant Ayala Land Inc. is going full throttle to transform Makati City into the nation’s premiere financial and entertainment district with the development of the Philippine Racing Club Inc.’s former race track in Sta. Ana into a P20-billion entertainment complex.

The project forms part of ALI’s P60-billion investment plan for six major districts in Makati for the next 10 years.

The property, said to be the last big piece of property in Makati, will be converted into a township with recreational, entertainment, commercial, retail, office, residential and even hotel facilities.

“We will be launching this in two weeks and will be able to give budget details then,” said Antonino T. Aquino, president of ALI.

PRCI will contribute to the joint venture its entire 21-hectare property, which used to be the site of its horse-racing operations until 2008. The property is located along the inner portion of Pasong Tamo in Makati City.

ALI, on the other hand, will undertake the development of the large-scale project, which could take 10 years to complete.

PRCI and ALI will share in the revenues to be generated from the project, which will sell residential units as well as lease out office and commercial space.

Six years ago, ALI also partnered with with Manila Jockey Club to develop the latter’s former San Lazaro racetrack area in Sta. Cruz, Manila.

ALI has been aggressively expanding its property investments, having launched several projects this year.

In Makati alone, the company has committed to invest around P60 billion in six distinct and complementary districts – Makati North (young and creative), Makati central business district (business), Ayala Triangle Gardens (urban oasis), Makati South (transport hub), and Sta.Ana (Makati’s entertainment district) covering a total of 70 hectares.    

In Quezon City, ALI will build a P65-billion new central business district hub in the North Triangle area over a 10-year period. Dubbed Ventris North, the project will include office and residential towers, commercial buildings and recreational facilities.

http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?publicationSubCategoryId=66&articleId=866820

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Stock News 2012: Bidding for MRT 3 expansion faces delay

English: Platform area of J. Ruiz LRT Station of the Manila Light Rail Transit System with an entering MRT-2 train. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) needs time to study if there is a need to seek the approval of Metro Pacific Investments Corp.(MPIC) before bidding out additional light rail vehicles (LRVs) for the Metro Rail Transit (MRT) 3 system, an official said.

DOTC undersecretary Rene Limcaoco told reporters on the sidelines of the Philippine Economic Briefing yesterday that the department is still looking into the contract of the government with the MRT operator to see what needs to be done before it sets the bidding for the expansion of the MRT 3 system.

“We’re studying the contracts to determine what needs to be done,” he said.

Among the things they are looking at is whether the department would have to get the consent of the MPIC which holds an economic interest in the Metro Rail Transit Corp., the owner and operator of the MRT 3.

“We’re studying whether that approval is needed,” Limcaoco said.

Earlier this month, the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Board approved the MRT 3 capacity-expansion project.

The project, which costs P8.63 billion, involves the acquisition of an additional 52 LRVs as well as the implementation of required ancillary works, to enable operating the MRT 3 system at a four-car train configuration.

The MRT 3 spans North Avenue station in Quezon City until Taft Avenue station in Pasay City.

Limcaoco also said the DOTC would endorse soon to the NEDA Investment Coordination Committee the common ticketing system project for Lines 1 and 2 of the Light Rail Transit (LRT) and the MRT 3 soon.

He declined to give more details on the schedule.

The LRT Line 1 runs from Roosevelt station in Quezon City until the Baclaran station in Pasay City, while Line 2 is from Santolan in Pasig to Recto in Manila.

Limcaoco said it would be up to the winning bidder if it would want to add features to the ticket.

Earlier, DOTC Secretary Manuel Roxas II said the department was looking at having a ticket similar to Hong Kong’s octopus card, which would not only be used for transport, but could also be used to purchase goods in convenience stores.

http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?publicationSubCategoryId=66&articleId=849985

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Stock News 2012: SM keeps Ortigas bid alive

English: Picture of the Greenhills Shopping Center (Photo credit: Wikipedia)The giant conglomerate headed by the country’s richest man says its offer for the 34 percent stake held by British banking giant HSBC in the holding company that owns the 16-hectare Greenhills shopping complex is still on the table despite a strategic alliance entered into by some members of the Ortigas family with Ayala Land Inc. (ALI).

On the sidelines of the signing of a three-year branding partnership between PLDT and SM’s newly established events venue Mall of Asia, SM Investments Corp. (SMIC) director Hans Sy said: “The offer still stays. We’re waiting for formal discussions. We have placed an offer which they have acknowledged. The offer is for the whole 34 percent stake held by HSBC.”

The Ortigas family exercised its right of first refusal over HSBC’s stake in OCLP Holdings Inc. in a deal valued at P11 billion. A group led by Ignacio R. Ortigas entered into a partnership with ALI to participate in the development of various properties owned by the landed Ortigas family, which include large residential, office, retail and hotel components.

ALI earlier said it had the backing of majority of the Ortigas family members, which should give it a foothold in Ortigas. It believes that its strategic partnership would gain overall management control of the private holding firm.

Sy said that while they are still waiting for the Ortigas family’s reply, they prefer to have control of the company but can “ adjust depending on the outcome of negotiations.”

ALI and SMIC, however, have yet to wait for the expiration of the lock-up period imposed on buyers for HSBC’s stake before they could own a stake in Ortigas & Co.

The Sy family was the first to make a pitch for HSBC’s stake in the Ortigas-led holding firm but the Ortigas family members eventually decided to buy out HSBC’s stake. In April, the Sy family said it was close to acquiring a controlling stake in OCLP Holdings, which would allow the SM group to capture the biggest share of the retail market in the burgeoning Ortigas-Pasig-Mandaluyong area.

The Ortigases, whose historic roots date back to the 300-year Spanish colonial rule, are among the largest landowners in the country. They developed upscale residential subdivisions Valle Verde and Wack-Wack as well as the 77-unit Luntala townhouse project within Valle Verde 6.

Aside from the Greenhills shopping center, the group’s retail portfolio also includes the 18-hectare Tiendesitas in Pasig, residential development located on a 12-hectare property in Calle Industria in Bagumbayan in Quezon City, and the P25-billion Capitol Commons, which will rise on a 10-hectare property, which was previously occupied by the Rizal Provincial Capitol.

http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?publicationSubCategoryId=66&articleId=826772

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Stock News 2012: AMA Group makes big push into real estate with P60-B investment

Map of Metro Manila showing the location of Makati City (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Amb. Amable R. Aguiluz, acknowledged as the pioneer of IT education in the country, is making a big push into real estate with a planned investment of P60 billion in residential condominiums, five-star hotels, offices, retail establishments and master-planned communities over a 10-year period.

Picar Development Inc., which forms part of Aguiluz’s AMA Group of Companies, is embarking on 10 to 15 projects across the country in line with its goal to become a major player in the booming property sector.

In a press briefing yesterday, Picar general manager Danilo B. Jugno said the company is aggressively building up its investment portfolio, which is expected to translate to 630,000 square meters of prime residential and commercial lots in Makati, Alabang and Gen. Trias, Cavite, among others.

Jugno said around P11 billion of the P60 billion capex will go to the group’s flagship development, Picar Place, a mixed-use complex along Kalayaan Ave. in Makati City.

Nestled on a 1.5-hectare lot, Picar Place will give rise to the tallest skyscraper in Makati dubbed Stratford Residences and the first five-star, Swiss-run International hotel in Metro Manila (Movenpick). Both projects are slated for completion in 2016.

The 74-story Stratford Residences will comprise three towers housing a total of 1,124 units priced at P3.2 million to P20 million each.

The Movenpick Hotel, on the other hand, will feature 324 hotel rooms and 280 residential apartments all generously sized with European designs.

The company has already completed the construction of Buddha Bar within Picar Place at a cost of P500 million. It is the first Buddha Bar in Asia and the 27th of the world’s high-end bar and fine dining restaurant chain.

In Alabang, Picar is developing Chelsea, a 32-story mid-range residential and commercial condominium. Estimated to cost around P1.7 billion, the project will offer 696 units.

Also in the pipeline are a traveller’s hotel in a 3.5-hectare property in Caticlan and an IT building in Cebu.

Future projects also being planned in Calamba, Quezon City and Davao.

The group has already established a solid footprint in the southern part of the metro with Ara Vista Village, a 50-hectare residential/commercial development in Gen. Trias, Cavite. When completed, the project will be the country’s first WiFi-enabled township.

http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?publicationSubCategoryId=66&articleId=826096

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Stock News 2012: ALI to spend P65 B on new QC hub

Skyline of Quezon City (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Taking an even more aggressive posture, property giant Ayala Land Inc. (ALI) is coughing up P65 billion over a 10-year period to develop Vertis North, a new urban, transit-oriented, mixed-use community within the North Triangle property in Quezon City, which is envisioned to be the country’s next premier central business district.

In a briefing yesterday, ALI president Antonino Aquino said the 29-hectare Vertis North will be the group’s biggest and most modern development in Quezon City seen to attract top locators in the area.

Vertis North, a joint venture between ALI and the state-run National Housing Authority, will have 45 towers, comprising a broad range of offices, residential and retail spaces and a hotel when completed.

Aquino said the group’s track record and strong branding will ensure that the development will achieve its highest potential value.

Encompassing 220,000 square meters of space, the first phase of Vertis North will require an investment of P12 billion over a three-year timeframe to construct office buldings catering to business process outsourcing (BPO) companies, a Kukun hotel, and a retail strip patterned after Bonifacio High Street within a seven-hectare lot.

“The aim is to create a new and dynamic urban area with a high quality of life. This is envisioned to be the gateway to the North given its connection to the commuter rail lines and major road arteries. We feel QC, being the largest city in area and population, deserves to have its own CBD,” Aquino said.

“Vertis North will be no different from what ALI has developed in the past. It would be like Makati - a large-scale mixed use development that is now the country’s central business district,” he added.

Vertis North is the culmination of a public bidding process initiated by the government on Oct. 3, 2008. The joint venture aims to benefit NHA in achieving its mandate of providing housing for informal settlers and transforming a non-performing asset into a model for urban renewal.

NHA, which contributed the land, expects to gain around P11 to P12 billion worth of housing investments through its partnership with ALI, partly helping them curb the huge housing backlog.

NHA general manager Chito Cruz said that of the 10,000 families squatting in the area, the number has been reduced to around 3,500. He is hopeful he can relocate the remaining informal settlers by September this year.

Aquino said ALI, which pioneered the establishment of integrated business hubs like the Makati central business district and Bonifacio Global City, wants to put up an intermodal transport terminal facility at Vertis North to further stimulate growth in the area.

http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?publicationSubCategoryId=66&articleId=824418

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Stock News 2012: Puregold finalizes S&R deal

Front of Puregold Dau taken from an angle. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)Puregold Price Club Inc. has completed the acquisition of 100 percent of S&R Membership Shopping club through a P16.5-billion share swap, effectively making the upscale retailer a wholly-owned Puregold subsidiary.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, Puregold said Kareila Management Inc., the operator of S&R, has already issued the stock certificates in the name of Puregold.

Under the deal, Puregold acquired 1.7 million shares of Kareilla in exchange for 766.4 million shares of Puregold. Both firms are controlled by Chinese-Filipino businessman Lucio Co.

The Co family now owns 77 percent of Puregold’s outstanding shares.

The acquisition has allowed Co to consolidate his retailing businesses into a publicly-listed vehicle targeting all market segments and further strengthened the group’s leading position in the industry.

Puregold caters to the lower-income segment with a market share of 16 percent. On the other hand, S&R, which caters to the middle and upper class consumers, has a market share of 3.3 percent.

S&R has a total membership base of over 214,700 across the country. It operates six stores located in Bonifacio Global City, Congressional Ave. in Quezon City; Alabang, Muntinlupa; Aseana business park in Baclaran; San Fernando in Pampanga; and Mandaue City in Cebu.

Established in 2000 in partnership with Price Smart of the US, S&R was eventually acquired by the Co family in 2006.

To capitalize on the growing consumer needs of the mass market, Puregold recently acquired the Parco supermarket chain in a deal valued at around P760 million. The deal involved the purchse of 100 percent of the Gant Group of Companies, the holding company of the Ong family for the six subsidiaries operating the 19 branches of Parco supermarkets.

Of Parco’s total store network, 12 are located in Metro Manila, three in Bulacan and four in Rizal.

The purchase was in line with the Co family’s goal to double the number of its stores by 2015 as it expands into the untapped markets Metro Manila as well as in Visayas and Mindanao.

Puregold, which is now the country’s second biggest retailer next to the SM Group, intends to open 25 stores in 2012 and 2013.

http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=824059&publicationSubCategoryId=66

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Stock News 2012: Ortigas family nixes SM offer, partners with Ayala

English: Picture of the Greenhills Shopping Center (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The Ortigas family has exercised its right of first refusal over British banking giant HSBC’s 34-percent stake in Ortigas Holdings Inc., dealing a major blow to the Sy family’s plan to take over the firm that owns the 16-hectare Greenhills shopping complex.

Ayala Land Inc. (ALI) announced yesterday a strategic alliance with the group led by Ignacio R. Ortigas, allowing it to participate in the development of various properties owned by the Ortigas group.

The Ortigas family has matched the SM Group’s offer to acquire HSBC’s stake, reportedly amounting to P11 billion.

SM Investments Corp. confirmed the transaction.

“We were informed that the existing shareholders of Ortigas Holdings, which consist mainly of the Ortigas family, exercised their right of first refusal on the shares owned by HSBC,” SMIC said.

The SM Group was initially hoping to finalize a deal to take over the property holding firm of the Ortigas family in the first half this year.

In April, SMIC said it was getting nearer to its bid to acquire a controlling stake in Ortigas Holdings, pointing out financing was ready and that it was just waiting for final instructions.

The deal would have allowed the SM Group to corner the lion’s share of the retail market in the burgeoning Ortigas-Pasig-Mandaluyong area.

ALI said it would allocate an initial amount of P15 billion for this purpose. The development project will include plans for residential, office, retail, and hotel components.

ALI said the partnership in line with the group’s strategy, which includes expanding its operations in key growth centers in Metro Manila. ALI intends to contribute its expertise in building large scale, mixed-use developments to this partnership.

The strategic alliance is expected to generate significant synergies with the other ALI integrated mixed-use communities in key business districts such as Makati, Bonifacio Global City and Quezon City.

“We are privileged to be a part of this strategic alliance. We welcome the opportunity to participate in the development of these key areas in Metro Manila,” said ALI president Antonino T. Aquino. “Many of our successful developments such as the Ayala Alabang, Cebu Park District, Bonifacio Global City, Trinoma, Nuvali, Abreeza Davao, and Centrio Cagayan de Oro were built on strong partnerships with various groups.”

Ortigas & Co. currently owns strategic land bank areas in the Ortigas Business District, Greenhills Shopping Center, Tiendesitas in Frontera Verde, Circulo Verde and Capitol Commons.

The Ortigas district, which encompasses at least 100 hectares, is home to many shopping malls like Robinsons Galleria, Shangrila, Megamall, Podium and St. Francis Square.

Megamall, developed and operated by shopping mall giant SM Prime Holdings Inc., sits on 18 hectares of prime land with a total floor area of about 348,000 square meters. It is currently undergoing renovation and expansion with the three- hectare parking lot in front of EDSA being converted into a commercial and office space for business process outsourcing companies.

The expansion will give Megamall an additional 100,000 sqm of gross leasable area and will make it the largest shopping mall in the country, topping SM City North Edsa.

The Ortigases, whose historic roots date back to the 300-year Spanish colonial rule, are among the largest landowners in the country. They developed upscale residential subdivisions Valle Verde and Wack-Wack as well as the 77-unit Luntala townhouse project within Valle Verde 6.

Aside from the Greenhills Shopping Center, the group’s retail portfolio also includes the 18-hectare Tiendesitas in Pasig.

Ongoing projects by the Ortigas group include Circulo Verde, a 15-tower residential development located on a 12-hectare property in Calle Industria in Bagumbayan in Quezon City and the P25 billion Capitol Commons, which will rise on a 10-hectare property, which was previously occupied by the Rizal Provincial Capitol.

http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?publicationSubCategoryId=66&articleId=822337

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