By Zinnia B. Dela Peña
Monday, October 6, 2008 [ philstar.com ]
The Phinma Group is expected to raise at least P550 million from the sale of unit Asian Plaza Inc. through a bidding process.
Asian Plaza owns a five-story office condominium building with a gross floor area of 10,310 square meters on a 3,045 square meter property located at 328 Sen. Gil Puyat Ave. corner of Tordesillas and H.V. Dela Costa Streets in Makati City.
Real estate consultancy firm Colliers International has been appointed as exclusive marketing agent to arrange the sale of the property.
A minimum bid price has been set at P550 million, Colliers said.
Colliers expects strong interest from potential buyers since the property is strategically positioned in close proximity to shopping malls, restaurants, entertainment centers, and major office buildings and embassies located in the Makati central business district.
The property which will be offered via acquisition of shares of Asian Plaza, has the potential for future development with a floor area ratio of eight for office use and 16 for residential use.
Interested parties may start tendering their offers today until Nov. 17.
“The sale is expected to attract interest not only from the local development community but also from overeas investors,” said David Young, managing director at Colliers.
Young said the Phinma’s asset sale is aimed at taking advantage of the strong real estate market, spurred by steady remittances from overseas Filipino workers.
He said the sale also comes on the heels of other major development site acquisitions in Makati in recent weeks.
The Phinma Group has in its fold several companies that address the basic needs of the Filipino — affordable housing, construction materials, hotel facilities, education, and energy.
It acquired and managed Araullo University in Cabanatuan City, Nueva Ecija for its initial entry into the education sector. The group later acquired Cagayan De Oro University to make it the second school under the Phinma umbrella.
The Phinma Group is also exploring opportunities in the mining sector with particular focus on copper, gold, nickel or uranium.
Aside from this, the group is keen on offering animation services as part of its business process outsourcing business. Its BPO venture currently offers services in architecture, engineering and accounting through affiliates Phinma Finance and Accounting Outsource Corp. and Phinma Architecture and Engineering Outsource Corp.
As for its real estate development business, the group through Phinma Property Holdings Corp. expects to complete late this year two of four high-rise buildings at its Fountain Breeze project in Sucat, Paranaque.
Fountain Breeze is a three-hectare multi-mix development with five walkup, three mid-rise and six high-rise buildings with a total of 1,779 units.
The Phinma Group owns and manages the Micro Inn and Suites Hotels brand in the country through its subsidiary Microtel Development Corp.
