Vol. XXII, No. 107 [ BusinessWorld Online ]
Tuesday, December 23, 2008 | MANILA, PHILIPPINES
THE GOVERNMENT plans to put the Food Terminal, Inc. (FTI) complex in Taguig on the auction block in the first semester next year to raise at least P10 billion, Finance Undersecretary Crisanta Legaspi said in a phone interview yesterday.
Ms. Legaspi said yesterday details of the sale of the complex, including floor price, are being finalized by the Privatization and Management Office (PMO).
"In our discussions, PMO is looking at the first half to sell it. But the PMO has yet to submit proposal on how to best package it — as long as government gets the best price, and we have to see to it that the lease contracts have to be honored," she said.
For next year, the government expects the sale of 40% out of its 99.78% stake in PNOC-Exploration Corp. (PNOC-EC) and of the FTI complex, as well as the lease of its property in Fujimi, Japan, to generate at least P23 billion, Finance Sec. Margarito B. Teves told reporters late last week.
Some 24 hectares of the agro-industrial complex have been declared a special economic zone, while 41.49 hectares are covered by lease contracts. There are more than 300 firms in FTI, mostly into electronics, food, transport, garments, and general warehousing.
Asked whether Ayala Land Inc. is interested, Ms. Legaspi said, "Yes, they have looked at the property [but] there are other groups interested in FTI."
The government has been trying to sell the FTI, established in 1969 as the Greater Manila Terminal Food Market, since 1997. — RAMR
