Tuesday, May 05, 2009 [ manilatimes.net ]
SOUTHEAST Asia’s largest food and beverage conglomerate is conducting due diligence for a possible investment in the Tarlac-La Union Toll Expressway.
Isidro Consunji, DMCI Holdings Inc. president, said San Miguel Corp. (SMC) is now on its second week of due diligence for the P15.2-billion build-operate-transfer (BOT) project extension for the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX).
Consunji said that SMC has 60 days to complete the study.
The extension of NLEX aims to put up an 88.5 kilometer, four-lane expressway, extend the reach of NLEX as far as Rosario, La Union, starting from La Paz, Tarlac.
Upon completion, travel time from Manila to Baguio will be cut from six to three hours on speeds of 80 kilometers per hour.
The project will be financed 30-percent equity to be infused by the proponents, with the remaining amount sourced from an P8.59-billion syndicated loan.
“The agreement with [SMC] is for them to get a 49-percent equity in the project, expandable to 51 percent,” Consunji told reporters.
The government already committed a P2.91-billion subsidy for the project.
SMC’s name came up after it was reported that project proponent Private Infra Development Corp. was looking for a new partner that will infuse capital into the project.
Private Infra is a consortium of 10 construction firms of which DM Consunji Inc. is an incorporator.
First Balfour was replaced by Metro Pacific Investment Corp., after the Lopez family sold its stake in the NLEX operator to the local unit of Hong Kong-based First Pacific Co. Ltd.
Capital infusion, however, became an issue after some investors of Private Infra failed to come up with the expected equity share on the project following an equity call.-- Chino S. Leyco
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