BY ALBERT CASTRO
[ Malaya.com.ph ] June 10, 2010
Metro Pacific Investments Corp., (Metro Pacific) eyes business from its network of hospital to hit as much as P10 billion in revenues and P1 billion in profit when it achieves its target bed capacity of 3,000 five years from now, Metro Pacific executive director for hospital operation Augie Palisoc, Jr. said at the sideline of the company’s stockholders meeting Wednesday.
Palisoc said they are continuously on the watch for new hospitals to acquire after it recently increased its network of hospitals to four, with the acquisition of Riverside Medical Center in Bacolod last month.
Metro Pacific has a little over 1,000 beds in all its network of hospitals, with the inclusion of Makati Medical Center and Cardinal Santos Medical Center in Metro Manila, and Davao Doctors Hospital in Mindanao.
Palisoc said they hope to acquire another hospital before the end of the year, though he declined to identify the hospital.
Metro Pacific is in talks for a possible new acquisition in North Mindanao, Visayas, and in North Luzon for added hospitals.
"For the province, we are looking at hospitals with a bed capacity of about 150," he said.
"But hitting our target bed capacity may take some five years," he also said.
Last year, the hospital business contributed P174 million on Metro Pacific’s core net income.
Metro Pacific posted a total profit of P2.31 billion, net of minority interest, with majority of the profit contributed by Metro Pacific’s investments in utilities businesses Maynilad Water Services, Inc. (Maynilad), Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC), and Manila Electric Co., (Meralco).
The hospital business is not consolidated into the company’s income statement since it is not controlled by Metro Pacific.
Metro Pacific president Jose Ma. K. Lim said they aim to increase company core income by 47 percent this year; further improve coverage and service levels in Maynilad for a 10 percent growth in billed volumes; deliver 5 percent growth in traffic at NLEX and continue to drive towards the goal of delivering a seamless network of tolled roads; tighten management of the distribution utility and develop non-regulated businesses such as power generation and retail electricity sales at Meralco; and to focus on marketing improved services hospitals, apart from looking for new acquisitions in the hospital group.
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