Posted on August 01, 2012 10:11:26 PM
[ BusinessWorld Online ]
“We will be announcing in the next few
months a new group for PPPs,” Senator Manuel B. Villar, Jr., who used to run
the family’s property firm Vista Land & Lifescapes, Inc., told reporters in
a chance interview yesterday.
He has since turned over the reins to
his son Manuel Paolo A. Villar.
Before this, the politician had been
accused of using his influence to change the alignment of the C-5 road
extension to benefit the family’s housing developments.
The younger Villar, who sits as
president and chief executive of Vista Land, will head the planned investment
vehicle, the Senator said.
“It will be a personal vehicle,” the
Vista Land president, for his part, said. “We are already in talks with
partners.
The planned corporate entity may
venture into sectors such as infrastructure, utilities, mining, water, and
power, the senator said.
Earlier this year, the family already
entered the mining industry by securing a 25% stake in Nationwide Development
Corp., which holds a mineral production sharing agreement in Compostela Valley.
“I personally believe in the future of
infrastructure and mining in contributing to the country’s development. It will
be a good investment,” the Vista Land president said.
Sought for comment, Freya B.
Natividad, analyst at online brokerage 2TradeAsia.com said: “[This] would
create synergies with the Villar’s listed company.”
Vista Land shares were traded
unchanged yesterday at P4.40 apiece. -- F. J. G. de la Fuente
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