Belle allots P5B for Phase 2of Entertainment City project

By Zinnia B. Dela Peña (The Philippine Star) | Updated December 1, 2012 - 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines - Leisure developer and gaming firm Belle Corp. is spending P5 billion for the second phase of the $1-billion mixed-use complex that will rise within  the proposed Entertainment City along Roxas Bld.

In a text message, Belle vice-chairman Willy N. Ocier said construction works for Phase 2 has already started with the interior and fit-out of the facility targeted to be completed in January 2013.

He said funding for Phase 2 will come from proceeds of a stock rights issue and loan facilities from Banco De Oro.

Upon completion of Phase 2, Belle will lease to Macau casino giant Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd. the land and buildings in the facility for the operation of a hotel, casino and resort complex, with retail, entertainment, convention, exhibition, food and beverage services as well as other related activities.

The operating agreement will be signed on closing and will govern the operation of the project until the expiry of the casino license (currently expected to be in July 2033).

Melco Crown, the joint venture between Macau gaming kingpin Stanley Ho and the late Australian casino and media magnate Kerry Packer, is investing around $600 million in the project .

Belle and Melco will each have an estimated economic interest of 50 percent in the project, which will be derived from gaming revenues and the lease of commercial space in the entertainment center.

This would be Melco’s first foray in the Philippine gaming market, which is forecast to hit $3 billion in revenues by 2015.

The project will be the second complex to open in this area, groomed to become the Philippines’ version of the Las Vegas strip, next to port mogul Enrique Razon’s Solaire Casino & Resort.

Lawrence Ho, co-chairman and chief executive officer of Melco Crown, said the project is a step closer towards realizing the group’s vision of becoming one of the leading gaming companies in Asia. The deal is also seen to provide Melco with a platform for further expansion in Asia, allowing it to capitalize on future opportunities to drive long-term shareholder value.

“The success of Macau as a gaming and entertainment destination has led to the proliferation of gaming across the Asia Pacific region. With our strong foothold in Macau and experience in developing and operating world-class integrated entertainment resorts, such as City of Dreams, we are perfectly positioned to add a new dimension to the gaming and entertainment industry in the Philippines, enabling us to benefit from the anticipated growth in the leisure and tourism industry,” Ho said.

 “We believe the Philippines is well placed to take advantage of the increasingly affluent and growing Asian middle class who continue to seek new travel destinations and experiences throughout Asia,”  he added.

Aside from the City of Dreams, Melco also operates  Altira Macau. It likewise owns a  chain of gaming machines under the Mocha Club brand.

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SM: 2nd Ateneo condo on track

By Jenniffer B. Austria | Posted on Dec. 01, 2012 at 12:01am |

[ manilastandardtoday.com ]

SM Development Corp., the property of conglomerate SM Investment Corp., is on track with the construction of a second condominium project along the Katipunan Avenue in Quezon City.

SM Development said in a statement it held topping off ceremonies for the Blue Residences condominium project, a 40-story tower situated on a 4,235-square meter property at the corner of Katipunan Avenue and Aurora Boulevard. The building is near Ateneo de Manila University, the University of the Philippines, Miriam College and the Philippine School of Business Administration.

SM Development completed the first condominium project in Katipunan Avenue—the Berkeley Residences.

Blue  Residences,meanwhile, offers 1,600 units and aims to lure students of the nearby schools and universities.

Construction began in October of 2010 with the start of turnover to homebuyers  expected in the third quarter of 2014.

Blue Residences features such amenities as an adult swimming pool, a kiddie pool, two function rooms, a children’s playground, a students’ lounge, a roof deck lounge, and a jogging path set amid a tropical garden.  The development will also have commercial areas catering to the needs of residents.

Unit types available for Blue Residences include studios, one-bedroom and two-bedroom units, with sizes ranging from 21.6 to 44.7 square meters.

The current selling prices are between P2 million and P5 million per unit, which averages between P90,000 and P127,000 per square meter.

SM Development posted P16.1 billion in revenues from real estate sales in the first nine months of the year, up 42.7 percent from P11.3 billion year-on-year. Consolidated net income for the period increased 5.7 percent year-on-year to P3.3 billion.

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Robinsons Land poised to buy property in Libis

Posted on November 29, 2012 10:29:01 PM [ BusinessWorld Online ]

HOLDING FIRM Republic Glass Holdings Corp. has moved to sell its two-hectare property in Quezon City to real estate developer Robinsons Land Corp., which in turn may transform the lot into a future mixed-use project.  “Republic Glass today (Nov. 28) announced that it signed with Robinsons Land an agreement under the terms of which Republic Glass will sell its two-hectare property in Libis, Quezon City,” the holding firm said in a disclosure yesterday.

The transaction was confirmed by Robinsons Land in a separate disclosure yesterday.

PLANS

“We are building a mixed-use development in the Republic Glass property,” Roseann C. Villegas, Robinsons Land director for corporate public relations, said further in a text message yesterday when asked about the Gokongwei-led developer’s plans for the property.

She was unable to elaborate, however, stating for instance that “the purchase value was not disclosed.”

The property sale to Robinsons Land will take place in tranches over two years, Republic Glass explained in its disclosure yesterday.

“The sale shall be on installment basis with payments to be made over two years,” the holding company said without elaborating.

The Libis property, which measures 20,000 square meters (sq. m.) consisting of a lot and warehouse, is currently in “good condition” and is being leased out to an undisclosed group, according to the company’s end-September financial report.

Republic Glass earns approximately P1.5 million per month in rental income from its Libis property, Geronimo F. Velasco, Jr., Republic Glass president and vice-chairman, had said at the firm’s annual stockholders’ meeting last April.

The company has recently been disposing of its assets located in various locations nationwide.

Last April, Republic Glass completed the sale of a 191,905 sq. m. vacant lot in Batangas to construction firm Atlantic, Gulf & Pacific Co. of Manila, Inc. for P347 million.

Aside from its Batangas and Quezon City properties, the company also holds parcels of land in Cagayan de Oro City, Tagaytay City, and Palawan for future development or disposal.

Republic Glass was incorporated in 1956 as Republic Glass Corp., a manufacturer and supplier of flat glass. It spun off its glass operations in 1990 to form Republic-Asahi Glass Corp. in a joint venture with Japan-based Asahi Glass Co. Ltd.

Since 2001, Republic Glass has been engaged primarily in the purchase and sale of government and corporate investment-grade bonds and money market placements.

In the near term the holding company said it will continue to seek and assess possibilities for strategic alliances with other firms.

Republic Glass more than doubled its net income to P143.79 million as of September from P57.78 million in the same nine months last year.

In the same comparative periods, revenues fell 6.11% to P49.76 million from P53 million, while general and administrative expenses fell 4.92% to P22.04 million from P23.18 million.

“The improvement in net income was, to a large extent, the result of gain from sale of investment properties of P109.94 million and from mark-to-market gain on financial assets at fair value… of P35.64 million compared to P47.35-million loss posted same period last year,” the company said in its end-September financial report.

Mr. Velasco said last April that Republic Glass expected the return of one-time gains that were absent last year to boost its 2012 net income following a double-digit drop in its 2011 earnings to P78.93 million. He did not elaborate.

Shares of Republic Glass added 18 centavos or 8.11% to P2.40 apiece yesterday from P2.22 last Wednesday, while those of Robinsons Land were traded unchanged at P19.00 apiece. -- Franz Jonathan G. de la Fuente       

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Ayala Land eyes P7B from latest project

Posted on November 29, 2012 10:36:25 PM [ BusinessWorld Online ]

PROPERTY DEVELOPER Ayala Land, Inc. expects to earn roughly P7 billion from the sale of units at the first building of Garden Towers, the firm’s latest residential project under its luxury Ayala Land Premier brand, company officials said yesterday.  “The entire building should generate around P7 billion in sales,” Jose Juan Z. Jugo, Ayala Land Premier head, said at a briefing at Lolo Dad’s Brasserie restaurant in Makati City yesterday.

Ayala Land yesterday launched the first building of Garden Towers, an upscale residential condominium complex to be located on a 9,010-square-meter (sq. m.) lot along Arnaiz Avenue, beside Park Square 1 at the south end of Ayala Center.

In his presentation yesterday, Mr. Jugo noted that Garden Towers’ 51-storey Tower 1 is already 33% sold since selling began last Nov. 18, translating into P2.1 billion in sales to date.

He added that, “conservatively,” he expected units at the first building to be sold out “in 15 to 18 months.”

“Our buyers are really 60% investors and the rest are end-users. We have a variety of buyers, including young families,” Cherryl N. Uy, Ayala Land Premier project manager for residential buildings, said in a separate interview after the briefing.

Mr. Jugo noted last month that P3 billion had been allotted for Garden Towers’ construction. Separately, P9 billion had been poured into the three-tower Park Terraces complex adjacent to Garden Towers.

“Garden Towers will embody vertical garden living at the heart of Ayala Center,” Ms. Uy said, in contrast with its sister development Park Terraces that aims to promote “effortless living” with hotel-like amenities and features.

Upon completion, Garden Towers will feature 340 residential units consisting of one- to three-bedroom configurations, as well as four four-bedroom villas.

The units are sized 69 sq. m.-395 sq. m., with indicative prices between P10.3 million-P143 million per unit, Ayala Land said in a disclosure yesterday.

“Green” features at Garden Towers include 20-sq.-m. pocket sky gardens on every other floor, sunrooms that feature operable floor-to-ceiling glass windows to enable use of natural air and light, as well as an indoor-outdoor garden lobby, Mr. Jugo said.

Turnover for Garden Towers units is slated for the first quarter of 2019, Ms. Uy said.

Amid robust take-up for Tower 1, Ayala Land Premier is already preparing to launch Garden Towers’ second component.

“We will launch the second tower when the first tower is around 80% sold. We will be ready at a given time,” Mr. Jugo said.

“We should be launching maybe four to five projects next year if plans go well,” she added separately in an interview.

“Also last year, we made about P15 billion in revenues. This year, we plan to exceed that figure,” she said.

Aside from Garden Towers, Ayala Land Premier had launched two other projects this year: The Suites, a 298-suite condominium at One Bonifacio High Street in Bonifacio Global City, and Park Point Residences, a 255-unit condominium within Ayala Center Cebu in Cebu City.

Ayala Land was organized in 1988 when parent firm Ayala Corp. decided to spin off its real estate division into an independent subsidiary to enhance management focus on its real estate business.

It went public in 1991.

 Shares of Ayala Land added 60 centavos or 2.56% to P24.00 yesterday from P23.45 last Wednesday. -- Franz J. G. de la Fuente

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