Posted on November 12, 2012 10:37:22
PM [BusinessWorld Online ]
By Siegfrid O. Alegado, Reporter
THE MULTIBILLION-peso sale of
state-owned Food Terminal, Inc. (FTI) to Ayala Land, Inc. (ALI) was sealed
yesterday, with the property firm looking forward to building a new business
district and the government hopeful of increased economic activity in the
southern part of Metro Manila.
A purchase agreement to develop 74 hectares of the 103-ha FTI estate was
inked in Malacañang, with President Benigno S. C. Aquino III witnessing. ALI
bid P24.331 billion during an auction last August, beating two other leading
developers.
In a statement, ALI said it planned to
transform the property, in Taguig City near the South Luzon Expressway and the
end of the C-5 highway, into another central business district (CBD).
"FTI will be development into an
integrated, mixed-use and sustainable business district featuring ‘high energy’
blocks that will offer excellent living and working spaces," it claimed.
Antonio T. Aquino, ALI president,
said: "The development of what will be the next premier CBD of Metro
Manila is another milestone that we are very pleased to be embarking on."
The developer already has CBDs in
Makati, Quezon City and Cebu as part of its portfolio.
Given FTI’s proximity to major
thoroughfares, the firm is also planning to develop an intermodal transport
system in the property through a partnership with the Public Works department.
"We’re still finalizing the plans
and timeline [for the development,] but the formal turnover to us will be at
the end of this year," Jorge Miguel T. Marco, ALI corporate communications
head, told BusinessWorld in a text message.
The government, meanwhile, is hoping
that the successful FTI sale -- which came after several failed auctions --
will boost economic activity in the southern part of the metropolis.
"We hope the redevelopment of the
FTI complex will lead to a surge in economic activity and increase in
employment in the City of Taguig and the surrounding metropolitan area,"
said Karen G. Singson, Privatization and Management Office head, in a separate
statement.
Ms. Singson, Finance Secretary Cesar
V. Purisima, Public Works Secretary Rogelio I. Singson, FTI president Rene R.
Fuentes and Taguig City Mayor Maria Laarni Lopez-Cayetano signed the purchase
agreement yesterday in behalf of the government.
ALI, meanwhile, was represented by its
chairman Fernando Zobel de Ayala and Mr. Aquino.
ALI’s P24.331-billion bid was more
than double the government’s P10.248-billion base price for the 74-ha. lot. It
topped Gokongwei-led Robinsons Land Corp.’s offer of P14.667 billion and Andrew
L. Tan-controlled Empire East Land Holdings’ P11.248 billion.
FTI is the first major government
asset to be privatized under the Aquino administration.
The success of the August auction
followed several failed attempts, the last in 2009 when a bid deadline lapsed
without any offers. Sale plans were likewise scrapped in 2010 due to
unfavorable market conditions arising from the global financial crisis.
Officials have said the sale proceeds
will be used to bankroll the government’s agriculture, fisheries and agrarian
reform programs. Funds will also be allocated to pay off FTI’s liabilities.
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