Posted on
August 16, 2013 07:46:03 PM
IRC
PROPERTIES, Inc. is finalizing a deal to sell a portion of its landholdings in
Rizal province to another listed company, IRC said on a disclosure on Friday.
"To
provide guidance to the investing public and to our stakeholders, we wish to
disclose that the company is in the final stages of selling part of its
landholdings to a Philippine publicly-listed real estate developer," the
company said. "This is the culmination of more than a year of due
diligence by the buying entity."
"Financial
close is expected this quarter," it added.
The company
said Sunshine Fiesta, a housing development in Binangonan town, "has
ripened into a community, which has attracted major property developers."
"To
further bolster this community, the above mentioned sales is simply an initial
transaction with a further understanding for future land sales and joint
venture project," the company said.
The company,
in the same disclosure, noted that it is in talks with other parties for
various real estate developments.
"We wish
to give further guidance that major and Philippine and foreign entities are in
serious and advanced negotiations as regards to various mixed-use, township,
and retirement community developments," it said.
IRC
Properties, formerly Interport Resources Corp. (IRC), was incorporated on Feb.
24, 1975 primarily to engage in the acquisition, reclamation, development or
exploration of land, forests, minerals, oil, gas and other resources, its
Philippine Stock Exchange profile showed.
The company
initially ventured in oil exploration activities and drilled two wells in
southern Mindoro and the Sulu Sea areas, but world recession in the late 1970s
forced IRC to cut down on exploration activities.
In 1978, the
company acquired a 2,200-hectare property in Binangonan which signaled its
shift in major business activity from oil exploration to real estate
development. IRC also owns Apo Island, an 896-hectare island located in Coron,
Palawan.
The company’s
net income dipped by 9% to P4.48 million in the first half from P4.11 million a
year ago due to mounting expenses.
Shares of IRC
Properties gained 16 centavos or 11.43% to P1.56 apiece on Friday from P1.40
apiece on Thursday. -- Cliff Harvey C. Venzon
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