Posted on April 30, 2015 10:07:00 PM
By Krista A. M. Montealegre, Senior
Reporter
THE PROPERTY arm of GT Capital
Holdings, Inc. teamed up with an Ayala Land, Inc. (ALI) subsidiary to build a
master-planned township project in Laguna, increasing the former’s exposure in
the horizontal segment of the residential market.
The holding firm of Philippine
billionaire George S.K. Ty told the stock exchange that its unit Federal Land,
Inc. entered into a joint venture agreement with Alveo Land Corp. for the
development of a 45-hectare property in Biñan.
Alveo Land is ALI’s upper- and
middle-income segment residential arm.
The Ty family, controlling
shareholders of the holding firm and owner of the property, sold the land to
the joint venture vehicle of Federal Land and Alveo, GT Capital Head for
Investor Relations Jose T. Crisol said in a phone interview.
“Through this strategic partnership
with Alveo, we look to deepen our involvement in horizontal property
development, in as much as the historical focus of Federal Land was mostly on
high-rise condominium projects,” Federal Land President Alfred V. Ty said in a
statement attached to the disclosure.
Federal Land has an existing
horizontal project in Cavite, but the Laguna project will be larger in scale,
Mr. Crisol said. Most of its projects are condominium towers in Pasay City and
Bonifacio Global City in Taguig City.
The joint venture with the Ayala group
is consistent with GT Capital’s business model of tying up with experts in the
industries, he added.
“Being rooted in Ayala Land’s heritage
of real estate excellence, Alveo Land has always aimed to create an extensive
portfolio of holistic communities attuned to the needs of a dynamic, urban
lifestyle,” Alveo Land President Robert S. Lao said in the same statement.
Located on Laguna Boulevard, the
proposed project is accessible via the South Metro Manila Skyway and the South
Luzon Expressway. It is near the De La Salle University Science and Technology
Complex and the Ayala Laguna Technopark.
The property is a few kilometers from
the planned Laguna Boulevard interchange of the proposed Cavite-Laguna
Expressway and within the vicinity of Ayala Land’s Ayala Westgrove Heights and
Nuvali projects.
Biñan is a first-class component city
of Laguna with a population of 284,000, GT Capital said, citing the latest
available data. It hosts several large industrial parks and commercial centers.
“Due to its proximity to the National
Capital Region and the presence if major subdivisions, the city may be
considered a suburban residential community of Metro Manila,” the listed firm
said.
Aside from Federal Land, GT Capital
has interests in Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co.; Toyota Motor Philippines
Corp.; Toyota Manila Bay Corp.; Toyota Cubao, Inc.; Toyota Financial Services
Philippines Corp.; Global Business Power Corp.; Philippine AXA Life Insurance
Corp.; and Charter Ping An Insurance Corp.
Shares of GT Capital dropped 2.26% or
P29 to close at P1,256 apiece yesterday.
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