Posted on May 22, 2016 07:54:00 PM [
bworldonline.com]
By Keith Richard D. Mariano
ARANETA CENTER, Inc. will spend P50
billion more for the continuing redevelopment of its property in Cubao, Quezon
City, a senior company official said.
“In the pipeline, we’re looking at the
present estimate is about P50 billion maybe (over) five to 10 years,” Araneta
Senior Vice-President for Operations Antonio T. Mardo said Friday.
The budget covers the construction of
three more office towers in the CyberPark Complex and the expansion of Gateway
Mall, among others, within the 35-hectare Araneta Center.
Araneta already broke ground for the
second of the five office towers it intends to build within the CyberPark
Complex designed particularly for business process outsourcing locators.
The company targets to complete
CyberPark Tower 2 within the second semester of 2018. The schedule for the
three others will be market-driven, Mr. Mardo noted.
The expansion of Gateway Mall,
meanwhile, will likely begin “anytime within the year or early next year.” It
should be completed two years thereafter, Mr. Mardo said.
In addition, Araneta is looking at
turning the two-hectare area currently occupied by Shopwise into a mix-use
development with retail, leisure, dining, residential and office spaces.
The projects form part of the
comprehensive redevelopment of Araneta Center over a 20-year period starting
2002. The first phase alone could cost around P30 billion, Mr. Mardo said.
Araneta thus far completed the
construction of the international leisure and business hotel Novotel Manila,
the 2,500-seat Kia Theatre and the high-rise Cyberpark Tower 1.
Asked how and when the company intends
to fund the rest of the redevelopment, Mr. Mardo said: “We have to review our
program. It really depends on how the economy moves also.”
Araneta is hoping for the best under the
new administration, Mr. Mardo added. “Of course, we want to see the best things
to come, but we have to wait and see.”
The company’s parent -- Araneta
Properties, Inc. -- shed 2.27% to settle at P2.15 on the Philippine Stock
Exchange on Friday.
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