Alphaland expands resort capacity

Property developer Alphaland Corp. is expanding the capacity of flagship island-resort project Balesin Island Club this year and is seeking government authority to allow members to fly from overseas locations straight into the airstrip of the upscale leisure estate.

Alphaland is originally targeting to build only 180 villas and suites at the 500-hectare Balesin Club, but is now constructing an additional 120 units to reach close to 300 by the middle of this year. The resort club, which has seven themed villages patterned after the world’s most luxurious seaside resorts, now has about 770 members. Each share in the club is worth about P3.2 million.

“We haven’t even started to sell outside. Once we sell outside, prices could go up exponentially,” said Alphaland president Mario Oreta. He said Alphaland has prioritized “selling to Filipinos first.”

“Share prices of Balesin Island Club have increased 300 percent since our launching and our members are excited that our share price will increase to P4 million by the end of 2013,” Alphaland chair Roberto V. Ongpin told the company’s stockholders in a recent meeting.

The group is also seeking Customs Immigration Quarantine (CIQ) from the government to be able to allow overseas members to fly straight to Balesin’s airstrip. “Our runway can accommodate up to an Airbus 319,” Oreta said, adding that the CIQ would eliminate the hassle of foreign members going through the Ninoy Aquino International Airport and then transferring to the club’s hangar to take another flight to Balesin.

Alphaland has built on the island a 1.5-kilometer concrete runway. The island is accessible to Manila through a 20-minute flight on Alphaland’s airplanes. The club operates two Cessna Grand Caravan airplanes that seat nine passengers and recently added two British Aerospace Jetstream 32-seater planes. The Jetstream planes were bought for $800,000 to $1 million while the brand-new Cessna planes cost $2 million each.

The club has an occupancy rate of about 80-90 percent on weekends.

“The biggest market for Balesin is really international,” said Hannah Yulo, Alphaland’c chief finance officer. Balesin Club is authorized to sell up to 7,000 shares but Oreta said Alphaland might choose to sell less than this number.  Doris C. Dumlao