8990 Holdings in talks with Primex for joint venture

LEADING mass housing developer 8990 Holdings is looking to partner with publicly-listed real estate firm Primex Corp.

8990 Holdings president Januario Jesus Atencio told reporters in a recent briefing that the company was looking to explore and develop Primex’s vast, but idle landholdings.

“They’ve got a land bank that’s wonderful. Some of these properties … are ideal for mass housing,” Atencio said.

He said, however, that negotiations were still ongoing and that no deal had been signed yet. He said the company will come up with firmer plans in a month’s time.

“They have one of the best land banks I’ve ever seen,” Atencio said, noting that the patriarch of the Ang family that leads Primex started buying these land holdings some 20 to 25 years ago.

Atencio said Primex’s 20 to 30-hectare property in Bulacan, for instance, appeared interesting.

With 8990 Holdings’ technical expertise, Primex can gain a foothold of plans to accelerate growth, he said.

Incorporated in 1986, Primex is now into raw land acquisition, property development, marketing and leasing. It is primarily owned by the Ang family and is affiliated with the following privately-held companies: Primex Land Inc., Primex Domain Inc., Primex Realty Corp., and Primex Development Corp. It has landholdings in Metro Manila, Antipolo and Tagaytay. Primex listed on the local bourse in 2001.

Meanwhile, 8990 Holdings is set to venture into office property development, starting with a 1,400-square meter (sq m) property in Yakal St., Makati, that used to be the impounding area of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority.

Originally intended for residential development, 8990 Holdings deemed the property as more suitable for office development.

The 10-story office property project will cost around P300 million. The project is seen to open up to 8,190 sq m of leasable office space.

In the first six months of the year, 8990 Holdings’ net profit grew by 18 percent year-on-year to P2.13 billion as stronger second quarter performance made up for the flat earnings earlier in the year.