DMCI Homes trims stake in Subic Water

THE PROPERTY arm of DMCI Holdings has pared its interest in Subic Water and Sewerage Co., a pioneer in the water and wastewater services public-private partnership using the build-operate-transfer framework.

Conglomerate DMCI Holdings told the Philippine Stock Exchange on Monday that its subsidiary DMCI Project Developers Inc. (DMCI Homes) had sold 10 percent of its stock in Subic Water to the City of Olongapo for around P210.6 million.

After the sale, DMCI Homes still owns a total of 30 percent of Subic Water’s outstanding capital stock, the disclosure said.

Subic Water was formed in 1997 to address what was then an impending water crisis in Olongapo City alongside the growing commercial water requirements of the booming Subic Bay Freeport Zone. It has the exclusive right and privilege to operate, maintain, and improve the water and sewerage systems of Olongapo City and Subic Bay Freeport under a 30-year franchise term.

Other stakeholders in Subic Water are Sembcorp Industries Ltd., (Sembcorp) a Singaporean water utility specialist, Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) or the agency that administers Subic Bay Freeport and Maynilad Water Services Inc. (Maynilad), the Philippines’ largest water concessionaire in terms of customer base.