Cebu group investing P6B in 100-ha reclamation project

A consortium of Cebu-based businesses led by property developer Cebu Landmasters Inc. expects to invest P6 billion in a 100-hectare reclamation project in Minglanilla, Cebu, which will pave the way for the group’s entry into the industrial park development business.

In an interview last week, CLI founder and president Jose Soberano III said the consortium that proposed the Ming More Reclamation and Industrial Park four years ago was now just awaiting an environment compliance certificate (ECC) from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).

CLI—which joined the consortium long before its debut on the Philippine Stock Exchange last year—owns 25 percent of the consortium but will have management control of the proposed project. Soberano said it was “possible there might be some changes in ownership at the right time.”

Asked whether CLI could gain the majority control, Soberano said it would depend on other partners but noted that the parties were “talking along that lines already.”

The project was submitted as a public-private partnership with the local government of Minglanilla, a first class municipality in Cebu.

“We really need industrial parks as the [120-hectare] MEPZ (Mactan Export Processing Zone) is now full,” he said.

Soberano said reclaiming 100 hectares would be a better option “instead of having to consolidate 100 hectares (by buying out other landowners) within the inland area.”

He said it was now difficult to find vast tracts of land that could be used for real estate development. Even assuming that such land is available, he said it would involve the relocation of many people.

Soberano estimated that the cost of reclaiming the land is at P6,000 per square meter or a total of P6 billion.

The project had been approved by the Cebu Provincial Reclamation Authority (CPRA) in 2015.

“It’s a PPP arrangement. The local government gets 51 percent and the developer-partner gets 49 percent. Their 51 percent includes the roadways and common areas so, in effect, we have 70 percent of the sellable or leasable area,” Soberano said.

The respective shares of the national and local governments are already included in the 51 percent land allotment.

“By the time you have all the papers right, the local government calls for a bidding,” he said.

As PPP, this is subject to a price challenge but as the original proponent, the CLI-led consortium has the right to match the best alternative offer.

The industrial park is envisioned to host 45 light industrial plants along the coast of barangays Calajo-an and Tulay.