PH infra firm to put up unit in China

Property and infrastructure firm Philippine Infradev Holdings Inc. is setting up an offshore unit in China, opening the gateway for more Chinese investments into the Philippines.

Infradev is also teaming up with its principal shareholder in a bid to take part in the Pasig River rehabilitation project.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Tuesday, Infradev said it had obtained authority from its board to create a $10-million wholly owned subsidiary in Jiangsu, China, to be named Infra China Ltd.

This unit will focus on various activities including procurement, financing, financial leasing, commercial trading and guarantee.

Infradev—led by businessman Antonio Tiu who also leads agribusiness firm Agrinurture Inc. and renewable energy firm Greenergy Inc.—has been bringing to the Philippines a lot of investors from mainland China. For instance, it has teamed up with Chinese firms for its $3.7-billion Makati subway project.