EEI to fork out P3.85B to boost operating units

Construction and engineering firm EEI Corp. plans to inject a total of P3.85 billion for the expansion of its subsidiaries as the company seeks to explore other opportunities at home and abroad.

In a stock exchange filing on Monday, EEI said its board of directors had approved a P550-million investment into EEI Ltd., P600 million into EEI Construction and Marine Inc., P1 billion into EEI Ventures Inc. and P1.7 billion into EEI Power Corp. to fund “business expansion opportunities.”

In the case of EEI Ltd., the parent firm said the fresh capital would be used to broaden its international network.

READ: Dennis Uy’s PHR gets lifeline from EEI for stalled Cebu project

EEI did not disclose additional details about its investments.

Earlier this year, EEI announced plans to launch a new holding firm meant to acquire and hold interests in “various potential businesses” as it explores other ventures.

In March, EEI’s board approved a P500-million share subscription into a soon-to-be-incorporated wholly owned holding subsidiary.

This also comes a week after EEI had been tapped to continue the long-stalled casino project of Davao-based businessman Dennis Uy’s PH Resorts Group Holdings Inc. (PHR) in Cebu province.

Under EEI’s memorandum of understanding (MOU) with PHR parent firm Udenna Corp., the Yuchengco-led firm will “finance, construct and complete” the $300-million Emerald Bay Resort and Casino project.

Upcoming deal

The MOU will likewise allow EEI to execute agreements with PHR and its subsidiaries, Lapulapu Leisure Inc. and Lapulapu Land Corp.

EEI is the fourth investor to take a risk on the Cebu project in just a year, as the casino was previously tagged as “overpriced” by analysts.

In July, Tiger Resort Leisure and Entertainment Inc., the operator of Okada Manila, backed out from the deal that could have nudged the project toward completion.

Emerald Bay began construction in 2017 and it has yet to be completed as PHR struggles to find a partner that will stay until operations start.

Last year, Cebu-based developer AppleOne Properties Inc. and billionaire Enrique Razon Jr.-led Bloomberry Resorts Corp. both terminated talks with PHR.

According to PHR, the project will have a five-star hotel, two 15-story towers with 642 rooms, four pools, 18 food and beverage outlets, retail spaces, conference and exhibition facilities, and a gaming floor with at least 700 electronic gaming machines and more than 140 tables.