Investors keep eyes on hotels, condotels

By LEN VELASCO
Reporter

REAL property development continues its giant stride in Cagayan de Oro with new projects soon to dominate the city’s landscape, particularly hotels and upscale residential buildings.

In downtown Cagayan de Oro, construction is underway for the 18-storey hotel at the Limketkai Commercial Complex. If completed, the new 224-room hotel shall hold the distinction as the tallest structure in Mindanao.

Among the latest investment in this city’s vibrant real estate industry is the 3-storey 48-units Uptown Condotel project being developed by Plumbline Development Corporation located at the Business Park of Xavier Estates in Upper Balulang.

Still nearing halfway in its construction, Uptown Condotel is the fifth condominium project to be built in the city after the Korescoville 1, Korescoville 2, Courtyards, and the Primavera Residences Condominium being developed by an Italian firm.

It is the newest concept of vacation home where you can enjoy the comforts of modern living and earn additional income while your away on a business trip or holidays.

Mr. Erwin L. Pepino, Plumbline’s corporate secretary and vice-president for public relations, said that although this just their maiden project, the company is determined to make it the finest Condotel in the region and provide investors an opportunity to own a condo unit, and at the same time building their business.

“We’re bringing in a cutting-edge business concept that would lure investors into the city,” Mr. Pepino said.

“Our aim is not just to provide a hotel-like home atmosphere to our investors, local and foreign, but also give them prime investment opportunities in Cagayan de Oro’s real estate market,” he said.

Under its unique concept, Uptown Condotel units will all be privately owned by their respective buyers. But an option allows investors to enrol their units in the hotel management program where they can choose to either rent out their property on a “cooperative” basis.

Mr. Pepino explained that if an investor chooses to enrol his unit under the program, he can still earn even if his unit is not rented out.

“Meaning, our investors can sit down and relax in the comfort of their respective home away from us and still get dividends and yet their units are still intact and taken cared by the management,” he said.

Under the scheme, unit buyers can earn as much as 18.21% of their investment, a far cry from the less than 10% per annum earning when the money are kept in the banks.

Each unit is a 45 square meter area, bigger than a suite room and has a luxury hotel services such as 24-hour operator assisted telephone service (no need to apply for your own landline), Cable TV & Free Internet Connectivity, and 24-hour House Keeping (Room Service) on Demand.

All hotel units will have kitchen facilities and each unit’s T&B will be fitted with bathtubs. The standard unit price for the residential unit provides for the suite to be fully furnished. Included in the price are the appliances, fixtures, furniture and linen.

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Good prospects seen as jobless rate drops

DESPITE the slack in economic growth, Northern Mindanao continues to register remarkable performance in terms of employment opportunities as it posted the highest labor force participation rate nationwide.

Data from the National Statistics Office (NSO) showed that in January this year, Region 10 registered the highest LFPR at 70.2 percent while the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) posted the lowest at 59.2 percent. In Central Visayas, the LFPR in the same month was estimated at 64.8 percent.

Labor force participation rate or LFPR is the proportion of the population ages 15-64 that is economically active. It refers to all people who supply labor for the production of goods and services during a specified period.

This is on top of the drop in unemployment rate nationwide which fell to 7.3 percent in January from 7.7 percent a year ago, when thousands lost their jobs as a result of the global financial crisis.

A total of 2.8 million people were without jobs in January compared with 2.9 million in January 2009, the agency says.

Around 38.8 million people were reported to have been in the labor force out of the estimated 60.2-million population aged 15 years and above in January 2010, the statistics office says.

That places the country’s month’s labor LFPR at 64.5 percent, up 1.2 percentage points from last year’s estimate of 63.3 percent.

Overall, the NSO reported that more than one-half or 52.4 percent worked in the services sector in January this year and that the bulk of increase in employment, 1.3 million, is in this sector, particularly in the wholesale and retail trade and repair of motor vehicles, motorcycles, and personal and household goods sub-sectors. Workers in agriculture accounted for 32.8 percent of the total employed. Only 14.8 percent of the total employed was in industry, with the manufacturing sub-sector making up 8.4% of the total employed.

Among the various occupation groups, employed persons were dominated by laborers and unskilled workers at 32.7 percent of the total employed persons in January. Farmers, forestry workers and fishermen were the second largest group, accounting for 15.4 percent of the total employed.

By class of work, more than half or 55.8 percent of the employed persons were wage and salary workers while more than one-third or 33.6 percent were own-account workers. The remaining 10.6 percent were unpaid family workers

“The Philippine labor market posted a strong performance amid the global economic crisis, the lingering impacts of the destructive tropical cyclones late last year, and the damage caused by the El Niño phenomenon in the second half of 2009,” National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) acting Director-General Augusto Santos said in a memorandum to President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

Meanwhile, the regional office of the Department of Labor and Employment here said Northern Mindanao has a lot of opportunities for employment, particularly in the business process outsourcing (BPO) and agri-industrial sectors.

It said call centers are flourishing in Cagayan de Oro City and producing employments at a remarkable rate.

The region is likewise ready to absorb a significant number of new graduates this year, it said.

Northern Mindanao is likewise regarded as a major agri-industrial center, with a number of agri-based industries providing employment to a large number of people, particularly in Bukidnon.

On the other hand, the export sector, one of the country’s main employers, recorded double-digit declines for more than a year as global demand slumped.

But economic indicators now point to a better-than-expected growth for the year as the country recovers from the global crisis.

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Act with prudence, business group to GMA

By LEN VELASCO, Reporter
BUSINESSMEN in Mindanao are urging President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to act with extreme prudence as she exercises her reserved executive powers to solve the worsening power crisis in Mindanao.

Mr. Edwin Capili, vice president for Mindanao of the powerful Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), said the declaration of Mindanao under the state of calamity has afforded the President extraordinary powers to ease the power crisis “but she [the President] must act with more prudence” to avoid excesses committed in the past.

During the recent launching of the 19th Mindanao Business Conference (Minbizcon) to be held in Cagayan de Oro on Sept. 17-18, 2010, Capili said the business sector in Mindanao is still awaiting for specific actions that the President may undertake.
PCCI chairman Sergio R. Ortiz-Luis, Jr. however said that the problem has been exacerbated by the lack of government attention on the country’s power situation.

“In 2007, we already warned the government about the impending shortage of power by year 2011, and nothing has been done to avert the disaster,” Ortiz said.
Mr. Ralph Paguio, president of the host Cagayan de Oro Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said among the major concerns that will be tackled by Minbizcon is the persisting power problem in Mindanao and the output will be presented to the next President.

“We are also very interested in government’s plans both for energy security and peace and order,” Paguio said.
But Cagayan de Oro Mayor Constantino Jaraula said the declaration of the state of calamity can solve the present power crisis only if good faith prevails in its implementation.

“The crisis has no political color, and let no politician play around,” Jaraula said.
Among the immediate measures implemented by President Arroyo after the declaration of the state of calamity included tapping private-sector cooperation, transferring a power barge from Luzon to Mindanao, and rescheduling the operations of industrial users to off-peak hours, or from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m.

Press Secretary Crispulo Icban Jr. importing equipment has been “ruled out since it would take too much time whereas action required to address the power problem in Mindanao is urgent.”

Business groups in Mindanao likewise turn their ire to the National Power Corp. (Napocor) and the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (Psalm) for admitting they did nothing to prevent the power crisis in Mindanao despite warnings given as early as four years ago.
Cotabato Rep. Darlene Antonino-Custodio said it is the inefficiency by concerned government agencies that made matter worst.

“The way we look at it, it’s not only El Niño but your inefficiency that has aggravated this power problem in Mindanao,” she said.
The two government agencies had included lack of funds for their failure to conduct maintenance work on the generation plants; and failure to plan and implement preemptive measures including the dredging of the Pulangi dam in Bukidnon.

But Custodio pointed out the two agencies could have filed petitions for increases in rates. “Why did you not do it?” Rommel Regacho, a Psalm representative, confirmed to the congressional hearing, headed by Rep. Mikey Arroyo, the Napocor statement that revenues were “not enough to cover the cost of operating the plants.”
Vicente Lao, president of the Mindanao Business Chamber and one of the key persons in the Mindanao Electric Power Alliance, also castigated the two agencies, bitterly asking, “It means you just allowed that lack of funds to let the power plants to deteriorate and let us suffer from where we are now?”

Added Lao, “Or is it because you just deliberately let it deteriorate because these plants would be sold anyway?” Regacho replied that Lao errs because on the contrary, “the government would not let [the plants] deteriorate but [would] increase its market value to be able to attract buyers.”

Lao also called attention to the data presented by Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes indicating water levels in hydroelectric projects show a drop way below critical levels. “And this would happen within the next 45 days which would still be in April. Can you ensure that there would be no problem of power during the elections?”

MINBIZCON. (L-R) Cagayan de Oro Mayor Contantino Jaraula, PCCI Chairman Sergio Ortiz-Luis, Oro Chamber President Jaime Ralp Paguio, PCCI Vice President for Mindanao Edwin Capili, and PCCI Reg’l Governpor for Northern Mindanao Elvira Tan, sign the Memorandum of Undertakings for the hosting of the 19th Mindanao Business Conference to be held on Sept. 17-18, 2010 at the Grand Caprice Restaurant, Limketkai, Cagayan de Oro City. Photo by ROLANDO SUDARIA

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Oro's hotel industry picks up sans crisis

Tourist arrivals seen to increase by 6% this year with the upcoming operation of the Laguindingan airport

New hotel projects to further propel Cagayan de Oro’s tourism industry

By LEN VELASCO, Reporter

     PLAYERS in the hotel industry in Cagayan de Oro are optimistic that as the slowdown in tourism slowly regains momentum following the global financial crisis that badly hit major business sector, this year would be promising with new developments and projects already on the pipeline.

Mr. Pedrito Quiamjot, resident manager of Pryce Plaza Hotel, said that while it might be too early to conclude, but 2010 looks better compared to last year.

“Our hotel occupancy rate averaged 47% percent in the first two months of the year and this is an indication that the world’s travel market seems to have really started to pick up,” Quiamjot said.

In order for local hotels to break even, room occupancy must be within 42%, Quiamjot said.

With the summer season getting nearer and election spending peaking up, hotels are bracing for hectic bookings from political candidates for their campaign sorties.

“We are also looking forward for the opening of the Laguindingan International Airport which would certainly bring in more guests and foreign visitors,” Quiamjot said.

Among the emerging top foreign markets are the Koreans, Balikbayans and Japanese which comprised the top three tourist arrivals in the city.

“This year, we expect tourist arrivals to increase by about six percent, a significant improvment from the 3.4% hike recorded last year,” he added.

“Most of the foreign visitors come here for leisure, with eco-tourism as our main advantage, and business-related transactions coming in second,” said Quiamjot.

With the upcoming 18-storey 224-room hotel and resort development project still under construction at the Limketkai’s 30-hectare commercial complex, Quiamjot said this is good for the hotel industry in Cagayan de Oro.

“This is not a treat to us [hoteliers] but a welcome development,” he said.

The Cagayan de Oro-based Limketkai Hotel & Resort Corp. has entered into a P750-million term loan partnership with Security Bank Corp. (SBC) to develop the hotel, which is expected to open for commercial operations in late 2011 or early 2012.

Upon completion, the hotel will dominate the cityscape as the tallest structure in Mindanao.

Cagayan de Oro-based hotels are now capitalizing on the bullishness manifested by the region’s robust tourism and business industries by attending international trade fairs and coming up with more value-added services for their guests.

Ms. Maricar Vasquez, Apple Tree Resort and Hotel manager, said that hoteliers are constantly upgrading their services to fit to the needs and tastes of their guests.

“We need to provide comfort and best ambiance to our clienteles,” Vasquez said as she boasts Apple Tree’s relaxing place which is situated along the famous Opol beach-line.    

But Vasquez admitted that the local hotel industry was severely hit by the effect of the infamous Maguindanao massacre with several bookings cancelled.

She cited the already scheduled PAL International Golf Tournament supposedly to be held at the Pueblo de Oro Golf and Country Club last month with foreign players expected to participate.

“Unfortunately, the international golf event was cancelled and eventually moved to Bacolod City after many countries issued their respective travel advisories for their citizens against travelling to Mindanao because of that incident,” Vasquez noted.

“We lost by the million due to cancelled bookings,” she said.

But Vasquez brushed aside the temporary setback and expressed her positive outlook for the year.

“Hopefully, this year we will all be fine,” she said. 

Recently, Department of Tourism Secretary Ace Durano pointed out that Cagayan de Oro has the fastest growing sector in adventure sports and eco-tourism.

“I think there’s no region in the country today which can match Cagayan de Oro and Northern Mindanao in these niche markets,” Durano stressed.

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P2.5 Billion joint venture a big boost to Cagayan de Oro City

• Investment part of Ayala’s projected P27.17-billion capex this year

By LEN VELASCO, Reporter
THE P2.5-billion joint venture by property giant Ayala Land, Inc. (ALI) and Floirendo family’s Anflo Management & Investment Corp. and Mindanao Motors Corp. (Anflogroup) for a mixed-use development in Cagayan de Oro is expected to give a big boost to the city’s economy.

In a disclosure to the stock exchange, Ayala Land said total initial investment for the project would reach P2.5 billion, including the construction of a shopping mall, an office building catering to business process outsourcing companies and a boutique hotel. Read More

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AboitizPower takes over first of 2 Mindanao power barges

ABOITIZPOWER, through wholly owned subsidiary Therma Marine, Inc., (TMI) recently assumed ownership of PB 118, a 100-MW power barge moored at Bgy. San Roque, Maco, in Compostella Valley.
 

  The bunker-fired generating facility is one of two power barges acquired by AboitizPower after it won a negotiated bid conducted by the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corporation on July 31, 2009. The total purchase price for both facilities is USD 30 million. PB 117, also with a generating capacity of 100 MW, is moored at Nasipit, Agusan del Norte and scheduled for turnover on March 1, 2010.

TMI has an Ancillary Services Procurement Agreement with the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines to support the running of the plant. However, the agreement is subject to approval by the Energy Regulatory Commission.

  AboitizPower president and CEO Erramon Aboitiz said, “With PB 118 we provide ancillary services for Mindanao but still have power available for sale to utilities and cooperatives in the area.”

  Notwithstanding the full operation of PB 118, which was commissioned in August 1994, Mindanao will still continue to suffer rotating brownouts due to low water levels at Lake Lanao, the main source of power for the Mindanao grid.

  AboitizPower is the holding company for the Aboitiz Group’s investments in power generation, distribution, retail and power services. It is a major producer of renewable energy in the country with several hydroelectric and geothermal assets in its generation portfolio. The non-renewable portfolio consists of plants throughout the country. The distribution utilities it owns and operates are located in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. 

The PB118, 100-MW power barge is moored at Bgy. San Roque, Maco, Compostela Valley in Mindanao.

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Rufus: Give Arroyo emergency powers

By LEN VELASCO, Reporter
and BONG FABE, Contributor 

THE government will seriously consider the motion of Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez for President Arroyo to declare Mindanao under the state of power crisis and convene Congress in a special session to address the looming power shortage on the island.

  During a House committee on energy hearing last week, Rodriguez crossed party lines by calling congress to give President Arroyo emergency powers to avert the disaster that maybe brought about by the power crisis. Rea More

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Top Story: Power crisis starts to cripple Mindanao

By LEN VELASCO, Reporter
THE projected power shortage is starting to affect major regions in Mindanao with Southern and Central Mindanao areas as among the hardest hit.

Last week, the provinces of Lanao del Norte, Lanao del Sur and North Cotabato, and the three cities of Cotabato, Marawi and Iligan cities have experienced up to three hours of daily brownouts while Zamboanga Peninsula had one hour outages every day.

Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes said Mindanao and Visayas regions are hardly hit by the looming power crisis due to systems failure of some vital power installations and the impending surge of El Niño phenomenon...Read More

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Power crisis starts to cripple Mindanao

BY LEN VELASCO, Reporter

Cagayan de Oro areas not yet included in power curtailment schedules

Mindanao power situation declared under red alert status – DOE Sec. Reyes

THE projected power shortage is starting to affect major regions in Mindanao with Southern and Central Mindanao areas as among the hardest hit.

Last week, the provinces of Lanao del Norte, Lanao del Sur and North Cotabato, and the three cities of Cotabato, Marawi  and Iligan cities have experienced up to three hours of daily brownouts while Zamboanga Peninsula had one hour outages every day.

Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes said Mindanao and Visayas regions are hardly hit by the looming power crisis due to systems failure of some vital power installations and the impending surge of El Niño phenomenon...READ MORE

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Top Story: BPO sector hailed for job generation

By LEN VELASCO, Reporter
PRESIDENT Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo hailed Cagayan de Oro as among the top ten “New Wave Cities” in terms of job generation in information and technology (IT) sector.
This is despite reports that small players in the city’s call center industry are losing their employees due to aggressive poaching by dominant players in the business process outsourcing industries of Cebu and Manila.

The President said that in developing the BPO sector, her administration invested in strategic digital infrastructure, formulated the appropriate policy, created the legal environment, and developed human capital...READ MORE

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BPO sector hailed for job generation

By LEN VELASCO, Reporter

PRESIDENT Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo hailed Cagayan de Oro as among the top ten “New Wave Cities” in terms of job generation in information and technology (IT) sector.
This is despite reports that small players in the city’s call center industry are losing their employees due to aggressive poaching by dominant players in the business process outsourcing industries of Cebu and Manila.

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Top Story: Industries looking positive sans crisis

AS the global financial meltdown gradually making a turn-around, local industries are confident the dawn for recovery is in the offing.

Cagayan de Oro Chamber of Industries (COCI) President Jerome Soldevilla said that while doing business will continue to remain tough, the prospects would be much better as the global economy is expected to improve a bit from the serious crunch experienced last year...Read More

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Industries looking positive sans crisis

BY NELSON V CONSTANTINO, Editor
and BONG FABE, Contributor

As the global financial meltdown gradually making a turnaround, local industries are confident the dawn for recovery is in the offing.
Cagayan de Oro Chamber of Industries (COCI) President Jerome Soldevilla said that while doing business will continue to remain tough, the prospects would be much better as the global economy is expected to improve a bit from the serious crunch experienced last year.--Read More

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Top Story: Industries looking positive sans crisis

BY NELSON V CONSTANTINO, Editor
and BONG FABE, Contributor

AS the global financial meltdown gradually making a turn-around, local industries are confident the dawn for recovery is in the offing.

Cagayan de Oro Chamber of Industries (COCI) President Jerome Soldevilla said that while doing business will continue to remain tough, the prospects would be much better as the global economy is expected to improve a bit from the serious crunch experienced last year.

“[The current year will be] far better than 2009,” Soldevilla said.

Soldevilla, who is also communications officer of the STEAG State Power, Inc. which operates the coal-fired power plant in Villanueva town, said that results of a survey conducted among COCI members showed that the industries are giving a positive outlook for this year.

Established in 1980, the group serves as a mechanism to collectively address major concerns faced by the manufacturing sector.

Its members include Asia Brewery, CATIMCO, Coca-Cola, Del Monte Phils., LKKS Manufacturing, Nestle Phils., Phil Agro, PICMW, Pilipinas Kao, RI Chemicals, Mindanao Silicon, STEAG State Power Inc, and Elegant Chemical Alloy.

Major export processing plants such as the Philippine Sinter Corporation (PSC) and Mindanao Silicon Metals Inc. project at least a 10% increase in their outputs.

PSC’s Roger Lim said the sintering plant is also hopeful following reports of better global forecasts for the steel industry.

Moreover, RI Chemicals also reported that the company remains bullish as it sees a 10% hike in sales volume owing to a consistently strong domestic market.

Beverage giant Asia Brewery is also looking at a decent growth in production volume of its plant in Mindanao this year as it moves towards expanding its local market shares. It is confident to sustain the positive performance or even surpass production targets to a leap of 5 to 10% for this year.

In the wood processing industry, CATIMCO group indicates a major shift towards production of finished and semi-finished wood products as global competition worldwide gets stiffer.

CATIMCO group representative Prudencio Plaza said that the wood industry needs to innovate more as raw materials become scarce and the market expands to include the use of alternative construction materials.

Although sales volume for some companies paint a promising forecast, the manufacturing sector as a whole is faced with a serious concern of increased production cost.

Apollo Alavanza of Del Monte Philippines acknowledged that while there is a robust global market for its products, the company has to pursue more innovative measures to sustain its market leadership amidst rising cost of inputs. Cagayan de Oro based Coca-Cola bottlers Philippines also share the same view adding that it will continue to be more responsive to the growing market trends particularly in the beverage industry.

Limketkai Manufacturing executive Leoncio Ang of Limketkai said domestic supply of raw material for its Marca Leon oil products is a concern that needs to be addressed as the local coconut industry continues to be saddled with issues of low productivity.

COCI also voiced concerns on the rising cost of fuel and electricity. It has earlier approved a proposed resolution calling for a review of the planned privatization of the hydro electric power plants in Mindanao as the same is expected to increase further cost of electricity and hamper the manufacturing industries competitiveness. COCI is also asking local government units to suspend any planned increase in local taxations especially at this time when cost of doing business is continually on the rise.

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Top Story: Pepsi Cola Targets Double Production

BY NELSON V. CONSTANTINO
Executive Editor

SOFT drink maker Pepsi-Cola Products Philippines, Inc. is set to start the construction of its new production line in Cagayan de Oro next month as part of the company’s P350 million expansion program aimed at doubling its manufacturing capacity and increase its nationwide presence

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, Pepsi Philippines said its board has approved the establishment of additional production lines that are capable of doubling its current output in Cagayan de Oro.

Corporate communication manager Bobby Franco, in a statement, said the new bottling line would produce seven million cases of carbonated soft drinks and noncarbonated soft drinks annually.

This, he said, was equivalent to an additional P1 billion in annual revenues. Construction, Mr. Franco said, would start in the first quarter of this year.

“The additional volume will double the current capacity of our Cagayan de Oro plant. The new line will bring to 27 Pepsi-Cola’s bottling lines,” he said.

The new production line is expected to be completed by November, this year.

This is in line with the company’s plans to expand its manufacturing capacity in Mindanao given that it was nearing 100-percent capacity utilization rate. In Luzon alone, the utilization rate was at about 70 percent of existing capacity.

This spending is part of a $43.3 billion investment plan for the expansion and launching of new products to keep up with increasing consumer preference for beverages associated with health and wellness.

The expansion would provide an additional six million cases of non-carbonated and carbonated drinks to Pepsi’s existing 170 million cases at its 11 bottling plants a year. This is expected to ensure sufficient growth for the company over the next five years.

Pepsi also plans to further grow its non-carbonated beverage (NCB) line through acquisitions.

Pepsi Philippines, which has a market capitalization of about P8.6 billion, has produced about 170 million raw cases of beverage this year. About 80 percent of the company’s business still come from the sale of carbonated drinks like Pepsi, 7-Up, Mountain Dew, Mirinda and Mug but the non-carbonated business has been growing at 30 percent annually over the last three years or over three times the trend growth of the carbonated drink business.

Among its non-carbonated products are Lipton Red tea, Tropicana, Gatorade, Sting energy drink and Propel Vitamin water.

Company president Micky Yong said non-carbonated beverages like Gatorade and Tropicana already had a strong following in Metro Manila and that the company would like to make them available across the Philippines.

Yong said Pepsi Cola Products Philippines would allot P1.5 billion for its yearly capital spending and another P500 million to expand the capacities in Mindanao and to launch new non-carbonated beverages in the market.

He said the company was expected to continue to perform well this fiscal year, as sales would likely be boosted by election-related spending.

Pepsi also plans to introduce to the market new products such as coconut juice drinks.

The company last year expanded the capacities of its plants in Iloilo and Central Luzon.

Pepsi-Cola also said it was on the lookout for the acquisition of new noncarbonated drink brands, saying the firm’s noncarbonated segment was growing at a faster rate than the carbonated drink segment.

For the past three years, carbonated drinks have been growing only by 9%, lower than the 30% growth recorded by the noncarbonated drink segment, Pepsi-Cola said.

For its fiscal year ending in June last year, Pepsi-Cola Products Philippines’ net profits went up by 5% to P800 million, while revenues recorded double-digit growth at P14.2 billion.

The fund for the expansion was partly raised from the initial public offering (IPO) of its shares which started two years ago. The company, which holds the Pepsi Bottling Group licence for the Philippines, said that it was able to raise around P7.9 billion from the offer of up to 1.31 billion shares, at an indicative price of P6.04 per share.

PCPP said the shares were sold by Guoco Assets Philippines and The Nassim Fund. The shares sold represented around 36% of the company’s capital.

PCPP is 32.9%-owned by PepsiCo, whereas its major competitor Coca-Cola Bottlers Philippines Inc. is now 100%-owned by Coca-Cola.

Pepsi Philippines has also committed itself to replacing the use of fossil fuels with renewable sources. Within five years, it seeks to have independent power-generating facilities running on renewable energy like biomass, solar, wind and biogas in each of its 11 manufacturing plants across the country.

The facilities will be put up through the build-operating-transfer scheme with a partner with expertise in power generation. These facilities will produce electricity steam for bottle-washing operations, carbon dioxide for production and chilled water for refrigeration and cold storage.

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