Filinvest Land, Israeli firm close P2.5-B deal on Timberland Heights

Filinvest Land Inc. (FLI) has closed a P2.48-billion deal with Africa Israel Investments (Phils.) Inc. (AIIPI) to jointly develop the remaining phases of the 613-hectare Timberland Heights masterplanned township in San Mateo, Rizal.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, FLI said the execution of the joint venture agreement was authorized by its board of directors and disclosed to the corporation’s stakeholders on Sept. 13, 2006.

Under the transaction, AIIPI will be a 40 percent partner in the development.

AIIPI will initially invest close to P380 million and will have an option to increase its investment to P2.48 billion or by an additional P2.1 billion over the next five years.

AIIPI is the Philippine subsidiary of Africa-Israel Investments Ltd., a publicly-listed Israeli company with assets of $3.5 billion.

The first stage of the joint venture covers about 58 hectares and calls for the development of several projects including The Ranch, an upper income development offering luxury house and lot packages, and Mandala East, which offers leisure farm estate lots.

The joint venture will also develop the anchor of the township–the Timberland Sports and Nature Club which follows in the footsteps of the highly successful Palms Country Club at the Filinvest Corporate City in Alabang.

The 12,500-square meter Timberland Sports and Nature Club will be a family-oriented, exclusive membership club with a full range of sports, nature-oriented amenities, spa, dining, banquet and room facilities with world-class standard club management.

As part of the agreement, AIIPI and FLI also agreed to consider pursuing together the development of two medium-rise residential building projects in two different sites in Metro Manila.

A 15-minute drive from Quezon City, Timberland Heights is a premier masterplanned mountain resort township easily accessible to the country’s top universities, major shopping malls and major medical facilities.

FLI has set aside P1.4 billion this year for the development of 12 projects, out of which three are to be affordable housing projects with units valued between P1 million and P1.5 million each. Two will rise in Sto. Tomas, Batangas while the one will be in Calamba, Laguna.

FLI is one of the largest real estate developers in the country with an asset base of P28 billion and an equity of P18 billion as of end-December 2005.

The Filinvest Group has been in residential and commercial development for over 50 years and has developed close to 1,800 hectares of land into homes for over 100,000 families, as well as over 400,000 square meters of office/commercial/high-rise residential space.

The group also has interests in banking and finance.