MPIC eyes government hospital, regional centers

MANILA, Philippines - Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC), through its Hospital Group, is eyeing the acquisition or management of other hospitals in Metro Manila including government-run institutions, and regional centers in other parts of the country.

MPIC chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan told The STAR that they want to target their acquisition to 5,000 hospital beds.

He revealed that they are looking at one hospital in Manila. “We are also interested in managing or acquiring the different hospitals owned by the government such as the Philippine Heart Center, Kidney Center, Lung Center, among others, in case government decides to privatize them.”

Pangilinan also said the group is particularly keen on owning or managing a hospital in Cebu.

In 2011, the aggregate core net income for MPIC’s Hospital Group rose 17 percent to P560 million, reflecting strong performances across the group and the benefit of investments made in Riverside Medical Center in Bacolod and Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Sta. Mesa, Manila in 2010.

MPIC officials said particularly strong progress was achieved by Cardinal Santos Medical Center in San Juan and Davao Doctors Hospital in growing their out-patient services.

Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital recently renovated the interior and façade of the hospital, including its doctors’ clinics. It has also invested in new digital diagnostic machines and a state-of-the-art eye center.

Last November, MPIC completed its acquisition of 100 percent of Colinas Verdes Hospital Managers Corp. (CVHMC), the operator of the Cardinal Santos Medical Center, making CVHMC a direct wholly-owned subsidiary of MPIC.

MPIC earlier acquired directly from Thailand’s Bumrungrad International Ltd., and indirectly from Bumrungrad International Philippines Inc. and Neptune Stroika Holdings Inc., a total of 56.5 percent of the total outstanding capital stock of Asian Hospital Inc. (AHI), a 219-bed tertiary hospital in Alabang, Muntinlupa.

The acquisition of AHI shares has triggered a mandatory tender offer for the remaining 842.45 million common shares of stock of AHI in the hands of the public comprising approximately 43.5 percent of the total outstanding common shares of AHI.

MPIC said all the shares tendered shall be purchased by the bidder at the highest price per share paid for the AHI shares acquired from the sellers.

MPIC controls Makati Medical Center, Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital Riverside Medical Center and Davao Doctors Hospital bringing the number of bed capacity of MPIC hospitals in the country to around to 1,800.