Megaworld allots P25B for capex

MANILA, Philippines - Upscale property developer Megaworld Corp. is allocating P25 billion for its capital expenditures this year to develop new and ongoing projects.

Megaworld senior vice-president Kingson Sian said this year’s capital budget is roughly the same amount spent in 2011.

The company has lined up 11 new projects in the first half this year to capitalize on a booming property market.

Megaworld is currently developing over 40 residential projects and several BPO (business process outsourcing) offices in Metro Manila.

The company is also looking to target a wider range of customers through the projects of subsidiaries, Empire East Land Holdings Inc. and Suntrust Properties Inc.

Megaworld has emerged as the country’s leading residential condominium developer in more than a decade, cornering 16 percent of total market share, according to a study by real estate advisory firm CB Richard Ellis Philippines.

The company rolled out the most number of residential condominium units from 2000 to 2011, totaling more than 40,000 units.

The units account for an estimated total aggregate saleable area of about 1.9 million square meters or 17 percent of the market.

The figures reinforce Megaworld’s continued leadership in the tighly-contested condominium market.

Megaworld was also recognized by property consultant Colliers International as the top residential condo developer based on the number of units completed and to be completed until 2016 and total aggregate saleable area.

In 2011 alone, Megaworld launched eight new projects – One Eastwood Avenue in the developer’s pioneering 18-hectare Eastwood City township in Quezon City; 101 Newport Boulevard and Belmont Luxury Hotel in the 25-hectare Newport City in Pasay City; One Uptown Residence in the new 16-hectare Uptown Bonifacio in the Global City; Tower 1 of The Viceroy in the 50-hectare McKinley Hill in Fort Bonifacio; the second tower of Manhattan Heights, the third phase of the 5.7-hectare Manhattan Garden City at the Araneta Center; the 31-story Greenbelt Hamilton in the Makati CBD; and Eight Newtown Boulevard, Megaworld’s first luxury residential project in Mactan, Cebu.

Megaworld earlier said it expected net earnings to hit a record P6 billion in 2011, 18 percent higher than the P5.09 billion recorded the previous year on robust sales of its mega-communities and strong takeup of retail and office space.