Villar son to invest in heavy industries

MANILA, Philippines - A son of Sen. Manuel Villar is looking to hike his investments in the mining and utilities sectors as well as break into the construction and power businesses on the bank of a growing domestic economy.

Manuel Paolo Villar, chief executive officer of Vista Land & Lifescapes Inc., said he is in talks with foreign and local companies to form a consortium that will serve as the corporate vehicle for investments in utilities and infrastructure as he plans to further broaden his investment portfolio.

For one, Villar is open to raising his 25-percent stake in Nationwide Development Corp. (Nadecor) should there be an opportunity. “We’re considering all possibilities. We may increase our stake depending on the price,” he said.

Villar, through a private firm, purchased 30 million common shares of Nadecor for P1.8 billion.

Nadecor holds a mineral and production sharing agreement over a large reserve of gold and copper deposits in Compostela Valley, also known as the Kingking mine.

He is also eyeing other mining companies for possible investments but declined to name them. “We’re open to potential deals on mining,” Villar said.

Aside from this, Villar said he is also interested in the infrastructure business and considering bidding for road projects under the government’s Public-Private-Parrtnership (PPP) program.

He has also expressed interest in investing in the power business through in greenfield and existing projects.

Villar also wants to expand the family’s water distribution business under a water company which won the bid for bulk water supply in Iloilo.

Covering 1,656 hectares, the Kingking mine has gold deposits estimated at 10.3 million ounces and copper deposits of 5.4 billion pounds.

The government earlier announced it expected new investments in the mining sector to hit $2.8 billion this year, double an earlier forecast and the highest annual figure since the sector was fully opened to foreign investors in 2005.

The Villar family has over 30 years of experience in the real estate business through various companies.

They are also expanding their retail business, which was folded into Polar Properties Holdings Corp.   It already owns five malls including Starmall in EDSA corner Shaw Blvd. as well as Starmall Alabang (Metropolis).