Robinsons Land sets P20-billion capex for 2 years

MANILA, Philippines - Gokongwei-led Robinsons Land Corp. (RLC) has set a capital spending program of P20 billion over two years to expand its mall portfolio and build more residential projects.

The amount does not include RLC’s capital budget for a planned $1-billion world-class gaming complex along Roxas Blvd. in partnership with Japanese gaming tycoon Kazuo Okada, according to a company official.

The company plans to open four new malls this year and another three in 2014 to take advantage of robust consumer spending and a rapidly growing business process outsourcing industry.

The group’s total mall leasable area is expected to reach over a million square meters in two years. 

After slowing down on the residential business, RLC intends to scale up construction of residential condominiums.  Among its projects include the newly-launched Sapphire Bloc as well as remaining towers in existing developments such as Sonata, Trion and Magnolia in New Manila.

Located in Ortigas Center bounded by Sapphire, Garnet and Onyx streets, Sapphire Bloc is RLC’s biggest lifestyle development project to date. It will offer four residential towers, the first two of which, called the North and West Towers, will house a combined 890 units with the first batch of units slated for turnover to buyers by 2016.   

Meanwhile, the company has decided to go slow on the rollout of its budget hotel line Gohotels. The group is reducing the number of launches to three this year from its previous target of five per year.

Two of the three Gohotels to rise this year are located at Cyberspace Alpha in Mandaluyong, which will have 200 rooms, and in Iloilo offering around 100 rooms.

There are currently five Gohotels across the country, located in Mandaluyong, Palawan, Bacolod, Dumaguete and Tacloban.

Three new Gohotels will rise next year – the 200-room Cyberspace Alpha in Mandaluyong and the 100-room Gohotel in Iloilo.

For the office segment, RLC is hoping to  complete Cyberscape Alpha and Cyberspace Beta in Ortigas by the middle of the year.

The company has built 32 malls, 33 residential projects and eight office buildings to date.

RLC is also keen on beefing up its landbank to sustain its growth.  It recently acquired a two-hectare lot in Libis, Quezon City which will be converted into a residential and office complex.  The property can accommodate up to seven buildings.

Another source of growth for the company would be Manila Bay Resorts at the Entertainment City, which will house state-of-the-art gaming facilities, three hotels offering a total of 2,000 rooms, upscale residential towers and man-made beach.

Two of the hotels are geared towards the high-end segment while the other will be a four-star structure.