Ayala Land to acquire some Panlilio properties

MANILA, Philippines - Property giant Ayala Land Inc. is beefing up its resort holdings by acquiring some properties from the Panlilio family’s Boulevard Holdings Inc. in line with its goal to double its landbank for tourism estates to 1,000 hectares in the next two to three years.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, ALI said it has agreed to acquire certain landholding assets of BHI, the holding firm of the Panlilios for resort development.

“The agreement is subject to obtaining the requisite approvals and compliance with other conditions after the conduct of due diligence and related studies,” ALI said.

In a separate disclosure to the PSE, BHI said its board has authorized its chairman and chief executive officer Jose Marcel Panlilio to sign the terms of reference and a final agreement on or before May 10 with respect to a plan to sell to a prospective investor an operating unit and/or assets of the company, wholly or in part.  The company did not say which properties it was selling to ALI.

BHI’s board likewise approved the opening of a bank account including any related escrow facilities to receive downpayment monies.

Aside from this, the BHI board authorized the execution of any other separate agreements relating to other areas of cooperation with the prospective buyer and to jointly disclose such transaction as soon as definitive agreements are reached.

BHI owns a vast landbank in Ternate, Cavite which includes the 3,000 hectare Puerto Azul complex. It also operates Friday’s Boracay and Friday’s Puerto Galera in Mindoro as well as Cala Paniman, which owns the development over the Cresta Grande subdivision, a 21-hectare sea view promontory parcel overlooking the China Sea and Corregidor Island.

The Panlilio family is keen on reviving Puerto Azul, which was once dubbed as “Asia’s Paradise Resort” and the “World’s Golfing Capital”.

Under its plan, BHI intends to build 11,563 residential units over a period of 20 to 25 years starting with 350 units of apartment residences.  The resort component also involves the development of hotels, golf courses, country club, marina, theme park, sports and recreation facilities.

ALI disclosed last week plans to expand its presence in the country’s beach resort segment to capitalize on the anticipated rise in tourism arrivals in the country.

In particular, ALI plans to develop tourism estates in Luzon and Visayas where there is robust marine life and good beaches.

The Department of Tourism is targeting to attract 10 million foreign tourists by 2016 while encouraging investments in hotels and tourism-related infrastructure.

In shoring up its landbank, ALI will rely on acquisitions and partnerships, similar to what the company has done in developing its largescale business districts in Makati and Bonifacio Global City in Taguig.

In 2010, ALI acquired the operator of a chain of upscale resorts in El Nido, Palawan.

ALI also teamed up with Subic Bay Development and Industrial Estate Corp. for the development of Anvaya Cove, a 320-hectare leisure complex in Bataan. The company also operates the 46-hectare Amara development in Liloan, Cebu.