Rockwell allots P20 B for property projects

MANILA, Philippines - Upscale property developer Rockwell Land Corp. is spending close to P20 billion until 2019 to complete its residential, office and retail space projects.

Bulk of the spending will be funded by pre-sales while several fundraising options will be pursued like the P5-billion bond sale next month, the real estate firm said.

“To complete the [various] projects, the company will require P19.2 billion from 2015 to 2019. Funding will primarily come from collection of receivables on units already sold, including those collectible upon turnover,” Rockwell Land said in a regulatory filing.

The company’s, residential projects under development are 205 Santolan and 53 Benitez in Quezon City; Edades in Makati; Grove Tower C-F in Pasig; Alvendia in San Juan; the Cebu project; and Proscenium in Makati.

For the commercial leasing segment, Rockwell Land is developing the Iconique officer tower and the serviced apartments of Edades in Makati, and a commercial strip in the Grove.

“Except for Proscenium, all of the residential projects are scheduled for turnover between 2014 and 2016. Any shortfall in project inflows and outflows may be supplemented by drawdowns from the company’s existing working capital lines,” Rockwell Land said.

In an en banc decision, the Securities and Exchange Commission said it approved the plan of Rockwell Land to raise P5 billion through bonds this month.

The property firm will offer P5 billion seven-year and one quarter unsecured peso-denominated fixed-rate bonds.

“The P5 billion to be raised via this offering will be used for capital expenditure requirements for the remainder of the year 2013 and 2014, primarily for the Proscenium development,” Rockwell Land said.

“The remaining requirement after the net proceeds from the bond offering will be funded by internally generated funds from sales made on the above residential projects and recurring cashflows from the company’s leasing operations of the Power Plant Mall and Rockwell Business Center,” it added.

The company allotted P26 billion for five towers of the Proscenium in Makati. The 3.6-hectare Proscenium will allow Rockwell Land to generate development income for the next eight years.

As of end-2012, Rockwell Land recorded P2.5 billion sales takeup from the Proscenium.

Early this week, Credit Rating and Investors Services Philippines Inc. assigned an “AA+” issuer rating on Rockwell Land with a positive outlook or a chance for a higher score.

In the first half, Rockwell Land’s net income jumped 25 percent to P554.8 million from P441.3 million a year ago on strong residential sales.

Its anchor project, Rockwell Center, was created in 1995 after the shutdown of the thermal power plant of the Lopez Group. The complex is now a self-contained, mixed-use community with residential towers, office buildings, a shopping mall, and a graduate school.

In 2012, the property developer’s earnings climbed 23 percent to a record P1.1 billion, up from P914.9 million in 2011.