Megaworld allots P8 B for Cebu projects

MANILA, Philippines - Megaworld Corp., the flagship unit of property tycoon Andrew L. Tan, is investing P8 billion to put up five luxury hotels in its P30-billion township project in Cebu.

The capital allotment will increase available hotel rooms in Mactan by another 2,000 rooms to support the continuous uptick in foreign visitors in Cebu, the company said in a disclosure.

Megaworld committed to spend P8 billion to develop five hotels in the 28.8-hectare Mactan Newtown project.

“With the influx of more tourists to Mactan Island year after year, we hope to be able to offer more exciting facilities that will help further boost tourism in the region. Aside from local tourists, we hope to cater to foreign guests and visitors to the Mactan Newtown as well,” said Carmen Fernando, managing director of Prestige Hotels and Resorts Inc., the operator of Mactan Belmont Luxury Hotel and Savoy Hotel Mactan Newtown.

“We envision Mactan Newtown as a major tourism hub of Cebu. The township is designed to be tourist-friendly, and our various offerings will also cater to the needs of the visitors of the island,” said Noli Hernandez, president of Megaworld Cebu Properties Inc.

In 2013, Mactan Island attracted almost 900,000 tourists, 75 percent of which flew from 63 different countries across the globe, data from the Department of Tourism showed.

The first two high-rise hotels – Mactan Belmont Luxury Hotel and the Savoy Hotel Mactan Newtown – will be built along Newtown Boulevard within five years.

The township will also include two beachfront hotels in the former location of the Portofino Beach Resort. The beachfront hotels will feature relaxing views of the Hilutungan Channel and Olango Island, known for its bird sanctuaries and mangrove forests.

Another luxury hotel of international brand is also expected to rise in the township, Megaworld said.

Aside from the hotels, Megaworld is also building a three-level lifestyle mall, Plaza Magellan, poised to become a major landmark in the mixed-use development. The shopping mall will have an iconic entrance plaza facing the famous Lapu Lapu Shrine, the site of the historic Battle of Mactan between Lapu Lapu and Ferdinand Magellan on April 27, 1521.

Megaworld allotted P30 billion to develop Mactan Newtown in the next five to seven years. Aside from the hotels and mall, the property firm is also putting up at least five office towers in the township by 2020, offering around 150,000 square meters (sqm) of office space that can accommodate an estimated 45,000 workers in the information technology-business process outsourcing sector.

For the residential segment, Mactan Newtown has 10 luxury condominium towers in the pipe line: four towers for 8 Newtown Boulevard expected to be completed by the first half of 2015, three towers for One Pacific Residence and three towers for One Manchester Place.

Megaworld is the property arm of Tan’s Alliance Global Group Inc., which is also into liquor (Emperador Distillers Inc.), fastfood (McDonaldís franchise operator Golden Arches Development Corp.) and hotels and casino (Travellers International Hotel Group Inc.).