Dev’t of $3-B logistics city at Clark pushed

MANILA, Philippines - Global Gateway Development Corp. (GGDC) has reiterated its commitment to accelerate the development of a $3-billion logistics city at Clark Freeport Zone in Pampanga province.

“We are committed to the development of Clark.  We are here to aggressively pursue the development of Sabah Al-Ahmad Global Gateway Logistics City (GGLC),” GGDC said in a statement.

GGDC was originally founded by The Port Fund, a private equity fund managed by KGL Investment Company (KGLI).  KGLI is a private equity investment company focusing on development and investments in infrastructure, logistics and transport, oil and gas, energy and power and other diversified sectors in the Middle East, Asia and emerging markets.

KGLI’s main managed investments in the Philippines have been Sabah Al-Ahmad Global Gateway Logistics City and an interest in the 2GO Group and Negros Navigation.  KGLI, which has managed investments in the Philippines since mid-2008, has established management teams based in both Metro Manila and in Clark.

GGDC said it has invested over $100 million in the project to date with another $150 million in planned investments by the end of 2015.  GGDC’s investments to date include the development of world-class horizontal infrastructure, including over 30 hectares of fully developed lot inventory  and  the  pre-leasing  of  a  world-class 20,000 sqm hospital  (which is currently over 95 -percent complete) to The Medical City,  a leading Philippine and regional healthcare operator.

GGDC said it also expects to finish, by the end of 2015, five office towers with a gross floor area of 145,000 square meters, retail and gas plaza and a hotel and serviced apartment complex.  These complexes will great employment opportunities for over 15,000 Filipinos from the region.

The whole GGLC project will entail investment of over $3 billion in new facilities, providing direct employment to more than 3,000 construction and trade workers at the peak of the project’s development.       

Once completed, the project will generate employment opportunities to over 300,000 workers with $600 million in annual payroll for entry-level employees alone.

In 2012, Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad, the Amir of Kuwait, visited the Philippines and the Clark project was renamed the Sabah Al-Ahmad Global Gateway Logistics City in honor of the Amir.        

KGL Investment Co. Asia, a wholly-owned subsidiary of KGLI, has also been involved in humanitarian activities in the Philippines. 

KGLI Asia CEO Mark Williams said the company and the Port Fund, whose investments in the Philippines included Sabah Al-Ahmad Global Gateway Logistics City and an investment in the 2GO Group, committed and funded over US$1 million in buildings, goods and services for disaster relief and rebuilding efforts in communities affected by typhoon Yolanda last year.