Metro Pacific’s 4th leg still in progress

MANILA, Philippines — Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC) is looking to develop a fourth leg that will provide the conglomerate further growth and stability in the years ahead.

“If we have three legs to the stool, shouldn’t we have a fourth leg to make it more stable?” MPIC chairman, president and CEO Manuel V. Pangilinan said.

“We’re still finding that fourth leg.”

MPIC is an infrastructure holding company with a diverse set of assets held through its operating companies. It has investments in power, water, toll roads, light rail, health care and agribusiness.

“When you look at the contributors to the operating income of MPIC, the biggest contributors were Meralco, Maynilad and tollways. But they’ve been around. They’re old investments of Metro Pacific,” Pangilinan said.

“So for the past 15, 20 years, what have we done that’s actually new? We’ve done new things, but in terms of their profit contribution to MPIC, it seems like nothing, right? Sure, I think the food business is doing well which is a good sign so it gives us the comfort that we can make bigger investments. We should make bigger investments on the food side,” he said.

MPIC has been fortifying its agribusiness through continuous acquisitions.

The group made its entry into the sector in 2022 through a partnership with the Carmen’s Best Group, which was followed by another agri venture last year with the acquisition of 34.76 percent ownership in Axelum Resources Corp., a manufacturer and exporter globally of high-quality coconut products. 

Metro Pacific Agro Ventures also recently announced its entry into agreements to acquire 100 percent of Universal Harvester Dairy Farms Inc. in a bid to continue its mission to provide fresh, high-quality dairy products for the Filipino people.

On the health care space, MPIC is looking to bolster its network nationwide by potentially acquiring two more hospitals before the year ends.

Metro Pacific Health currently has a network of 24 hospitals across the country.

The company is adding soon the 25th hospital in its growing network with the acquisition of a 72-percent stake in San Francisco Doctors Hospital Inc. in Agusan del Sur.

In the first half of the year, MPIC’s consolidated core net income rose by 27 percent to a record P12.5 billion, driven by strong growth in energy sales at Meralco, billed volumes at Maynilad Water and traffic on the toll roads complemented by higher tariffs.