MPTC gears up for IPO next year

MANILA, Philippines — Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC) plans to raise funds through an initial public offering (IPO) by early next year to bring down debts and rebalance its finances.

MPTC president and CEO Jose Maria Lim yesterday confirmed plans to list at the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) soon.

“We need to reduce our debts, so we are looking forward to an IPO sometime in the future,” Lim said in an interview on Money Talks.

MPTC is preparing the preliminary requirements to go public and Lim said it would take time given that the company is still building more projects, especially in Luzon. The earliest date for an IPO is in 2026, he said.

“It is going to probably take a little more (time). Maybe the earliest will be a year from now, but preparations are ongoing,” Lim said.

According to the financial report of MPTC’s parent Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC) in 2023, MPTC owes P153.21 billion to creditors, with the loans bearing an interest of 4.7 to 9.7 percent per annum.

Moreover, MPTC maintains the largest debt pile among MPIC units, and its obligations are even higher than that of its parent.

With the IPO still in the works, MPTC plans to sell as much as 20 percent in its shareholdings to raise capital for debt payments, with a deal expected to be closed in two months.

In 2024, a joint venture between Mitsui & Co. Ltd. and Japan Overseas Infrastructure Investment Corp. for Transport and Urban Development swapped part of its stake in MPIC for a 6.6-percent share in MPTC. The transaction reduced MPIC’s grip in MPTC to 93.3 percent.

For 2025, Lim said MPTC is focused on completing the Cavite-Laguna Expressway. The project, which stretches for nearly 45 kilometers between Biñan, Laguna and Kawit, Cavite, is projected to serve up to 95,000 motorists daily once completed.

Apart from this, MPTC is taking part in the construction of the Lapu-Lapu Expressway in Cebu, which would ease travel between Cebu City and the Mactan-Cebu International Airport.

MPTC is one of the two major toll builders in the Philippines, aside from San Miguel Corp., and it also manages projects in Southeast Asia, particularly in Indonesia and Vietnam.