Topline advances depot capacity buildout

MANILA, Philippines — As the Middle East war lingers, Top Line Business Development Corp. is pressing ahead with its expansion plans, setting aside up to P1 billion to boost its depot capacity.

Top Line chief finance officer Constance Marie Lim said the company’s entire capital spending for 2026 is expected to increase from last year’s P1.19 billion, driven by the construction and renovation of its depot storage facility in Cebu.

“So we’re currently quite strategic in our expansion,” Lim told reporters yesterday, underscoring the urgent need to boost Top Line’s capacity to reach more customers in underserved markets.

With this expansion, the Cebu-based fuel retailer is set to quadruple its depot storage capacity to 40 million liters from 10 million liters currently.

After its P732.6-million public listing in 2025, Top Line is returning to the equity market this year, seeking to raise up to P1.5 billion through the issuance of perpetual preferred shares.

A portion of the proceeds will be used to fund the company’s depot expansion.

“More than ever right now, it’s actually quite important for us to even push further for enough supply in the market,” Top Line chairman, president and CEO Eugene Erik Lim said. “That’s why it’s quite timely.”

The ongoing US–Israel conflict with Iran continues to rattle global markets, prompting countries and oil companies to seek alternative fuel sources amid restrictions in the Strait of Hormuz. The narrow waterway typically handles about 20 percent of the world’s oil and gas supplies.

For Top Line, however, this is not an unfamiliar territory, The Russia–Ukraine war, which erupted in 2022, had already pushed the company to take a more strategic and resilient approach to its operations.

This year, the company plans to complete the rebranding of at least 30 fuel stations acquired in 2025. By year-end, it expects to operate 50 locations, which should further strengthen its financial performance moving forward.

In the first quarter, Top Line saw its net income sizzle by 64.3 percent to P62.27 million from P37.89 million a year earlier amid stronger fuel sales.

Revenues likewise grew, ending the period 75.4 percent higher to P1.76 billion from P1 billion.

“We moved quickly when opportunities became available, and that accelerated our station rollout and revenue contribution,” Top Line COO Brigitte Carmel Lim said.