DMCI ventures into office space

MANILA, Philippines -  DMCI Holdings Inc. is dipping its hand into the office space business for the first time with a two-tower development in Makati City.

“It’s experimental,” said DMCI Holdings chairman Isidro Consunji on why the company decided to venture into the office business.

The conglomerate is making its debut in this segment through its real estate subsidiary DMCI Homes.

“This will be the first time,” said DMCI president Alfredo Austria.

He said the project, possibly in joint venture with Japanese company NTT, would rise along Pasong Tamo in Makati City.

Austria said the project, which would add some P8 billion worth of inventory, would provide office space for business process outsourcing companies and other industries.

“It will be for BPOs and non-BPOs,” Austria said.

Consunji said NTT may take an initial 30 percent in the project. NTT is a telecommunications giant in Japan which also has real estate businesses.

Austria said the company hopes to launch the project within the year but is still awaiting final zoning regulations from the local government.

DMCI Homes plans to launch eight projects this year with total sales value of P57 billion.

This is 50 percent more than theP38 billion generated by the seven projects launched last year.

The company recorded robust sales in the first quarter of the year amid stiffening competition in the industry, which has seen the entry of many new players in recent years.

It reported an all-time-high sales and reservations record of P13.1 billion during the first three months of the year, more than double the P6 billion sales value posted during the same period in 2016.

Aside from real estate, the Consunji family are in coal, power, construction, water and mining.