Filinvest to pursue water sector projects

MANILA, Philippines - The Filinvest Group of the Gotianun family is branching out into water destribution starting off with projects to be offered under the government’s public private partnership (PPP) initiative.

Aside from securing bid documents for the P24.4-billion Bulacan bulk water supply project, Filinvest Land Inc. president and chief executive officer Joseph M. Yap said the group is also looking at making potential bids for the P18.7-billion Kaliwa Dam project and the P123-billion Laguna Lakeshore expressway dike project.

“We’re interested in getting into water in a bigger way that’s why we’ll look at water projects,” Yap said.

Yap said Filinvest believes there are many areas in the country that need a lot of water infrastructure.

Although the group has no major water infrastructure project under its portfolio to date, it is not totally inexperienced when it comes to the water business. “When we do our real estate, we actually develop our own water system. We have some exposure in that area so we’re interested to be bigger in the water sector,” Yap said.

“We feel it’s an important sector that will become more and more important in the future,” he added.

Yap said the Filinvest group is currently setting up a separate company for its planned water venture.

Meanwhile, Filinvest Development Corp. (FDC), the investment firm of the Gotianun family, will serve as the vehicle of the group for its water investments.

Yap said the group may also bring in some partners depending on how big the water projects would be.

For the Bulacan bulk water supply project, FDC president and CEO Josephine Gotianun-Yap said Filinvest is partnering with a Spanish water company to form a consortium to bid for the P24.4 billion development.

Gotianun-Yap said FDC is also “in the process of forming a consortium” to bid for the Laguna Lakeshore expressway dike project.

The Bulacan bulk water project intends to supply treated bulk water to water districts in Bulacan province through the construction, operation, and maintenance of facilities for abstraction, treatment, and conveyance of treated bulk water supply; land acquisition and right-of-way access as well as social, resettlement, and environmental facilities cost.

The Laguna Lakeshore expressway dike project, meanwhile, is seen to mitigate flooding in the Laguna Lake coastal towns, particularly in Southern Metro Manila and Laguna, improve the environmental condition of the Lake, and promote economic activities through the efficient transport of goods and people.

FDC is engaged in the property business (FLI), power generation (FDC Utilities Inc.), banking (EastWest Bank) and sugar production (Pacific Sugar Holdings).