Incomplete SRP infra affects marketing blitz

At least six investors may start building their facilities at the 300-hectare South Road Properties (SRP) this year, as soon as the primary infrastructure will be immediately provided.

Cebu Investment and Promotion Center (CIPC) managing director Joel Mari S. Yu said the roads must be built first, power and water supply must be put in place.

The Cebu City government, the developer of SRP, is now talking with 15 investors that expressed interest in locating at the SRP, however the property still has to complete the necessary infrastructure requirement first, like water supply, power, and roads, in order to accommodate these investors.

CIPC, which is commissioned by the Cebu City government to market the SRP both to local and foreign investors, still cannot fully start an aggressive marketing blitz for the property.

Although the potential of SRP to attract investors is very strong, he said "right now, we have an incomplete product."

According to Yu, the Visayan Electric Company (VECO) had informally agreed to provide power supply at SRP, but the City government and the Aboitiz Group still has to finalize the contract, and VECO is still on the process of applying a petition to Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC).

These 15 interested investors will have to occupy close to 80 hectares of the entire SRP, the two largest lot takers include a Singaporean-company called Cebutainer Systems Corporation which needs 20-hectare for its facility, and the Bigfoot Group, which also proposed to build a commercial center, and a Yatch Club or Marina, and also need 20-hectare land cut.

Other interested investors include; Taiwanese firm Paul Yu Group of Companies; JY Construction; Arcenas Group; Pakna-an Central Development Corporation; an American company to build Cardiovascular Hospital, Mactan Rock Industries Corporation; Filinvest-to build a commercial center; Ayala Land; King Group of Companies; Japanese-owned Kurata company to construct a condominium facility; University of Cebu; and another Japanese company called Sonnette to build a retirement village for Japanese market.

According to Yu, the issue on land title has been settled already, with special patent, and is "alienable and disposable."

Other concerns that need to be given immediate attention by the Cebu City government is to appoint a professional property manager, to manage the entire area, which has already been declared as an Special Economic Zone (SEZ) by the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA).

"The interest is strong, but we have to put in place first a lot of concerns, before we could take off our national and international marketing blitz," Yu said in a press conference yesterday.

Yu dismissed impressions that SRP, through the Cebu City government cannot pay its loan obligation to Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP), now at P6 billion, saying that as soon as the locators will start operating, the SRP will be making a lot of money, not only for the lease and lot revenues, but for the concession fees of providers like power, water, telecommunication, among others.

"We are going to make a lot of money. The important thing is getting the locators in," he stressed.

Initial marketing promotions were done by CIPC in last couple of years, these include promoting the property to the Japanese government through Japan External Trade Organization (Jetro), Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA); closer linkage with Singapore Enterprise, and key government and private sector organizations in other countries like Hong Kong, Taiwan China, among others.