Consunji firm to buy more shares in highway consortium

Consunji-led DMCI Holdings Inc. will be subscribing more shares in a consortium tasked to construct a road network connecting two major Philippine highways to the northernmost Luzon provinces. DMCI told the Philippine Stock Exchange on Friday that its board approved its subscription of about 1.45-million shares of Private Infra Dev Corp. out of the consortium's increase in authorized capital stock of P3.5 billion. The company also will allow the investment in the company of diversifying conglomerate San Miguel Corp., through Rapid Thoroughfares Inc., in PIDC. Through Rapid Thoroughfare's acquisition of 35-percent equity interest in PIDC, San Miguel is set to become the consortium's single largest shareholder. Rapid Thoroughfares also has the option to increase its equity interest to 51 percent of PIDC, a consortium of construction companies behind the Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway Project. San Miguel has earlier disclosed that its subsidiary Rapid Thoroughfares signed a subscription agreement for a 35-percent stake in PIDC. The 88-kilometer road that will connect North Luzon Expressway and Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway to provinces in Northern Luzon is estimated to have a construction cost of P15 billion. Originally, PIDC, which is capitalized at P1-billion, was a consortium led by DM Consunji Inc., and Lopez-led First Philippine Infrastructure Group. Formed in 2007, the consortium plans to secure big-ticket government infrastructure projects. However, late last year, First Infrastructure was acquired by Metro Pacific Investments Corp., the local unit of Hong Kong-listed First Pacific Co. Ltd., from the Lopez family as part of its strategy to venture into heavy industries. San Miguel has also been aggressive in its bid to diversify from its core food business. It is planning to acquire control of Petron Corp., the country’s largest oil refiner, and is among the major shareholders of Manila Electric Co., the Philippines’ largest power distributor. It has also partnered with a Qatari firm for its venture into the telecommunications business. San Miguel has also formed a subsidiary that submitted an unsolicited proposal for the P48-billion development of the Laiban Dam project. PIDC has planned to start the construction of the project this year and complete the road in five years. The expressway development will be constructed in two phases. The first phase covers a road from Tarlac to Carmen, Pangasinan, while the second phase covers the stretch from Pangasinan to La Union. GMANews.TV