Megaworld allots P36 billion for 2021 capex

MANILA, Philippines — Megaworld Corp. is setting aside P36 billion for capital expenditures this year, up 29 percent from the P27.9 billion spent last year.

Of the total, 76 percent will be allocated for real estate developments, particularly on the construction of new residential properties while the remaining 24 percent will be for investment properties.

No amount has been allocated for landbanking initiatives as the company remains cautious.

“We remain cautious and prudent with our spending as we are still observing how the vaccination program will progress and where this pandemic will be leading us in the next few months. This is a very targeted capex program aimed at optimizing the use of our available cash during this time,” said Kevin Tan, chief strategy officer of Megaworld.

Megaworld is launching four residential projects this year, particularly in its key provincial townships at Maple Grove in Cavite, Capital Town in Pampanga, Iloilo Business Park in Iloilo City and The Upper East in Bacolod City.

These new residential projects are expected to generate around P8.3 billion in sales.

During the year, the company will turn over almost 4,000 units and lots from its completed residential developments across the country with a total value of around P60 billion.

These residential projects are in Uptown Bonifacio, McKinley Hill, McKinley West, Eastwood City, Westside City, Capital Town Pampanga, Iloilo Business Park, and Makati City.

“We look forward to easing restrictions by the second half of the year. It’s still wait and see as of this time, but we are optimistic that the domestic economy will bounce back fast once all of these strict quarantine measures are lifted,” Tan said.