OFFICIALS of the Cebu Landmasters Inc. (CLI) is eyeing to start the development of Ming-Mori Minglanilla Reclamation Project in the second half of 2021.
“We will have to comply with some more processes before we can proceed with the development,” said CLI senior vice president and chief operating officer Franco Soberano during an online press briefing. “We are looking at starting the construction by second half of 2021.” The 100-hectare reclamation project was issued an Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC) by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources on July 22, 2020, following a comprehensive two-year review. After the ECC issuance, the project will now be subject to the approval of the Philippine Reclamation Authority.
In addition to housing light industrial facilities, the future Ming-Mori Techno Business Park will be a self-contained township with residential and commercial areas. The project is expected to generate some 75,000 jobs.
“We want to get this right,” said Soberano. The Ming-Mori Techno Business Park will be CLI’s third estate project.
The reclamation project is a joint venture between the local government of Minglanilla and private consortium partners Ming-Mori Development Corp., an affiliate of CLI.
On track
Meanwhile, amid the slowdown in the country’s economy, CLI said it is keeping its promise of developing the planned residential projects due for launching and construction in the second half of the year.
“We are on track,” said Soberano, adding that the company is banking on the relaxed community quarantine stature of key cities in the Visayas and Mindanao to pursue their planned residential developments.
CLI said it has lined up 14 projects in 2020 worth P19 billion, four of which were already launched in Cebu, Bohol and Iloilo in the first half of the year, supported by the firm’s wide network of partner brokers and sales agents, process improvement and digitalization.
CLI’s consolidated revenues remained strong at P3.5 billion for the first six months of 2020, closely matching its 2019 levels.
Reservation sales
While the mid-income and economic housing sectors in general were severely impacted by the slowdown in overseas Filipino remittances and construction stoppages during the period, CLI said it posted record reservation sales of P4.613 billion in the second quarter and a 41 percent growth in sales to P7.436 billion in the first half.
The firm’s economic housing brand Casa Mira contributed 65 percent of total sales.
“Our construction continued because majority of CLI’s project sites were not severely affected by the lockdowns,” he said.
The listed company also posted a significant growth in its recurring business by 137 percent to P91.3 million from P38.6 million year-on-year.
Hotel revenues of P38.2 million were attributable to the 180-room Citadines Cebu City, which maintained a high occupancy of 70 percent throughout the lockdown period. The hotel’s booking largely came from business process outsourcing companies that housed their employees during the community quarantine period. Rental income likewise improved by 16 percent and registered at P32.3 million.
Most of CLI buyers were local residents prodded by stretched payment terms and grace periods to invest in a home.
CLI said overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) accounted for only 20 percent of the sales in the second quarter, lower than the pre-Covid period when OFWs had taken up as much as 40 percent of sales.
“We ourselves were surprised by how local demand compensated for the decreased share from OFWs. Home ownership will provide the best security during these times,” said CLI president and chief executive officer Jose Soberano III, in a statement. (KOC)