REAL estate giant Megaworld Corp. is expecting more business process outsourcing (BPO) companies to expand in Cebu with the accelerated developments within The Mactan Newtown, the firm’s 30-hectare integrated urban township in the province.
“We have an exciting BPO sector this year. Yes, we are expecting more outsourcing companies to locate here,” said Noli Hernandez, president of Megaworld Cebu Properties Inc.
Hernandez hinted that Convergys may come in soon but he declined to disclose specific details about it. At present, The Mactan Newtown houses two BPO firms—Manulife and Results Companies—which employ 3,000 to 4,000 workers.
Megaworld breached the P10-billion mark in net core income last year. The company’s core profit reached P10.40 billion, up by 10.58 percent from 2014’s P9.40 billion.
The firm’s leasing business grew the fastest at 23.46 percent. Leasing income from malls, commercial centers, and offices reached P8.73 billion last year.
“Our rental business had been growing exponentially the last five years. We are confident that we will reach P11 billion target by the end of this year as we see continuous growth in consumer spending as well as further expansion of BPO companies, particularly in key growth areas in Visayas and Mindanao, where Megaworld is already present,” said Francis Canuto, Megaworld’s chief finance officer in a statement.
Meanwhile, construction of other projects inside the P30-billion Mactan township is in progress.
Hernandez disclosed that one of the new offerings inside The Mactan Newtown is the wake board park and pavilion and other water sports facilities at the beach.
“The pavilion will be opened by the end of this month. It will have a beach management office that will oversee its operations,” he said.
The pavilion though is a temporary structure until plans are firmed for the construction of the five-star hotels in that area in the coming years.
“We are building the facility so our BPO locators here will have an area to do their team-building activities. It is a growing community here already,” said Hernandez, adding that all stakeholders will have access to the beach and that the facility will give them more reasons to stay in the property.
Aside from building the water sport amenity area, Megaworld will also be building Plaza Magellan, a three to five-level community mall with a restaurant and commercial offerings.
“We don’t have a timeline for the groundbreaking yet, but hopefully within the year,” said Hernandez.
Hernandez said Plaza Magellan is poised to become a major landmark of The Mactan Newtown as the mall will have an “iconic entrance plaza” facing the famous Lapu-Lapu Shrine.
The plaza’s main feature will be the life-sized Spanish Galleon Victoria, a replica of the first vessel that circumnavigated the globe used by Magellan and his men, and the Spanish Steps, which will lead visitors to the mall’s main entrance.