SAN MIGUEL BARES P700-B CAPEX BUDGET

CONGLOMERATE San Miguel Corp. ( SMC) said it is allocating P700 billion for its capital expenditure ( capex) program from 2015 to 2022 in a bid to expand its business portfolio.

The amount excludes the P700- billion proposed airport project in Bulacan, which is currently under evaluation by the Department of Transportation.

SMC Senior Vice President Sergio Edeza told reporters on the sidelines of an investors’ briefing on Tuesday said that the P700- billion spending budget will be poured into San Miguel’s food, beverage, and infrastructure businesses.

However, no details were given as to how much of the capex has already been spent.

Early last year, reports said SMC had allocated P543.3 billion for its capital outlays from 2015 to 2020 to fund expansion plans.

Currently in the pipeline are two new breweries to be located in Mindanao and Southern Luzon. Upon completion, the new facilities will each produce two million hectoliters of beer annually.

SMC Chief Finance Officer Ferdinand Constantino said other projects include the development of its power facility in Limay, Bataan, and infrastructure projects such as the Boracay Airport— which is set for completion next year; the South and North Luzon Expressway connector road; the C6 Road; MRT- 7, and the Bulacan Bulk Water Project.

“In power, we are completing our power plant in Limay, Bataan, the first 300 megawatts ( MW) is now on- stream and the 700 MW [ capacity] is still to be completed,” Constantino said.

SMC said funding for the remaining programmed outlays until 2020 will come from equity ( 30 percent) and the rest will be raised from bond issuances and loans, among others.

Earlier in January, SMC announced it was issuing the third and final tranche of its fixed- rate peso- denominated bond worth P30 billion, with proceeds to be utilized to repay existing debt obligations. The issuance forms part of the company’s P60 billion shelf registration program.

The offer period will run from March 2 to 8, 2018. The interest rate announcement and release of final allocation will be on March 1.