GT Capital, Ayala Land unit form joint venture

THE PROPERTY arm of GT Capital Holdings, Inc. teamed up with an Ayala Land, Inc. (ALI) subsidiary to build a master-planned township project in Laguna, increasing the former’s exposure in the horizontal segment of the residential market.

The holding firm of Philippine billionaire George S.K. Ty told the stock exchange that its unit Federal Land, Inc. entered into a joint venture agreement with Alveo Land Corp. for the development of a 45-hectare property in Biñan.

Alveo Land is ALI’s upper- and middle-income segment residential arm.

The Ty family, controlling shareholders of the holding firm and owner of the property, sold the land to the joint venture vehicle of Federal Land and Alveo, GT Capital Head for Investor Relations Jose T. Crisol said in a phone interview.

“Through this strategic partnership with Alveo, we look to deepen our involvement in hori- zontal property development, in as much as the historical focus of Federal Land was mostly on highrise condominium projects,” Federal Land President Alfred V. Ty said in a statement attached to the disclosure.

Federal Land has an existing horizontal project in Cavite, but the Laguna project will be larger in scale, Mr. Crisol said. Most of its projects are condominium towers in Pasay City and Bonifacio Global City in Taguig City.

The joint venture with the Ayala group is consistent with GT Capital’s business model of tying up with experts in the industries, he added.

“Being rooted in Ayala Land’s heritage of real estate excellence, Alveo Land has always aimed to create an extensive portfolio of holistic communities attuned to the needs of a dynamic, urban lifestyle,” Alveo Land President Robert S. Lao said in the same statement.

Located on Laguna Boulevard, the proposed project is accessible via the South Metro Manila Skyway and the South Luzon Expressway. It is near the De La Salle University Science and Technology Complex and the Ayala Laguna Technopark.

The property is a few kilometers from the planned Laguna Boulevard interchange of the proposed Cavite-Laguna Expressway and within the vicinity of Ayala Land’s Ayala Westgrove Heights and Nuvali projects.

Biñan is a first-class component city of Laguna with a population of 284,000, GT Capital said, citing the latest available data. It hosts several large industrial parks and commercial centers.

“Due to its proximity to the National Capital Region and the presence if major subdivisions, the city may be considered a suburban residential community of Metro Manila,” the listed firm said.

Aside from Federal Land, GT Capital has interests in Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co.; Toyota Motor Philippines Corp.; Toyota Manila Bay Corp.; Toyota Cubao, Inc.; Toyota Financial Services Philippines Corp.; Global Business Power Corp.; Philippine AXA Life Insurance Corp.; and Charter Ping An Insurance Corp.

Shares of GT Capital dropped 2.26% or P29 to close at P1,256 apiece yesterday.