RLC-Hongkong Land JV eyes next Phl project

Gokongwei-led real estate giant Robinsons Land Corp. (RLC) and international property development group Hongkong Land are scouting for their next big project in the Philippines following the success of their maiden venture.

“We are already looking for what could be our next project in the Philippines. So we are thinking about it,” RHK Land Corp. president and CEO John Richard Sotelo told The STAR in an interview.

“We have the Robinsons landbank obviously or if we spot a property that we feel is good for us, we can acquire. So we’re still exploring for that,” he said.

RLC and Hongkong Land, through their joint venture company RHK Land, are currently developing The Velaris Residences in Bridgetowne estate in between the cities of Quezon and Pasig.

As the pilot project of RHK Land, The Velaris Residences is a three-tower premier residential enclave, which serves the maiden showcase of RLC and Hongkong Land’s shared vision and experience.

Sotelo said construction progress is going well for the project and sales are “pretty strong.”

He said the second tower of The Velaris Residences ,which was launched last year is close to 50 percent sold.

The first tower, meanwhile, is about 90 percent sold.

“It’s our first project under the joint venture with Hongkong Land. We have topped off tower one already, the South Tower. Tower 2 is scheduled for topping off in the next 12 to 14 months. We have not yet launched Tower 3. We will launch it by next year, if ever,” Sotelo said.

“As with everything in premium or luxury, the volume is obviously not as fast, but given the high value of the properties, sales are doing very well,” he said.

Sotelo said RHK Land is not considering any properties outside the Philippines at present, with its sights focused solely on the country.

Hongkong Land, a member of the Jardine Matheson Group, manages prime office and luxury retail property in key Asian cities, principally in Hong Kong, Singapore and Beijing.

RLC, for its part, is a leading diversified real estate firm in the country which holds over 800 hectares of land nationwide.

RLC’s residential division has 90 residential condominium projects under the RLC Residences brand and 40 housing subdivisions under the Robinsons Homes brand, of which 100 have been completed and 30 are still ongoing as of end last year.

The company likewise has a diverse portfolio covering luxury hotels and resorts, upscale deluxe hotels, mid-market city and resort hotels and essential service value hotels.

It ended 2023 with 26 hotels and resort for a total of 4,243 owned room keys consisting of 13 Go Hotels, seven Summit Hotels and Resorts, one Grand Summit Hotel, four international brands and one Fili Hotel.

Further, RLC operates 54 shopping malls as of end-2023 and has so far completed 31 office developments in strategic locations around the country.