MVP pursuing stake in Vita Coco maker after deal tune-up

Tycoon Manuel V. Pangilinan is pushing through with a P5.3-billion investment in Axelum Resources Corp., the supplier of US coconut water giant Vita Coco, after convincing the sellers to accept new financial terms as the publicly listed exporter booked sharp losses this year.

Pangilinan-led Metro Pacific Investments Corp., the utilities and infrastructure giant, is aiming to acquire 34.7 percent of Axelum by Jan. 15, 2024, or nearly one year after the deal was first announced.

The new terms include installment payments for a portion of the purchase price as these would be linked to profit-based milestones, according to Metro Pacific’s Hong Kong-based parent firm, First Pacific Co. Ltd.Specifically, Metro Pacific, through Metro Pacific Agro Ventures Inc. (MPAV), would pay Axelum shareholders an initial P3.87 billion or about 70 percent of the total purchase price by Dec. 22 this year to acquire common shares and convertible preferred shares.

Succeeding payments would be made as Axelum hits certain earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization milestones up to the original purchase price under the original share purchase agreement last February.

The new deal terms were finalized last Dec. 19.

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Axelum, the country’s leading manufacturer and exporter of coconut products, swung to a nearly P428 million net loss at end-Sept. on higher costs. Sales also fell 18 percent to P4.3 billion.

Axelum said the deal would help the company pursue opportunities in the Philippines and overseas while introducing new farming technology to boost the country’s food supply chain. INQ